Car Dealership Cleaning Tricks

Selling a car is hard enough without it having an interior brimming with dust, old potato chips and stains. Large dealerships hire crews of people whose job is to make cars look as good as new. The process of doing so goes far beyond simple cleaning and into the realm of true restoration, which can be done by anyone with the right tools, know-how and an eye for detail.

Removal of Parts

  • A professional detail job will involve removal of as many interior components as possible. This includes seats, air conditioning vents, speaker covers and interior panels wherever possible. It's far easier to thoroughly clean an item when you have access to every part of it, and you'd be amazed what you'll find hiding within, beneath and behind any given part of your interior.

Vacuuming

  • Although it is tempting to use one of those portable car vacuums that plug into your car's cigarette lighter, don't do it. They don't have enough power to lift the deepest-set of dirt. Most dealerships will steam-clean the carpet and cloth upholstery with carpet shampoo and follow behind with a powerful wet-dry shop vac.

    If you have a leather interior, stay away from using hard plastic attachments that may scratch the finish. The only place where a soft brush-headed attachment won't work is in the smallest of gaps, where a long crevice tool is the only one for the job.

Brushes

  • One of the more obvious "tricks" behind proper detailing is using cleaning brushes designed for the job. Whereas most people use toothbrushes, Q-tips and paint brushes to clean the junk out of the tight spaces around trim components, there are better options. Dedicated trim brushes come in a variety of sizes, shapes and stiffness levels to reach into the tightest spaces and do a professional job.

Cleaning Windows

  • Clean windows after doing everything else inside. This will prevent soiling of the window panes while you're doing the dirty work inside.

Cleaning Solutions

  • Although there are dozens of cleaning components on the market today, the best and cheapest are available at your local hardware store. Simple Green, Kaboom and Formula 409 will do just as good a job on hard plastic and vinyl surfaces as any of the more expensive specialty products.

Polishing

  • To really make your interior shine, polish everything metal, clear plastic or wood-grain in your interior. Polishing is more invasive than waxing or cleaning. It involves using an abrasive compound that physically resurfaces the part you're using it on, removing those tiny scratches that make it dull. For chrome or aluminum parts, use a dedicated metal polish like Wenol, Brasso or Mother's Billet Polish. Plastic parts call for a finer-grit polish like Mother's Plastic Polish, Griot's or Maguiar's PlastX. For small parts, use a polishing pad on a hobby-store rotary tool.