... interior fabric & carpet restoration chores ~

... 13 year anniversary, time to shampoo the carpet of my '04 Ruthiemobile!

With much effort and experimentation, it came out perfect! I am beside myself. Such high quality material, it looks showroom new! The most difficult interior I've ever detailed, I worked my tail off over a long, arduous three day weekend. Trial and error, using my Prius as a Guinea pig, what follows is an optimal formula I narrowed down, in practice and preparation, for detailing irreplaceable fabrics of my vintage '88 AW11 show winner.

Optimal for OEM '04 Prius carpet & fabric, doing exactly what follows, you are in for a pleasant surprise:


I n g r e d i e n t s :

5 Squirts - Dawn Dish Soap
1/4 cup - Oxy (e.g., always steeply discounted at the Costco)
3/4 gallon - very hot water (dial your water heater to max temp)
1 - synthetic sponge
1 can - Arm & Hammer FOAM Carpet "Deodorizer" (very hard to find)


D i r e c t i o n s :
Cockpit only:

1). Remove seats (optional) -

2). Add dish soap and Oxy to your bucket, half filled, very hot water (very) -
- e.g., by the time you get the bucket out to the car, your Oxy's sufficiently dissolved and suspended, into your suds; you'll have perfect temperature water to shampoo, into your carpet -

3). Plunge your sponge into suds; squeeze from the sponge just enough fluid so it doesn't drip -

3). Gently work the sponge, slowly into the carpet, until consistently saturated -
- e.g., tell-tail indication you've screwed up, undissolved oxy particles appearing in your carpet; follow instruction; dump the bucket; start over, and don't be a nitwit -

4). Repeat steps 3 & 4, working systematically, beginning in your passenger footwhel, working clockwise around the interior compartment, finishing in your driver's footwhel
- e.g., do not (NOT) start on the driver's side! -

5). Let it sit a couple hours -
- e.g., if the carpet's in decent shape, don't be afraid to go in with a second treatment; black interiors clean up nicely the first try; a second and third treatment will likely be necessary on beige interiors; several on the burgundy interior.

6). Start in with your wet'-n-dry vac -
- e.g., do NOT use your best gal's Dyson for this; be prepared to spend an hour, diligently vacuuming until carpet is lightly damp; pay particular attention to corners and crevasses; go very slowly and very gently; never race or thrash the hand attachment of your vacuum nozzle across your fabric;

7). Overnight, leave the doors opened; sunroof retracted -
- e.g., garage the car; plug the charger onto your battery, overnight.

8). Next morning, generously shoot your foam deodorizer; sponge it in -
- e.g., key emphasis on the words, FOAM and DEODORIZER; do not substitute foam carpet "cleaner"; never-never-never put a powdered carpet deodorizer, to a motor vehicle interior!

9). Once dry, thoroughly vacuum -
- e.g., for this, you may use your best gal's Dyson, if need be; in the event you've discovered powdered carpet deodorizer was once applied to your vehicle, the aforementioned steps are sufficient to fully ameliorate it.

10). Ratchet in your seats to OEM spec with your torque wrench.

11). When it's over and done, run a bare hand across the carpet and fabric; ensure it's dry;

12). Spark ignition; ensure functionality -
- e.g., check HVAC, headlights, pop-ups, brake lights, directionals and instrumentation; enjoy your beautiful interior as it once was, when she rolled off the showroom floor!


Best,
~ Samuel, '04 Ruthiemobile

 

ps ~ ... this worked even better, on OEM seats & floor mats! The big OEM floormat in back looks brand spanking new, not a trace of it once having been severely stained by a whole gallon of extra virgin olive oil having spilled, courtesy of our local Mediterranean deli!