The spring is finally here and with the temperatures outside getting warmer, we have a new problem. Anything of an organic nature that might have been left in a car in the winter will make the car smell. Unfortunately, at this point in time, it is hard to figure out who dropped what on the third row of our endless minivan. Time for a spring cleaning and making sure that our family favorite vehicle remains to stink-free.
Spring (or any day) Cleaning
Start by finding and removing the source of the smell if it is removable
Sprinkle baking soda on the carpets and upholstery and leave it there for a day. Vacuum it up. If that is not enough, use carpet freshener.
Check the air filters. If it has been a while since the last change, the filter change might make a lot of difference.
Take an hour to clean your car. This might be the best way to clean the car, de-clutter, and possibly find some long-lost treasures.
Extreme Smells
Smoke
Sprinkle your interior with scented Baking Soda and leave it there for a day or two and vacuum. You can also leave a can of coffee beans in your car5 for a while – coffee beans neutralize odor.
Sour (Spoiled) Milk
Option 1: Sprinkle unused coffee grounds onto the carpet and let them sit for a couple of hours, vacuum.
Option 2: Spray the vinegar onto the carpet, blot it up with a clean cloth.
Option 3: Spray regular (non-bleach) hydrogen peroxide on the carpet (test a small area first). Spray it on and allow it to set until it stops foaming. Blot it with a clean cloth.
Urine Odor
I found it best to create a baking soda and water paste. Rub it into the area and apply distilled white vinegar over it. Blot this up with clean white towels, and repeat it no more than two times. Follow that with a proper rinsing of water, blotting up the moisture. It will smell like vinegar for a short period, but the urine smell should not come back.
Pet Odor
Leave a cup of baking soda overnight to neutralize odors and use pet placemats to reduce cleaning in the future.
Keep smell fresh longer
(The ways you can keep your car smell fresh for weeks with Febreze)
Fresh-smelling car is a must while traveling for hours (or days), but when it comes to kids, this usually means a lot of unpleasant smells and awkward moment (at least, this is how it works for my family)
Pick up a Febreze Vent Car Clip – it will last up to 30 days.
When you need to defrost your car, attach a Febreze Vent Clip to the defrost vents to cycle warmth and freshness!
Need to add some freshness to the back row of the car? Attach a Febreze Vent Clip to passenger vents.
Add a “smell check” to their monthly car checkups.
DO YOU HAVE A SMELLY STORY?
Have you ever left something in the car that made your car smell rather unpleasant?
We left wet towels from the pool in the trunk and they smelled horrible.
i have never left anything in the car that made it smell; it just smells dusty, needed vacuuming.
A milk jug I just bought had a small leak and the milk that spilled on the carpet left a very unpleasant smell!
I left fast food leftovers in my car and it started to smell bad there
I left my arm band that i keep my phone in after working out in the car and it smelled like sweat.
I left my sons soccer clothes in the car wheww did it smell
Hockey gear has made my car smell pretty badly in the past.
The forgotten and spilled yogurt and milk mess kids made in the car were the worst.
We left all 3 of our son’s baseball cleats shut up in the car over the weekend. Very smelly on Monday morning.
I have left my lunch bag in my vehicle by accident on a hot summer day to only hop in to a horribly smelly car.
left a taco bell burrito in the car!
I can honestly say I’ve never left anything in my car that started to stink, but…I did have a dead mouse in my trunk one time and that got nasty!
A dirty diaper got left in the car and went under the seat so the smell was pretty bad.
I am sure with the horrible winter we have had that our car smells bad. Right now it is sitting in Pittsburgh and I am in Las Vegas.
I left gallon of milk in the car once.. not pleasant smelling at all!
Milk is the worst!! I one time had a crock pot that flipped over … it was full and had milk in the recipe. Took forever to get rid of the smell.
I have these for my car! I love using them since they smell so good
I left a picnic basket from the beach in our trunk. I found it while Christmas shopping.
One time I had a terrible smell and I could not understand what it was, until I looked in the trunk and I found raw chicken that had been rotting for at least 2 weeks! It was an awful smell.
My kids leave their leftover food.
I have left wet, sweaty workout clothes.
Never leave popcorn in your car. At first it smells great, but after a few weeks in a hot car, you won’t want popcorn ever again.
I’m pretty good at keeping my car clutter free but there have been times that a fast food wrapper or bag was left in the car and it was ahorrible smell the next time I got in it to go somewhere.
We left a bag of wet clothes in the trunk once after a trip to our local water park , never again!
I left a McDonald’s bag in the truck for a few days. Oh, the smell!
I occasionally smoke in my car, which I hate the smell of. Thanks for the reminder to spring clean!
I’ve had coffee creamer spill and sour on my front carpet.
Sippy cups of milk are the worst.
We just got these. Wonderful for the smelly construction worker.
My 2 year old once spilled half a sippy cup’s worth of milk in the backseat and didn’t tell us. We found out really quick, though, after leaving the car in a hot parking deck for a few hours!
My car is seriously ridiculous. I don’t know how we get so messy. Family of 5 humans but you would think gorillas!
We have left leftovers sandwiches behind which end up smelling if left in the hot car all night in the summer.
i spilled a bucket of pickles in the car once.
If I let the kids eat McDonald’s on a road trip. I hate to smell that food in the car and can never wait to get to the next place w/a garbage bin.
I left a gallon of milk in my trunk for a weekend once. Oh my GOSH — the worst! But I’m using these Febreze clips right now actually and they’re great for neutralizing everyday odors.
Old cigarettes makes my truck smell musty.
The nasty smell that i had is spoiled meat
I don’t think I have ever left anything in the car, but I know when my dog rides in the car he can make it stinky.
My son has left his shoes in my car which was not the freshest.
I have left a full bottle in the car before and it smelled horrific.
Cigarette smoke leaves our car smelling unpleasant.
I have left a dirty diaper in the hot car
We have smellty ball uniforms in it now.
I once left leftover french fries in my car for a week. It smelled bad!
My sister left in my car a banana pudding dessert after a family get together. A couple days later I got in the car to go somewhere…and oh boy did it smell!
My boys have left their practice stuff in the car and that doe not smell good at all!
Spilt gas
Anything stale or fishy smells bad in a car.
I actually use Febreze Car Airfresheners in my car. I won’t use anything else. With kids who always eat and leave behind left overs at times I need my car to smell good.
One of the kids left a half eaten hot dog in the car.
When found it wasnt pleasant smelling.
thank you
I left a wet bathing suit in my trunk once, started to smell modly 🙁
I accidentally left old fast food in the car before and it started to smell. ewww.
I found part of a sandwich in a crumpled bag under the seat.
I left a bag of half-eaten Whataburger overnight in my car once. Big mistake, huge!
Coffee cups, the dairy in them goes bad.
my husband forgot a wetbag of dirty diapers in my truck once. ugh rancid sitting for 2 days
I left fishing worms in my trunk and it was horrible
My memory foam flip flops are the worst! They are super comfy, but when you get warm in the summer, and maybe sweat a little, I swear those flip flops work like a sponge. It’s gross! And if I leave them in the car, the whole thing stinks!
After I left a latte in the car, it smelled so bad!
I left some fruit under the seat that smelled really bad.
My husband left tacos in hiis truck and it got stuck under the seat!
I have spilled cheese dip all over my seat once. It didn’t smell good but I eventually got it fully cleaned.
No story. I do need to Spring clean my car AFTER the snow stops.
Once, we started smelling an awful odor in our SUV. We searched inside for a few days and still could not find the source. Finally, I decide to search in the far back trunk and discovered a carton of eggs. They had beeb placed loose by the spare tire by my hubby, he didn’t want the grocery bag to fall, but he forgot them. 🙂
I use Fabreze in my truck because hubby smokes, nasty smelling and I still can’t rid of the smell
@tisonlyme143
I need to cean the truck My husband has aa horrible habit of getting fast food and he will ‘save’ something for the dog and forgets it in the truck. It gets ugly when it has been there awhile.
I need to spring clean my car.
Thank you for the tips and pointers in keeping the car clean this spring. Now if only winter would end…It’s only April.
I once forgot a roast of pork in the trunk after shopping for groceries and it smelled bad when I found it.
Febreeze really helped to get the smell out.
Great post! Vinegar plus a bit of dawn works wonders too! I hate cleaning cars, wish I could get it detailed!