Motor Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Stack Exchange
Motor Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [cleaning]

Anything to do with cleaning the interior or exterior or removing things like stickers and decals.

165 questions
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votes
22 answers

Effective way to clean inside of windshield?

The inside of my windshield has a thin layer of grime. When the light hits it a certain way, it drastically reduces my visibility. I have used glass cleaner with clean microfiber car cloths and paper towels, but it doesn't seem to clean the…
user11271
11
votes
4 answers

How to Make a Homebrew Engine Degreaser Spray?

Can anyone recommend a cheap and safe homebrew engine degreaser that can be used in a spray bottle. When I say safe, I mean both for the engine and me. I would be rinsing with either another spray bottle or a water hose. EDIT I went to every…
Robert S. Barnes
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5 answers

Can I use washing up liquid to wash my car?

I was just wondering, can I use something like Fairy washing up liquid or dish soap (which is added to hot water in a sink or basin to wash plates, dishes and cutlery etc) in warm water to wash my car? I'd use two buckets and two sponges and then…
George
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5 answers

What's the easiest way to remove chewing gum from a medium-pile floor mat?

A circumstance rather sticky Unfolded and made things icky. This ungainly sight Of chewing gum white, Uprooting it seems quite tricky! How can I pull it out causing as little damage to the carpet as possible?
Zaid
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Washing Engine Bay / Underside From Oil / Dirt

I'm considering getting a power washer for the purpose of cleaning engines, bays and car / engine undersides of built up dirt and oil and was wondering what the minimum PSI and flow rate required are to accomplish this task, as I don't want to buy a…
Robert S. Barnes
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1 answer

Removing Interior Shine Spray

The Problem I'm buying a used approved vehicle. When I test drove it today, it has been "professionally" valeted and they have used some kind of synthetic spray all over the interior plastics and leather, including the steering wheel and gear…
Jongosi
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2 answers

Cheap (or mix-at-home) tire dressing that gives flat/matte finish

I like the way my tires look after running my car through one of the better drive-through car washes. They look nice and black, but not shiny at all. And it lasts, at least until the next rain. However, all the tire dressings I've seen on store…
ChrisC
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2 answers

What can i use to get insect/bug remains off my vehicle?

I recently went on a 10000k road trip, and accumulated a lot of insect remains on my vehicle. After several car washes, one of them that even included a bug spray before you entered the main wash, and doing some hand washing, there is still insect…
meltdownmonk
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4
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2 answers

How to protect floor mats?

I recently sold my old Clio and bought a new Polo. On my old Clio I had rubber mats on top of the original mats, which were super easy to clean with some water and maybe some scrubbing when they were extra dirty (including mud, beach sand,…
Davide
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1 answer

How should I clean brake dust off my hands?

Wiped a bunch of brake dust off my car's wheels and got some on my hands; what's a good, responsible way to wash my hands after I get brake dust on them? I don't really know if it's unsafe to get it down your sink like grease (but I kind of assume…
Ben Brocka
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3
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1 answer

Cleaning blowby with Seafoam

As I have most of my engine taken apart pretty much for a head gasket replacement, I noticed it has, over the 8 years and 120+K miles, collected a fair amount of carbon blowby inside the cylinder heads and intake manifold, as well as oil crud on the…
amphibient
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Look at the Valves Without Taking Everything Apart

I was thinking it would be nice if I could look at the valves without having to take too much stuff apart. Could I thread a small endoscope down through the air intake and be able to see the top / backside of a valve? Could I put one ( bent…
Robert S. Barnes
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1 answer

Removing tree sap from exterior?

While camping in hot weather, pine tree sap dripped onto the windows and exterior of the parked car. The drops of tree sap are sticky, and verrrrrry slightly runny. I guess it's easy to remove from the Windows using a blade meant for cleaning a…
Torben Gundtofte-Bruun
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Leftover pollen residue after cleaning car

I recently washed my car for the first time in several weeks after spring pollen. Lots of tree pollen / leaves I was unable to get these stains off the car, any thoughts?
Peter
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How can you prevent condensation/damp when you plan to leave a car idle?

My old car tends to develop condensation quite easily. If you leave your car in a cold climate not ventilated for an extended period of time I guess that is what happens. If we plan to leave our cars parked up for extended times, what can we do to…
James Wilson
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