We’re coming into September and for South Africans and others on the southern side of the equator: it’s Springtime! For most of us, that means sweeping out the winter cold and welcoming in fresh, new energy for the season ahead. And that includes your yearly spring car cleaning routine.
When you become a car owner, you’re taking on a whole new responsibility. Cars last for longer when they’re well cared for, and you don’t have to be a mechanic to do your part. Cars depreciate in value the moment you take the keys.
That’s a fact and the only thing you can do about it is make sure it maintains as much value as it can. That means (drum roll) keeping that baby spick and span on a consistent basis. So, once you’re done with a good spring clean, know that you can run through these steps as often as you’d like.
Read this: 7 Spring Cleaning Tips to Organise and Declutter Your Home
Some Handy Car Cleaning Tips for Spring
Step 1: Everything leaves the interior
Has your car turned into a gym locker room and tissue graveyard? Maybe so. Before you start cleaning, bring everything out of your car, including the floor mats. Clean your compartments and organise what needs to go where.
Bring two baskets outside and decide what needs to stay in your car and what needs to go back in the house – and throw away clutter you find.
Step 2: It’s dust-busting time
Next, you must remove built-up dirt and grime. Do this before you do any wiping down. Open all your doors and hook up your vacuum. Use a bristled nozzle to bring the dirt up off the carpeting, seats, cup holders and crevices. Make sure you get into your door panel.
Vacuum the boot and get into the mats that you removed when you cleared everything out. Take a hard bristle brush to your mats – they’re made of tight fibres that hold a lot of dirt with dirty shoes and sandy feet coming in and out. They could use a good scrub.
Once you’ve vacuumed, clean the dashboard, gear stick and consol with a slightly wet and soapy cloth. The less water, the better but you do want a bit of moisture to wipe away dirt and residue dust.
Related: 5 ways to combat your spring allergies
Step 3: Wash the exterior
You may be tempted to go to the carwash on this one, and that’s okay. But hand-washing is the real way to properly scrub your car and this way you can keep an eye out for any scratches that may invite rust in the future.
First, you’ll need two buckets: one for your water and car wash liquid and another filled with clean water to rinse off your sponge. That’s one thing you really want to avoid, making your car dirtier than it was before by using grimy water! Dirty water could also cause scratches from leftover debris that was previously wiped off.
Start by rinsing the car with your garden hose until it’s wet everywhere. Apply the soapy solution starting from the top of the car and working your way down. This way, you catch any drips that cause streak marks. Do not do all four sides of your car at once as the soap will dry before you get to rinsing.
Do each side one by one, soaping and rinsing. Once you’ve washed everything (windows, screens and bumpers included) rinse the whole car again and remove excess water with a chamois for a clean finish.
Pro Tip: household cleaning agents can damage the paint job on your car. For long-lasting shine, invest in a proper car cleaning soap.
To take it one step further, apply wax and polish your car for a professional-looking finish.
Step 4: Wheels and Tyres
After driving for months in the cold it’s likely that your wheels have taken a bit of a beating. Check the tread, air pressure and alignment before you get back onto the spring roads. Rotating your tyres is an essential step for maintaining the quality of your tyres.
If your tyre is exposed to the same pressure in the same position, it will begin to wear and tear in one place. Rotating your tyres is a simple switch of tyre position to prevent worn-out tyres. You could swap them in an X pattern, cross over the back two tyres and bring them to the front or switch the front two tyres from left to right and bring them towards the back.
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Step 5: Engine
It’s important for a car owner to at least have some sort of idea of what’s going on beneath the hood. Start by checking all your fluids: brake fluid, water levels, windscreen wiper fluid and oil. Spring would be the ideal time to change your oil after it has been affected by a cold winter.
Once you’ve checked and topped up your fluid levels, take a dry cloth and wipe around the rims of all bottle caps and inside the engine, making sure not to leave any microfibres lying around.
We hope you jump into spring feeling fresher than ever in your sparkling clean car.
Your Insurance Family,
Oneplan
