How to Detail a Car's Interior: 6 Simple Steps
I still remember the time me and my partner detailed our first car interior. Right before we started, I watched plenty of how-to videos online and bought $500 worth of tools. And when we got to the first steps of car detailing, we still had only the slightest idea of what to actually do. To this day, it was the toughest detail I’ve ever had to do! And, I’ve cleaned cars for multiple years now.
So, with this article, I want to describe a way to make detailing an interior of a car SIMPLE. Whether you’re a car detailer or someone with some extra free time, here are a few steps that make car detailing less of a hassle!
Preparation
Before you start a car detail, you want to make sure you have the right supplies. I summarize these supplies in an article: Can I detail a Car Myself?. Once you get the right supplies, you can pull your car out and get it ready!
First things first, remove all of the large items such as trash or personal belongings. All those water bottles and old receipts need to finally be extracted.
Then take out the floor mats and seat coverings. This opens up more area to get a deeper clean and possibly remove any hidden odor!
Now you should be ready to begin using all your supplies and following the interior car detailing steps.
Interior Car Detailing Steps
There are two types of interior detailing you may do for your vehicle. One is a Basic interior detailing and the other is a Deep interior detailing. A deeper clean requires supplies that may not be as accessible to you, but helps if you wanted a comprehensive clean. I will walk through both of these throughout the next steps:
Step 1: A Quick Dust and Vacuum
- Basic:
- You’ll want to grab a microfiber towel and wipe the dust off all surfaces in the car.
- Then, grab a vacuum and wire brush to hit the carpets. Don’t forget spots like in between seats, under seats, cup holders in the middle console and doors, and any other hidden areas.
- If there is a lot of dirt in certain spots, you can use a wire brush to agitate the carpet and vacuum it up.
- Deep:
- You can start by dusting the surface of the entire vehicle, or use an air gun to remove all the dust from surfaces and the carpets.
- Then, use a wire brush or drill brush to agitate the carpet.
- Finally, vacuum up the dirt that was brought up to the surface. A thin vacuum head/crevice tool can help you clean all tight spots.
Step 2: Carpet Cleaning
- Basic:
- Once you eliminate most of the car’s surface dirt, you can use an all-purpose cleaner and brush/drill brush to wash the carpets or cloth seats.
- If the headliner is dirty you want to clean that as well: spray a microfiber towel, close your hand to make a fist, put the towel over the fist, and rub the stain lightly.
- Hit all areas even under the seats and the trunk.
- Deep:
- Grab a drill brush and carpet extractor, and make sure you spray, brush, and extract all cloth surfaces and carpets.
- Lightly saturate the headliner with cleaner and agitate to rid it of any stains.
- Use a microfiber towel or extractor to extract excess soap.
- Then, hit every surface with carpet cleaner soap and hot water if possible.
- You can also use a steamer to get rid of any gunk like gum or hard stains.
- Make sure to spot-treat any stains and use the extractor multiple times as a way to remove deep dirt and debris.
Step 3: All Surface Cleaning
- Basic:
- Now you can use a detail brush/scrubber, all purpose cleaner, and a microfiber towel on plastic surfaces, the dashboards, the steering wheel, crevices, etc.
- Spray the brush/scrubber and gently clean the surfaces, then wipe it down with the towel leaving no residue.
- Don’t forget parts such as the seatbelt, inside the center console, and under the seats.
- Deep:
- You can use a brush, scrubber, or drill brush to hit all surfaces.
- Our favorite cleaner to use is P&S Interior Cleaner because it does the job and smells amazing.
- The brush/scrubber works on smaller surface areas while the drill brush can help clean large areas thoroughly like doors or seats.
- You can use a detail swab or a steamer in tiny gaps (usually on the center console) to get rid of any gunk stuck in between crevices.
- If the car has leather seats make sure to use a leather treatment to keep the material healthy.
Step 4: Door Jambs and Windows
- Basic:
- There is a certain method for windows to clean them without streaks. Grab two towels. One will be the wet towel and the other will be the dry towel. Use a window cleaner like Sprayway on the window, then wipe with the wet towel and get all the edges, then grab the dry towel and go in a certain motion (up and down or left to right) to get a streak-free clean.
- Don’t forget the mirrors and glass inside the vehicle as well.
- The door jambs also need to be cleaned and this is done easily with a wash and wax spray and a microfiber towel. Spray all corners and ends with the wax spray, then clean off the dirt with the towel.
- Deep:
- Use Magic Erasers and interior cleaner on windows and mirrors to get rid of any sticky gunk (don’t use on tinted windows).
- Steamers also can help deep clean windows.
- After, you can do the spray with window cleaner, wipe with a wet towel, and wipe with a dry towel method to leave a window spotless.
- If the door jambs are too dirty, use a power washer and carefully spray the door jambs, wipe to dry them, and then use the wash and wax with a microfiber towel.
Step 5: Final Run Through
- Basic:
- Make sure that the carpet and other areas are clean.
- There are spots you possibly missed and you can use this time to re-touch on those areas.
- Some stains or scratches are embedded in the car, so you’ll either have to order a new part for the car or learn to live with it.
- After, hit the floor mats that you left outside with all purpose cleaner, brushes, and the vacuum
- Use soap and water if they are heavy-duty mats.
- Re-vacuum the vehicle one last time and place the mats back in their rightful places.
- Deep:
- Make sure all spots are cleaned and use the carpet extractor on any remaining stains on the carpets/cloth seats.
- Use the extractor on the floor mats as well.
- If they are heavy duty mats, the pressure washer and wash and wax can help clean those.
- Now you can use interior protectant to keep the car looking shiny and clean.
- Use leather conditioner on the leather as well.
- Re-vacuum one last time and replace the floor mats.
Step 6: Freshen Up
- Basic:
- The last part helps leave a clean smell running through your newly detailed car.
- Lightly spray the floors with an air refreshener such as Lysol.
- Then turn the vents on, switch on the recirculation button, and let a bit of Lysol run through the ventilation system.
- Finally, add your favorite hanging air refreshener and enjoy the clean ride.
- Deep:
- In the final step, you can start by using a steamer to run through the vents.
- Then use Lysol or any other similar spray on the floors and through the vents using the recirculation button.
- If you have a tough odor smell like smoke, this is the time to rent an ozone machine and run it through an odor removal process.
- After it airs out, hang up the air refreshener and enjoy the clean ride.
What NOT to do:
Now you know how to clean your interior, it’s good to know what you should AVOID doing. Such as:
- Over saturating the carpets, cloth seats, and headliner – This can damage the material and lead to water stains. Use methods such as a fist in the towel on the headliner or spot cleaning.
- Using the wrong cleaning products/overusing products – Always test a chemical on surfaces of the car to make sure it doesn’t leave residue. Some “all purpose chemicals” are not meant for cars. And, don’t overuse a chemical, some stains and scratches will not come out.
- Using abrasive tools abrasively – Many parts of a car are fragile and can break off. If you use the drill brush on everything, you are bound to have a vent part or loose knob come flying off. Be gentle or you’ll damage the car rather than clean it.
- Rushing through the steps – Detailing is called Detailing for a reason. If you forget to vacuum under the seats, you may still have a lingering smell. Take breaks and make sure to re-check everything in the end.
- Forgetting hidden parts of the car – Some parts of the car may be forgotten about like the seatbelts or buckles. Sometimes, we can even forget the trunk or rear mirror. Be sure to do the final run-through and think outside the box when detailing a car.
- Sticking to a step-by-step guide – It may sound ironic in this article, but all cars are unique. Some cars just need a vacuum, while some cars need a special cleaner for the retractable roof. Detail the best way you can for each individual car.
Can You Detail a Car Interior Now?
It’s a lot easier said than done, as I described in the beginning of the article. But now, with this simple information, you’re equipped with the basic knowledge of interior car detailing. With the six simple steps I gave you, you now know how to start doing your own interior detailing.
To simply recap, start off with the preparation, and then dust off the surface and vacuum everywhere. Clean the carpets and any cloth parts of the car such as seats or the headliner. Brush up on the plastic surfaces and areas aside from the carpets and cloth parts. Hit the glass and door jambs to make the car appear shinier. Make sure you run through and check all the spots to make sure you’re 1,000% clean (as best as can be). Finally, give the car a better smell with air refreshener and you’re all set. Don’t forget to make sure your read what NOT to do to keep you from damaging the car! Sounds easy, right?
The best way to do an interior cleaning is to start with what you think works best. You know the basics, so get out there and gain the experience. Eventually, you’ll learn the ins and the outs of vehicles and have a routine that shortens the time you spend detailing. So take the next step and get to detailing!!
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