How To Deep Clean Your Car’s Carpet & Upholstery

Your family’s vehicle is more than just your day-to-day transportation; it’s home to your road trip sing-a-longs, sightseeing adventures, and long, laughter-filled drives to visit family and friends. With so much life lived inside its four doors, it’s probably also home to the occasional spill or stain. Thankfully, tackling the messes that life brings to automobile carpet and upholstery are just as easy to clean as the carpeting in your home.

Even if you follow a strict no food or drinks rule in your car, dander, pollen, and other messes settle into auto upholstery and carpets just as they do in your home. Regular interior cleaning and vacuuming can remove some of this debris, but you’ll need to deep clean to remove even more.

To achieve quality results, you need the right carpet cleaning rental for the job. You already know that Rug Doctor® by BISSELL® carpet cleaning rental machines give you a cleaner home for a fraction of the price charged by professionals, but did you know that you can rent a portable spot cleaner for your vehicle? It’s lightweight and portable, so you can get into tight corners and crevices in your car where stains might hide.

How to Clean Your Car’s Soft Surfaces

Auto carpeting and floor mats are designed for wear and tear. They’re durable and look good even after numerous rounds of shampooing. Follow these directions to keep your car interior clean and odor-free.

1. Vacuum first
   Pull out the floor mats and shake them out.  Then vacuum mats and carpeting to thoroughly to remove debris, soil, sand, and surface dirt. Be sure to move each seat forward and back, so that areas that are out of sight are vacuumed.  Vacuum the car’s seats in both the inclined and reclined position to cover every crevice. If the seat headrests are removable, take these off to clean beneath them. Use your vacuum’s crevice tool to reach between and under seats, and into tight seams, nooks, and crannies.
   
2. Pre-treat tough stains
   It’s easy to track in greasy residue on your shoes, so we recommend spraying heavily soiled areas with a pre-treat spot remover like our Oxy Spot & Pre-Treat to break down oils and ground-in grime. Spray the pre-treat carpet and upholstery cleaner on the stained or soiled area. Wait 3-5 minutes, and then deep clean your vehicle’s carpets following the instructions on the machine.
   
   NOTE: Before using a cleaning solution on carpet or fabric seats, always test for colorfastness. Spray a small amount of solution in a hidden area. Blot with a white paper towel to see if any color transfers from the fiber to the towel. Allow to dry – and if color is affected, do not use. Most carpets are colorfast, but it’s always wise to test.
   
3. Pick a machine cleaning solution that best fits your cleaning needs
   Our cleaning solutions are designed to get the best clean possible with our rental machines. If you are renting a Portable Spot Cleaner, we recommend using the Spot + Upholstery cleaner. This cleaning solution is for use with the Rug Doctor® Pro Detailer & Portable Spot Cleaner® and BISSELL® Little Green® portable spot cleaner. Our Triple Action Spot and Upholstery cleaner deep cleans, deodorizes and protects carpet, upholstery and other soft surfaces. It’s great for auto interiors and also sofas, chairs and stairs inside your home.
   
4. Deep clean carpeted mats, auto carpet and upholstery
   Rug Doctor® by BISSELL® rental machines are easy to use. Just fill the clean water tank with hot tap water and a measured amount of cleaning solution per package directions. Press the trigger, spraying clean soapy water onto the vehicle surface, and then scrub the surface forward and back to loosen the dirt or stain. After going over the area, release the trigger spray button and press the suction nozzle (the front of the tool) firmly onto the surface to extract the dirty water into a removable tank for disposal. To speed up drying time, go back over the area multiple times to suck up as much moisture as possible.
   
   NOTE: Before using the machine on upholstery, always test the cleaning solution and spot cleaner in an inconspicuous spot or hidden area and allow to dry before proceeding.  If color is affected, do not use the spot cleaner. 
   
   Clean your car’s upholstered seats in the same way that you vacuumed – in both upright and reclined positions. Then deep clean the carpeting around and beneath the car seats. Repeat upholstery cleaning for the trunk and any other areas of the vehicle as needed. Wait until you see the color of all the dirty water that comes out.  And to think you have been sitting in that for hours each day!
   
5. Allow carpet and upholstery to dry overnight
   Ideally, you can detail your vehicle on a warm, sunny day and keep the doors and/or windows open to help the fresh air dry your vehicle interior. But if you need your upholstery and mats to dry more quickly, use a hair dryer. Just be careful not to hold the hair dryer too close to the surface, as you might scorch the carpet. You can also place a small fan in your car to speed drying.  Once carpet and upholstery are fully dry, replace the floor mats and headrests.

DIY Tricks To Clean Car Upholstery and Keep it Clean

• If you removed your headrests, clean these outside the vehicle on a protected surface.
• If possible, dry the floor mats hanging up instead of leaving them flat on the ground.
• If you spill coffee, immediately dilute it with cool water and blot to prevent coffee stains.
• Keep an extra towel in your car and use it like a placemat to catch spills when you eat.

We recommend giving your car interior and car upholstery a good deep clean every six months to tackle stains like mud, food, and pet messes. Keeping your vehicle clean is important, and it’s easy to see how over time little spots and stains lead to matted-down or discolored auto upholstery and carpet. Spot cleaning spills as soon as they occur can help you maintain your car in between deep cleanings

Where Can I Find A Rug Doctor® by BISSELL® Rental?

Please check our location finder for a Portable Spot Cleaner rental near you.  If this machine is not available near you, you can also rent and use a regular carpet cleaner by adding on the upholstery tool.