Four out of ten drivers wash their car once a week and almost three out of ten do so every fortnight, according to a study carried out by the Elefante Azul chain of car wash centers. There is no doubt that its good external appearance contributes to enhancing the car, which explains why we Spaniards regularly go to car washes or take care of cleaning it ourselves.
Those who are personally in charge of cleaning the car must take into account that they cannot carry out this practice on public roads. In most cities it is forbidden to do so and the fine ranges from 30 euros applied by some town halls to a maximum of 1,500 euros, which is included in the municipal ordinances of the city of Madrid.
It should also be taken into account that some autonomous communities, such as Catalonia, the authorities have activated the drought alert and, among other measures related to water consumption, it is expressly prohibited to wash the car with a hose. Outside of the car wash centers with recirculating water, in the Catalan towns on red alert it is only allowed to clean windows, rear-view mirrors, lights and license plates using a sponge and a bucket.
Leaving aside the conventional methods to carry out a general cleaning, we can take care of carrying out a more thorough cleaning of some parts of the car ourselves. It is not necessary to have specific products, but we can use items that we generally have at home and that cost little money.
The oven cleaning foam that we can find in any supermarket for less than 5 euros helps us to clean car tires easily and cheaply. We just need to apply the cleaning foam on the rim and let it act for about a minute. Once the necessary time has elapsed, we rub the foam with a cloth and then we remove it. It's that easy to make your car's tires shine like new.
To clean the car headlights we only need toothpaste, glass cleaner and kitchen paper. To start, we apply the toothpaste on the glass of the light and rub the surface in circles with the paper. Then, we pour the glass cleaner and dry it with another piece of paper. If necessary we repeat the operation.
Currently there is no longer the tendency to carry stickers on the car as was common a few decades ago. Even so, if you decorate the car with a sticker and one day you decide to remove it, it is likely that when you tear it off, traces of glue will remain on the body and are difficult to remove.
Using alcohol or a scraper to remove these traces of glue is not a good idea because we can damage the car's sheet metal. In these cases, the best home trick is to apply a small amount of olive oil to a cotton pad and rub the area in circular motions.
The plastic bumper of the car is one of the elements most affected by inclement weather. Over the years, both the sun and the rainwater wear down the plastic, especially in those vehicles that sleep on the street. In order for the piece to recover its original black color, we can use the shoe polish we have at home to clean the shoes. It is enough to apply a small amount of shoe polish to the bumper and rub it with a soft sponge so as not to scratch the surface.
Bird droppings contain a high amount of acids that can affect the lacquer or varnish on the car body. This is why it is so important to remove this waste as soon as possible. The best way to remove these depositions and other dry elements from the body is to moisten the area with hot water and then wipe the area with a baby wipe that will help to clean the surface.
The properties of cola soft drinks go far beyond its unmistakable flavor, which for many people becomes addictive. On the internet we can see multiple experiments that are carried out around the world with this dark-colored liquid. It also has a direct application for cleaning rust-stained chrome parts of vehicles. For example, the bumpers. To remove these annoying residues we must pour a small amount of soda and rub with a sponge. The result is immediately obvious.
When the rain or washing water evaporates, it is likely that small stains will appear scattered over the body and the windows of the car. They have the appearance of a matt colored ring and although they do not cause damage to the paint or windows, they make the general condition of the vehicle ugly. An effective way to remove those annoying stains is to use a microfiber cloth, which does not scratch the paint and has great absorption power.
There are many ways to clean car windows. The most recurring is to use a glass cleaner like the one we use for windows at home. But sometimes this method is not effective if the car windows are very dirty. To remove the remains of dirt that resist with the traditional window cleaner, we can use another product that we all have at home: vinegar.
We will mix a cup of this liquid with an equal amount of water in a spray bottle and shake the bottle so that the ingredients mix well. Next, we apply the liquid on the crystals and dry it with a microfiber cloth.
