People who are too fastidious with the interior...

[camrycev6]

So I recently posted about a young lady who treated the inside of her car like a garbage can. I thought to be fair, I would bring this topic up.

Personally, I clean the inside of my car (and by cleaning -- I mean dusting, wiping down the cloth / windows, vacuuming, etc.) about once a month. I do NOT let garbage / work / or anything accumulate inside.

I do have a friend, however, who drives a moderate level Acura who won't allow you to drink or eat in his car. You can't have dirty shoes. (or you have to take them off and put them in a bag) Yes the inside of his car looks nice, but I think he is going overboard. I can certainly drink a coke without spilling it all over his car, but I respect his wishes. I still think (and tell him so) he is OCD.

I also knew a girl in college who was very much the same. She had plastic covering the floors, the handles, and just about everything else in the car! She would get upset if you got fingerprints on the dash or the controls!

Anyone do the same with their car (and don't worry -- I will only make fun of you a little bit) or have similar stories?

 

[CantCMe]

If you have on dirty shoes you gotta put them in a bag? That's nuts...but hey, that's their car so...

 

[thaikim]

I'm not against drinking in the car heck I do it all the time, but I am a little anal about anyone eating in the car... I've admittedly only done it once when I had to woof down a chipotle burrito 5min. before class and even then I had the door open, my feet out and was eating over the parking lot...

 

[CantCMe]

I eat in my car all of the time, but if I know somebody is a sloppy eater then they better not eat in the my ride. Heck, I let my kids eat in my car but other ppls children? Hell no.

 

[EvilJen]

My sister had a boyfriend (control freak) that would run over to the passenger side and wipe the fingerprints off the door handle anytime someone got out. When they broke up, she kicked the side of his truck. (evil)

I work with a guy that's got a very nice 240 but he puts towels down on the leather seats because he doesn't want it to get dirty.

I'm all about taking good care of things but when it gets to the point where you're so protective of a possession that you can't enjoy it, what's the point? (dunno)

 

[BlackCherry06]

Well, I'm not THAT bad, but I did put down some big rubber mats to protect the carpet and floor mats from dirty or wet shoes. A little dust from time to time doesn't send me into a tailspin, but trash of any kind or food / drink spills are not acceptable.

 

[FrankDiscussion]

I'm pretty obsessive about my interior, well, my vehicle in general. I work in a fairly large bar / restaurant, so my shoes are filthy by the end of the shift. I place them inside a plastic bag for the ride home. The only person allowed to eat in my car is my two year old daughter, who can usually do whatever she wants. I probably vacumn my car once a week, wipe down the interior as well. I'll do a more intensive detail probably once every other month. The advantage, IMO, to maintaining a strict cleaning regimen is that it really helps with resale value. I traded in my 2001 Miata for my Mazdaspeed 3 almost a year ago, and the interior was immaculate.

 

[ElGaspo]

what's REALLY nutz is....

clean interior freaks who lay down plastic everywhere on the inside and whose interior is a 10/10....but who change their oil only rarely, don't know how to shift, abuse the clutch and allow the most important part of the car - the powertrain - to go to pot. (screwy)

 

[thaikim]

Yeah on a similar note I've got a buddy who knows I can be pretty OCD about my car... So just to mess with me every time he comes over he likes to touch everything... Like say I've got the hood open checkin stuff, he'll randomly pull out the dipstick, screw off the oil cap, tap random things under the hood... Just little stuff, harmless but I'm like damn man do you really have to do that... haha

 

[Prodigy]

I'm also not that bad... the only gripe that I have is getting fingerprints on the door after a fresh wax.
If it's a week after the wax, I could care less.

 

[mazdaspeedster3]

My wife says I am OCD. I dont think so, I like the cars clean is all. I wash mine after every rain and vacuum it out once a week no matter. Turtle Wax has that new ICE product for interiors, love it. Nothing shiney just cleans up the dash real nice like when you first got your car. I have the all weather matts so hosing them off is easy when you wash the car, wipe them off and put them back in the car. Great. I do the windows every wash as well, hate dirty windows more than anything!

 

[paylew]

I keep my car clean and use the weather mats, but I'm by no means a clean freak about it. I have a son who rides in the car, it's not worth it to worry about keeping everything clean all the time because it just won't happen... I tend not to drink anything without a lid in the car because I am really clumsy.

 

[EvilJen]

I'm probably going to get flack for this, but think of all the time you're spending cleaning your car? Aren't there better things you could be doing? Spending time with your family? Going for a run? Driving your car? Knitting sweaters for homeless kittens? (uhm)

 

[BlackCherry06]

I've got some fingers in my office that need broken....someone wrote "Wash Me" in the dust on my trunklid yesterday. That's on the list of no-no's.

 

[thaikim]

I'm probably going to get flack for this, but think of all the time you're spending cleaning your car? Isn't there better things you could be doing? Spending time with your family? Going for a run? Driving your car? Knitting sweaters for homeless kittens? (uhm)

Yeah but you could make that excuse for almost any semi-non productive thing... watchin TV, surfing Mazda forums... much more productive things you COULD be doing but hey everyone needs a hobby... Detailing keeps you busy and off the pipe

 

[EvilJen]

Yeah but you could make that excuse for almost any semi-non productive thing... watchin TV, surfing Mazda forums... much more productive things you COULD be doing but hey everyone needs a hobby... Detailing keeps you busy and off the pipe

LOL! True. I just can't see cleaning a car once a week. Then again, our commutes are relatively short and the cars are kept in the garage so they don't get too dirty. The house stays clean... the cars sometimes take a backseat.

 

[mazdaspeedster3]

LMAO, not when it takes you 15minutes total and you can do it when it doesnt impeed that time.

 

[camrycev6]

True... It takes all of what? Maybe 30 minutes tops to clean the inside of a car? Vacuum it, wash the mats, dust / wipe down the windows. All done.

 

[EvilJen]

Well, s***, we must be doing it wrong cuz it takes a lot longer for me and my husband. (scratch) LOL!

 

[Antonio DiMarco]

Moderation...

So I recently posted about a young lady who treated the inside of her car like a garbage can. I thought to be fair, I would bring this topic up.

Personally, I clean the inside of my car (and by cleaning -- I mean dusting, wiping down the cloth / windows, vacuuming, etc.) about once a month. I do NOT let garbage / work / or anything accumulate inside.

I do have a friend, however, who drives a moderate level Acura who won't allow you to drink or eat in his car. You can't have dirty shoes. (or you have to take them off and put them in a bag) Yes the inside of his car looks nice, but I think he is going overboard. I can certainly drink a coke without spilling it all over his car, but I respect his wishes. I still think (and tell him so) he is OCD.

I also knew a girl in college who was very much the same. She had plastic covering the floors, the handles, and just about everything else in the car! She would get upset if you got fingerprints on the dash or the controls!

Anyone do the same with their car (and don't worry -- I will only make fun of you a little bit) or have similar stories?

Trying to keep your car immaculate 24/7 is impossible. My phylosophy is that you take the appropriate steps to prevent things getting dirty (waxing, rubber mats, napkins around coffee cup to soak up small splashes) but I don't loose my mind if someone gets into the car with leaves on their shoes or a little bit of dirt. That's what a vacuum is for. And let's face it most of the material they use inside modern cars is relatively stain resistant. I also don't mind if people bring food in the car as long as they put the bag on the floor (my floor is clean so they shouldn't worry).

On the other hand I won't turn a blind eye to someone who wants to put their greasy pizza box or doggy bag on my seat. Or let my kids in the car without a brush off or checking their shoes for dog crap. I also ask my son to remove his cleats before getting in my car. Not for the dirt as much for the chance of those hard plastic lugs marring the interior.

Once my brother's wife brought a oily styrofoam container of italian food in my car (a '95 Protege) and layed it on the seat. They said it was OK, but it ended up leaking through the seam and staining my seat. I wanted to KILL.

I also understand that washing my car is ultimately futile. But I do appreciate it staying clean for a day or two after I clean it. Cleaning it and having mud or rain dirty it up a hour after is just aggravating.