9 Simple Steps for Cleaning Your Car This Spring

Congratulations, you survived another long Canadian winter. However, before you get too excited about the upcoming months of warmer and drier driving conditions, spring is a great time to take stock of your vehicle's condition with a proper spring cleaning.

The reasons for cleaning your vehicle at this time of year are sometimes all too obvious. Over the winter months, your car, SUV, truck, or minivan’s exterior has been pelted with snow, freezing rain, and the salt and grime that are all part of driving in Canada during the winter. This ragged winter coat can damage your car's paint, bodywork, and suspension components if not removed promptly and properly. Cleaning your interior is also important to remove any dirt or salt from the vehicle and any winter accessories you don't need for the upcoming summer driving months.

Here are a few simple steps to refresh your vehicle's appearance after the winter season.

Step 1: Preparing Your Car Before You Start Cleaning

While it may be tempting to grab a hose and start spraying your vehicle, a little preparation beforehand will make the process easier, faster, and yield better results.

First, remove any objects from the car that may obstruct your cleaning. This can include leftover garbage, parking vouchers, coffee cups, and empty snack bags. You probably also have winter-specific car accessories, so don't forget to remove any snow brushes, floor mats, trunk liners, washer fluid bottles, and child seats — basically, anything that will get in the way of getting access to your car’s interior parts or surfaces.

Next, open the vehicle’s doors, front hood, rear trunk, or hatchback openings. This will allow you to clean out any accumulated road debris or even leftover leaves from the previous fall season from door jambs, cargo areas, and the engine bay.

What You’ll Need: Garbage bag/container.

Spring Cleaning Tip: Select a location that is not directly exposed to sunlight. The sun can cause soap and water to evaporate quickly, leaving streaks and soap residue. 

Step 2: Wash the Winter Floor Mats

Before you tackle the exterior and interior of your car, it's best to clean the vehicle’s floor mats and trunk or cargo liners first.

Start by removing loose debris from the mats, followed by a thorough vacuuming to get the remaining dirt. For rubber mats, spray them with a hose, then scrub them with a wire brush with soapy water, followed by a final rinse. If you have cloth mats, apply an all-purpose cleaning solution or a specialized carpet cleaner. Put the mats aside and allow them to dry while you clean the rest of the vehicle.

What You’ll Need: Garden hose/pressure washer, vacuum, car soap, wire brush, all-purpose cleaner, carpet cleaning solution.

Spring Cleaning Tip: You can also toss cloth mats in a washing machine on a gentle cycle.

Step 3: Wash the Wheels and Tires

Your car's wheels and tires are constantly exposed to dirt, grime, and brake dust. It's best to clean them first so that this grime doesn't spill on the car's bodywork.

Start by rinsing the wheels and tires. If you find a lot of brake dust on the wheels after the initial rinse, you'll want to apply a specialized brake dust-removing solution that can dissolve the brake dust and make it water-soluble. (Brake dust is particularly abrasive and can be difficult to remove from the paint, so cleaning it off the wheels first helps prevent it from being transferred to the vehicle’s exterior panels.)

Next, apply a specialized wheel cleaner or car soap, using a soft wire brush to scrub. 

Finally, rinse thoroughly with water and dry with a microfibre towel to prevent water spots.

What You’ll Need: Garden hose/pressure washer, brake dust removing solution, wheel cleaner or bucket of car soap, soft-wire brush, microfibre towel.

Spring Cleaning Tip: Start by rinsing the underside of your car and the wheel wells. This will remove any salt or dirt that may have accumulated on the vehicle’s underbody, suspension, and exhaust system before you proceed with cleaning the wheels, tires, and the rest of the car.

Step 4: Wash the Car's Exterior

With the underside and wheels free of debris, it's time to wash the vehicle's body. Let's separate this major part of your spring car cleaning process into smaller steps:

• Rinse: This will remove any debris that may scratch the vehicle's bodywork if you start washing with a cloth. Let gravity do its thing by starting at the top of the car, then moving towards the bottom.
• Wash: Fill a warm water bucket with your cleaning solution. Avoid using household cleaning agents, such as hand soap, dishwashing detergent, or glass cleaner. These aren't formulated to work on a car's paint and may strip off protective sealants. Like rinsing, start at the top and work your way down, using a sponge or a specialized car cleaning microfibre mitt.
• Rinse (again!): Remove the soap by rinsing from top to bottom. With many cars not washed since the beginning of winter, it's not unusual that you'll still find a film of dirt. Another round of washing and rinsing should remove any leftover winter grime.

What You'll Need: A garden hose or /pressure washer, a bucket of car soap, and a washcloth.

Spring Cleaning Tip: Use the two-bucket car wash method, with one bucket for soapy water and another for rinsing the washcloth. This helps minimize scratches and swirls on the car's paint by keeping dirt from recontaminating the wash mitt. 

Step 5: Dry the Car's Exterior

Before any leftover water from the final rinse has time to dry and form spots on your vehicle's exterior, start drying your car. 

Using a leaf blower will speed up the process and mitigate any potential scratching caused by applying a drying towel. Use the blower to remove the majority of the water on the vehicle's exterior, especially from hard-to-reach areas, such as grilles, body panel seams, or intricate wheel finishes. 

Finish drying with a microfibre towel to remove any water spots. 

What You'll Need: Leaf blower, microfibre towel.

Spring Cleaning Tip: When using a microfibre towel to dry, ensure it's always damp, as you should never dry-wipe your car’s paint. 

Step 6: Clean the Windows

You may say, "Hey, I just washed my car. Why do I need to clean the windows again?" Especially after a long Canadian winter, even after a thorough exterior wash, you may find that your vehicle's windows still appear streaky. To get them looking as good as the rest of your car, use a specially formulated cleaning solution made for car windows. 

What You'll Need: Window cleaning solution, two microfibre towels.

Spring Cleaning Tip: To get them looking clear and shiny, use separate microfibre towels: the first is to apply the cleaning solution, and the second is to wipe it up. 

Step 7: Protect the Car's Exterior

Now that you've spent all this time removing winter's worst from your car's exterior, protecting it will not only keep it looking cleaner, but also make your next few washes easier.

Traditionally, you can protect your car's clean exterior with car wax or polish and a cloth. Start by applying the car polish with a powered buffer or by hand, using light pressure and a back-and-forth motion. Finally, wipe off any excess polish with a microfibre cloth.

What You'll Need: Car polish, buffer, microfibre towels.

Spring Cleaning Tip: Instead of traditional wax or polish, use a spray wax with a drying aid. This process will take less time to apply than a conventional wax and polish, and the car will dry faster.

Step 8: Clean the Car’s Interior

Some drivers argue that having a clean interior is more important than having a shiny exterior. Thankfully, cleaning your car's cabin after a season of winter driving is relatively simple.

Start by vacuuming the cabin. Like washing the outside of your car, start at the top (steering wheel, dash, door panels, seats) and leave the floor carpet until last. You can also brush your carpet with a stiff brush while vacuuming to remove stubborn dirt.

Next, apply an all-purpose cleaner to any interior trim. To clean the glass properly, use two microfiber towels: one for cleaning and one for drying. Also, use the appropriate cleaning solution when cleaning the upholstery (leather upholstery needs a specific leather-cleaning solution) and the interior glass.

Finish up by scrubbing your carpets and carpet mats. To remove salt stains from car carpets, apply a solution of equal parts white vinegar and warm water to the stain using a soft wire brush or sponge. Let it sit for a few minutes, then blot it with a towel. 

What You’ll Need: Vacuum, all-purpose upholstery cleaner, glass cleaning solution, white vinegar, microfibre towels, soft-wire brush.

Spring Cleaning Tip: Wrap a microfibre towel around a screwdriver and apply an all-purpose cleaner. Use this tool to get at your car cabin’s smaller recesses, controls, and buttons.

Step 9: Post-Car Wash Maintenance

Now that your vehicle is cosmetically ready for spring driving, this is a great time to perform some seasonal maintenance.

Whether you've changed your winter tires to summer rubber or not, check the tread of both sets. This is also a good time to check the tires’ pressure, the condition of the cabin filter, the engine air filter, as well as brake, oil, and washer fluid levels. 

Finally, a typical Canadian winter can cause wear and tear on your wiper blades, so it's a good idea to check if they need replacement. If they’re streaky, it’s time to replace them.