Whether it’s a day trip or a cross-country voyage, spring and summer road trips make a mess of your car, truck or RV. Here are a few hints on how to clean the exterior and interior of your vehicle and how to protect it for your next trip.
Bug Splats
One of the biggest challenges is dealing with bug splats on the front of your vehicle. To loosen bug splats and make them easier to remove, we recommend spraying surfaces down with Bug-Off™ Insect Remover. The detergents in Bug-Off are paint and aluminum safe and help break down bug splats. Therefore, when you go over them with your wash mitt, they will wipe away much easier. We also recommend adding an extra coat of wax to forward facing surfaces. The added slickness of the wax will help make future bug splats wipe away easier.
Washing
You already know not to wash the vehicle with ordinary dish soap because it will strip away everything on your vehicle’s surface (including any waxes and sealers) leaving it dry and unprotected from sunlight and oxidation. Plus, dish soap also will not rinse as well as car wash soap, which can be counterproductive by leaving a smeared finish.
If you’re going with just a car wash soap, CW-37™ will produce large quantities of hard working suds that can prevent brush marks.
If you want some extra protection, Malco’s Ultra-Violet™ will do the job. Not only will they thoroughly clean your vehicle, but they even add some wax to the surface as you wash for some additional protection.
Headlights
Road grit, dirt and sand can break down the protective coating on your headlight lenses, causing them to dull and yellow when exposed to regular sunlight. This etched surface makes it more difficult for light to escape, and can dramatically reduce the amount of light available for nighttime driving. Presta’s Headlight Restoration Kit lets you restore your lights to like-new clarity in just a few steps…Click here to see how it works.
Carpet and Upholstery
Most road trips include coffee, soda, some type of fast food and an occasional mess. Ready-to-use Oxy Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner can be used on any fabric surface. This powerful cleaner sprays on and quickly removes stains from coffee, juice, food dyes, ink and even Kool-Aid®.
Leather and Plastic
When it comes to leather and plastic surfaces, Malco has several options for restoring like-new appearances. Leather & Plastic Cleaner has a special penetrating formula cleans all the way down to the pores and leaves surfaces clean and film free. Simply spray on to your towel and wipe away dirt and grime from leather and plastic surfaces.
Leather Protectant forms a protective barrier that helps resist initial staining, restores a satin gloss to the surface, and contains a UV inhibitor. This is a great product to apply before your road trip for that added protection.
Clean & Shine powers away grease, grime and dirt from leather, vinyl and plastic while restoring a rich, satiny gloss to the surface. In just one step, this ready-to-use formula cleans, beautifies and protects.
