How to clean your car's interior step by step

This weekend, I've decided to finally tackle the job of cleaning the inside of my car.

It deserves it because while I often think about cleaning the exterior, the inside of my car tends to be neglected… until the dust and bad smells become unbearable!

In this guide, I’m going to explain how to clean the inside of your car step by step, along with the tools and products needed for each step.

Cleaning your car has never been easier!

The equipment and products you need

Let’s start with the most important things – it’s always best to have everything ready before you begin.

I’ll walk you through the tools that will make your job easier and the cleaning products that will be most useful. The good news is that you probably already have them at home.

What equipment will you need?

• microfibre cloths

• rubber gloves

• sponges 

• a carpet brush

• a stiff-bristle brush

• a soft-bristle brush

• various sizes of brushes (or an old toothbrush)

• old towels or rags

• a large rubbish bag

• a vacuum cleaner with different attachments: to reach all the tight spots

• a steam cleaner: especially effective for fabrics 

Cloths, sponges, and a vacuum are absolutely essential, and it’s likely you already have them at home. The rest are extras that will make the job easier, but they aren’t essential.

What cleaning products should you use for your car’s interior?

• leather soap

• leather cream

• black soap

• baking soda

• glass cleaner or white vinegar

• washing-up liquid

• hydrogen peroxide

Most of the products you’ll use can already be found in your cupboards. It’s convenient, affordable, and means you won’t need a trip to the supermarket.

Find an expert to clean your car

Cleaning your car’s interior: step by step

To make life easier, I’ve organised the cleaning into steps. This way, you can be sure you won’t need to repeat any tasks.

If you follow these tips and tricks, the inside of your car will look almost like new!

Step 1: tidy up the mess

Let’s start with the obvious – you won’t get far in your cleaning if the inside of your car looks like this:

Begin by emptying everything out, and don’t forget the boot because we’ll be cleaning that too!

Remove the mats and, if possible, take out the seats. It will be much easier to clean them thoroughly this way.

Step 2: vacuum the fabric areas

The second step is to vacuum every corner of the car to remove dust, sand, crumbs, and pet hair.

If certain items like the floor mats are removable, take them out of the car and give them a good shake to really get rid of the embedded dust.

Make good use of the vacuum’s attachments to reach into every crevice.

Step 3: clean the inside of the windscreen with white vinegar

Often overlooked, the inside of the windscreen also deserves a little attention.

To do this, place some old towels or rags on your dashboard to catch any drips.

Next, prepare your magic potion made of a cup of hot water, a teaspoon of washing-up liquid, and a few drops of white vinegar.

Using a microfibre cloth soaked in the homemade glass cleaner, start washing the windscreen from top to bottom.

Make small circular movements, and go over any spots if needed.

Step 4: tips for cleaning your car’s plastic like a pro

Cleaning your car’s plastic surfaces is probably the most time-consuming task. Between the hard-to-reach corners and delicate parts that need special care, you’ll need to be patient.

Start with the air vents and speakers, which you should dust with a brush or toothbrush.

Then, dust the other plastic surfaces with a microfibre cloth.

Now, it’s time to clean the dirty areas!

Here, you have a few options:

• Make a mixture of warm water with a few drops of washing-up liquid

• Make a soap and warm water mix

• Use a damp microfibre cloth

Which one you choose depends on how dirty your plastic surfaces are, but all options work well. Don’t forget that it’s important that your sponge or cloth is just damp, not soaking wet. Your car’s plastics don’t need to be drenched.

In short, avoid doing this:

Can I clean my car’s plastics with baking soda?

Yes, it’s possible, and it’s actually recommended!

Especially if you have stains on the plastic parts of your dashboard. Baking soda is a miracle product that will help disinfect the dirtier areas.

Add it to your mixture of warm water and black soap for even better results.

Can I clean a car’s plastics with black soap?

You might have noticed that black soap is one of the recommended products. That’s because it can also be used to clean your car’s plastics if you don’t have washing-up liquid or if you want to use a more effective product than regular soap.

To use it, fill a bowl with warm water and dissolve a few pieces of black soap.

Dampen and wring out a sponge or microfibre cloth to clean the plastics with ease.

How can I make my dashboard’s plastic shine again?

Over time, your car’s plastic surfaces will start to dull and lose their shine. Don’t worry – it’s possible to restore your dashboard to its former glory.

First, dust and clean the plastic using one of the methods mentioned earlier.

Then, you have a few options:

• rub the plastics with a cloth soaked in a few drops of fabric softener

• put a few drops of olive oil on a microfibre cloth and clean the plastics with small circular motions

• use a small amount of linseed oil and wipe all the plastic surfaces in your car

Step 5: clean the fabric surfaces and carpets

At this point in your cleaning, everything should be dust-free, and the plastic surfaces should be spotless.

Now, all that’s left is the seats and carpets, which should ideally be outside the car. This is the longest and most challenging part to clean, and it’s also the part where I’d recommend calling in a professional car cleaner (like the ones you can book on Yoojo), if you don’t want to spend hours on it!

However, I’ll still explain how to quickly clean your seats and carpets. If you want to deep clean your car seats.

You can clean the stains in two ways:

• use a cloth soaked in hydrogen peroxide and scrub to remove unsightly stains on the carpets and upholstery

• mix a cup of baking soda in 1 litre of water and use a sponge to tackle the tough stains

Once the fabric is dry, give it a vacuum.

If your fabrics have an unpleasant odour, you can also brush them gently with a little baking soda while they’re dry to disinfect them.

BONUS: The magic of white vinegar for cleaning your car

Use white vinegar to clean various parts of the car (dashboard, steering wheel, handbrake, gear lever, etc.).

The carpets should be vacuumed first and then scrubbed with a brush dipped in a mix of ⅔ water and ⅓ white vinegar.

Is it worth getting your car’s interior cleaned by an expert?

If you’ve read through this guide, you’ll have realised that cleaning your car’s interior is time-consuming and tedious.

If you want to clean it thoroughly, it’ll take at least 2 to 3 hours.

No need to go to the car wash station, no need to wait 3 hours on-site doing nothing, and no need to pay an exorbitant amount for a simple vacuum.

With Yoojo, it’s when you want, where you want, at the price you choose.