Hey guys,
Just thought I would share this with you. Just finished cleaning the interior of an 07 Honda Accord (tan interior) that was recently signed over to me. It actually runs and drives good, and the outside isn't bad for it's age and mileage, but OMG was this thing nasty inside. Think inside of a fast food dumpster levels of nasty (smell and filth)! I wanted to hurl when I really took a look and started emptying it out due to how disgusting it was inside with old food, stains, grease, dirty clothes, etc...
I will never understand people who treat vehicles this way? Doesn't help both of them worked in industrial jobs and were always filthy after work.
So to be honest the plan was to just get it as clean as I could and then try to sell it for a few bucks. Figured if I could get the trash and other debris out, and wash it up good, I could then use some spray dye to spruce up the rugs and probably the seats too. But had to get it cleaned up 1st (or it would be a part car at best). 4 trash bags FULL of crap later I had it empty.
So with it empty I just started on the headliner and worked downward. As I went I was surprised at how well 2 products worked to clean the interior. Products I had used before (why I got them again) and thought were good but I had NEVER put them to a test like this. To shorten this up after a day of working on the car it looks so good inside that I might just keep it and sell my 05 Accord that has about 60K more miles than this 07!!!! I am stunned at how clean I got the inside. No need for any dye now either. Just a lot of Febreze and pine tree air fresheners.
Still can see a few very light stains here and there if you look at the right angle but overall the inside looks great now. Can't believe it.
So the 2 products in question are...
1. Armor All Cleaning Wipes. Just the basic plain ones. Not the ones with scents and citrus oil and such (additives might stain upholstery). Most people think these are only for the dash and other plastic/vinyl trim pieces and that is not so. In addition to cleaning off the dash and trim really well these wipes work great for cleaning stains off of seat upholstery and headliners too. Always test a small area 1st for color safety but I have never had them stain anything once the liquid on them dries. The headliner and seats were covered with a black greasy residue and dirt, the headliner/visors had small spots of stuff (soda or food?) all over it, and the seats had huge black grease and food/drink stains on them. It was awful. But using these wipes (used an entire container of the largest size) and scrubbing at the spots, and changing wipes frequently (once they dry out or get really dirty you need to change them), they are about 95%+ gone. I truly am stunned. If you have a really stubborn stain lay a fresh wipe over it, press down so it is nice and flat, and cover with a towel and let sit for like 15 minutes. It seems to loosen the stain up. Just scrub at them until they are gone. You will be amazed at how it just makes those stains go away. Even on tan upholstery. Unless you are right on top of them now the seats look almost new!
http://www.armorall.com/products/wipes/cleaning-wipes
2. Turtle Wax Power Out Carpet & Mat Cleaner. Looks like your typical spray foam carpet cleaner but man does it work. Vacuum the rug to remove as much dirt and debris as you can and then spray a good heavy/thick layer of foam on (especially on the stained areas). Let it sit for about 1-2 minutes and then take a good stiff nylon scrub brush (the one with the can is useless - can't hold it - I got a cheap one at WalMart in the household cleaning section for $1.47) and go over the entire rug scrubbing vigorously. The foam will get pretty nasty as you go and the stains just go away. Really tough stains might require an additional treatment. Once you are done scrubbing wipe any excess foam up with a rag and let the rugs dry then vacuum good. This stuff brought this nasty, dirty, stained beyond belief tan carpet back from the dead. There is one area where it is a little darker than the rest as it was the worst stain in the entire car, and it was hard to get at it with the brush, but it really isn't bad or noticeable. I could dye it but frankly it isn't bad enough for me to bother. The rug looks like new again overall.
https://www.turtlewax.com/our-products/power-out/turtle-wax-power-out-carpet-mats-cleaner
Sorry I don't have any before/after photos. I never expected to be able to get it to the state it is in with just these products. So I didn't bother take photos of how bad it was. Wish now I had LOL. I just can't believe I was able to save this tan interior without dye. I really don't think it had been cleaned in YEARS upon YEARS.
So if you have a really nasty interior to tackle give these products a shot. They truly do work miracles! For less than $25 (wipes, carpet cleaner, 6pak paper towels, and scrub brush), plus a days hard work, I easily doubled the sale value of the car if not more. Probably would have only been a for part sale before I cleaned it. It really was that bad.
Just thought I would share this with you. Just finished cleaning the interior of an 07 Honda Accord (tan interior) that was recently signed over to me. It actually runs and drives good, and the outside isn't bad for it's age and mileage, but OMG was this thing nasty inside. Think inside of a fast food dumpster levels of nasty (smell and filth)! I wanted to hurl when I really took a look and started emptying it out due to how disgusting it was inside with old food, stains, grease, dirty clothes, etc...
So to be honest the plan was to just get it as clean as I could and then try to sell it for a few bucks. Figured if I could get the trash and other debris out, and wash it up good, I could then use some spray dye to spruce up the rugs and probably the seats too. But had to get it cleaned up 1st (or it would be a part car at best). 4 trash bags FULL of crap later I had it empty.
So with it empty I just started on the headliner and worked downward. As I went I was surprised at how well 2 products worked to clean the interior. Products I had used before (why I got them again) and thought were good but I had NEVER put them to a test like this. To shorten this up after a day of working on the car it looks so good inside that I might just keep it and sell my 05 Accord that has about 60K more miles than this 07!!!! I am stunned at how clean I got the inside. No need for any dye now either. Just a lot of Febreze and pine tree air fresheners.
So the 2 products in question are...
1. Armor All Cleaning Wipes. Just the basic plain ones. Not the ones with scents and citrus oil and such (additives might stain upholstery). Most people think these are only for the dash and other plastic/vinyl trim pieces and that is not so. In addition to cleaning off the dash and trim really well these wipes work great for cleaning stains off of seat upholstery and headliners too. Always test a small area 1st for color safety but I have never had them stain anything once the liquid on them dries. The headliner and seats were covered with a black greasy residue and dirt, the headliner/visors had small spots of stuff (soda or food?) all over it, and the seats had huge black grease and food/drink stains on them. It was awful. But using these wipes (used an entire container of the largest size) and scrubbing at the spots, and changing wipes frequently (once they dry out or get really dirty you need to change them), they are about 95%+ gone. I truly am stunned. If you have a really stubborn stain lay a fresh wipe over it, press down so it is nice and flat, and cover with a towel and let sit for like 15 minutes. It seems to loosen the stain up. Just scrub at them until they are gone. You will be amazed at how it just makes those stains go away. Even on tan upholstery. Unless you are right on top of them now the seats look almost new!
http://www.armorall.com/products/wipes/cleaning-wipes
2. Turtle Wax Power Out Carpet & Mat Cleaner. Looks like your typical spray foam carpet cleaner but man does it work. Vacuum the rug to remove as much dirt and debris as you can and then spray a good heavy/thick layer of foam on (especially on the stained areas). Let it sit for about 1-2 minutes and then take a good stiff nylon scrub brush (the one with the can is useless - can't hold it - I got a cheap one at WalMart in the household cleaning section for $1.47) and go over the entire rug scrubbing vigorously. The foam will get pretty nasty as you go and the stains just go away. Really tough stains might require an additional treatment. Once you are done scrubbing wipe any excess foam up with a rag and let the rugs dry then vacuum good. This stuff brought this nasty, dirty, stained beyond belief tan carpet back from the dead. There is one area where it is a little darker than the rest as it was the worst stain in the entire car, and it was hard to get at it with the brush, but it really isn't bad or noticeable. I could dye it but frankly it isn't bad enough for me to bother. The rug looks like new again overall.
https://www.turtlewax.com/our-products/power-out/turtle-wax-power-out-carpet-mats-cleaner
Sorry I don't have any before/after photos. I never expected to be able to get it to the state it is in with just these products. So I didn't bother take photos of how bad it was. Wish now I had LOL. I just can't believe I was able to save this tan interior without dye. I really don't think it had been cleaned in YEARS upon YEARS.
So if you have a really nasty interior to tackle give these products a shot. They truly do work miracles! For less than $25 (wipes, carpet cleaner, 6pak paper towels, and scrub brush), plus a days hard work, I easily doubled the sale value of the car if not more. Probably would have only been a for part sale before I cleaned it. It really was that bad.
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