Cleaning your car’s interior is just as important as cleaning the exterior. Keeping the cabin clean is essential for keeping the space free of microbes and dust that cause health issues. The car’s dashboard’s plastic structure and electronic components can become a veritable nest of dust if not cleaned regularly. Here are some of the best ways to clean your car dashboard in simple and easy steps.
Clean Car’s Dashboard: Step-by-Step
To make your car dashboard warning lights more visible, here is how you can easily clean a car’s dashboard in a simple way.
- A microfiber cloth and an old toothbrush for polishing, combined with a little warm water.
- Some home ingredients to clean the car dashboard are white vinegar. You can also use a little olive oil to make the dashboard’s part look shiny.
- It is better to use natural products because they are ecological and certain chemical substances could damage plastics.
- If you prefer to use sprays or wax, always start by testing them on an invisible part.
Steps to Clean Your Car Dashboard
Once you get all the required materials such as microfiber cloth, water, brush and other items, it’s time to clean the dashboard.
Step 1: Dust off Your Car Dashboard and Center Console
Use a brush attached to your vacuum hose to remove the contaminated dust easily. Vacuum all the dashboard parts thoroughly especially on crevices where dust accumulates easily. Also, don’t forget to remove the dust from the air vents.
Step 2: Wipe the Dashboard with a Microfiber Cloth
You can make a car dashboard interior cleaning product at home by using the following items:
- Vinegar
- Dish soap
- Baby oil
To create it, take a cup of warm water and add a tablespoon of white vinegar dish soap and 2 teaspoons of baby oil. Besides, you can also use warm water and mild soap as a simple cleaning solution.
- Now, spray your cleaner/protector on a microfiber cloth first, then wipe the area, one small section at a time.
- If you spray the product directly on the surface, you will have repercussions on interior elements which will generate more work later, such as the windshield, screens, meters, etc.
- Once you are done wiping one part with the solution, take another clean cloth or towel and dampened it in clean water to remove the solution.
- This prevents the solution from drying on the dashboard.
Step 3: Clean the Surrounding Areas of the Dashboard
- Once you are done cleaning the dashboard, use the cleaning solution to clean the other plastic interior parts such as the steering wheel, gear shift and centre console. Here are some useful tips to clean the car’s steering wheel.
- Use the same cleaning method here, however, you can use the screen wipes to clean the infotainment systems.
Step 4: Use Toothpaste and a Toothbrush for Stubborn Stains
You can remove stubborn stains with the help of toothpaste. For instance;
- Gently rub toothpaste with help of a soft bristle brush and remove it with clean damped water.
It is important to note here that, before you directly apply toothpaste, always do a spot test first to avoid any adverse reaction.
Step 5: Clean the Crevices with a Detailing Brush
Your cloth or tower won’t reach small crevices or parts; hence you need to use a soft bristling brush or a detailing brush to clean those areas. The parts include dashboard knobs, buttons and air vents and other narrow spaces.
Step 6: Apply Polish
Once you get rid of all the dust accumulated on your dashboard, it’s time to make your dashboard shine like a new one. Besides commercial polish and wax, you can use olive oil, baby oil, or petroleum jelly for polishing.
Put some olive oil on a microfiber towel and rub it all over the dashboard. This not only makes the plastic shine but will also make it much easier for you to remove dust next time.
Why Should You Clean Your Interior Dashboard?
The dashboard is an important part of a car’s interior. This means it will be highly visible when clean or dirty. Cleaning the dashboard will also make this part more pleasant to look at. Due to all the small curves, edges and small gaps, it can be difficult to clean a dashboard properly.
Moreover, the maintenance of your used car’s dashboard is essential to considerably increase the chances of selling it. From exterior to interior, your used car should look like new, no matter what time of year. Hence, for your comfort, it is important to clean the dashboard of your used car regularly.
Car Dashboard Cleaning Tips
- Always try to work in the shade. Working in the sun could cause a product to dry faster than it should and even leave stains.
- Be careful with solvents. A dashboard is mostly made of plastic, and solvents might damage the surface easily.
- Try not to use strong cleaners as they may also damage the surface.
- Using lots of water can be a problem with any electrical components in and around the dashboard.
- A toothbrush can be used to get into small crevices, but be careful not to scratch sensitive plastics or gleaming surfaces.
- Do not spray liquid near electronic components, as this may damage them.
- Carry out a product test on a small surface before cleaning it.
- Avoid using alcohol-based chemicals and abrasive sponges.
With this, we end our tips on how to clean a car’s dashboard. As you can see, the dashboard is not just the indicator lights but an important part of the front cabin of your car. Hence don’t wait until your dashboard is dull and dusty to maintain it. Give it a little cleaning once a week to prevent dirt from setting in. Be sure to follow these few tips to clean your dashboard quickly and safely.
If you are looking for modern used cars for sale in the UAE with an advanced dashboard system, check out a range of used cars for sale in the UAE here. Some of them include:
- Used Mercedes Benz S Class for sale
- Second-hand BMW 7 series for sale
- Used Land Rover Range Rover for sale
Stay tuned to UAE’s top auto blog for more car cleaning tips.
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