Hi- Just wondering what you guys have used to clean the carpeting in your Prius??? I have a Winter Grey with the Misty Grey leather interior. I've only had it for 2 weeks, but the carpeted area on the driver's side by the foot rest is already getting a bit dirty. Also, any good suggestions for leather cleaner/conditioner...I was going to go with Lexol. How often does everyone clean/condition the leather? Thanks so much.
Try a damp cloth first. Otherwise, any of the foaming automobile carpet cleaners will work. I'm a fan of Zaino Leather in a bottle conditioner (smells great!) and I use Woolite to wash down the surface first. It'll be easy enough to see dirt on Misty Gray so that's the perfect indication to clean the leather. Much preferable to having Dark Gray and risk damaging the leather with dirt/oil that you can't see.
Thanks! Hmmm...never heard of the Woolite tip. I will try that and will pick up some of the Zaino. True, about the lighter leather showing the dirt easier, but also easier to see when it needs to be cleaned. And, I am imagining that will be pretty often with a 5 year old and 10 month old in the back. Thanks again for the tips.
When considering selling my 06 HiHy to finance the 2010 I cleaned its bisque carpets w/ my Bissell rug cleaning machine; just laid them on carpeted floor and used the hand-held tool. Worked great and dried overnight. For the 2010 I have all-weather mats; dirt stain is NO problem.
Concerning shampooing the carpets, the Prius III manual says: "Do not apply water. Excellent results are obtained by keeping the carpet as dry as possible". I have always used a carpet washing maching for cleaning my car's carpets (e.g. RugDoctor) - the machine uses a lot of water... It works great to get rid of sand and salt that have accumulated over the winter. Does anyone know whether using water for cleaning the carpets of a Prius can damage them? Any other reason you think using water is not a good idea?
I've been using Interior Cleaner by Griot's Garage since 2000/01 in all my vehicles and it works great. It has no smell or dyes... Honestly it looks like water and doesn't even have any odor but it removes dirt and stains great. It has never changed the color or removed any dye from anything I have ever put it on. I use it on the carpets, cloth seats and leather seats by simply spraying on lightly, working in a bit with a microfiber towel and then go over it once again with a clean microfiber towel. Interior Cleaner - Interior Detailing - Car Care - Griot's Garage
Ok - I have just read the manual a bit further. It says: "Do not wash the vehicle floor with water. Vehicle systems such as the audio system may be damaged if water comes into contact with electrical components under the floor of the vehicle, and may also cause the body to rust." It also says: "Do not splash or spill liquid in the vehicle, such as on the floor, in the hybrid battery (traction battery) air vents, or in the luggage compartment. Doing so may cause the hybrid battery, electrical components etc. to mal-function or catch fire. " It makes me wonder whether buying a Prius is a good idea... During winter, the floor of my cars have always been damp, because of snow. (it is really difficult to keep a dry floor during winter, unless I don't use my car...)
When I bought my Prius I got Toyota floor mats, but they were backordered. So, one of the first things I did is go to an auto parts store and picked up some nice this generic rubber all season floor mats for just over $20. A great investment IMO.
I just finished looking through the griot's garage catalog. Wow, I never knew there were that many useful car products! I have to say there are a lot of the exterior products. Washing and waxing are for normal people. IMO anything else is really over the top. Sorry if I've offended anyone.
No offense taken, like Richard Griot says "I'm car Craaaaaaazzzzzyyy!" Lol The first half of their catalog has great detailing products, but the rest with all the tools etc are just overpriced and can be found cheaper other places.
I've always had great success with a bucket of warm water, a few drops of dish soap, and a rag. Really wring the rag out before you start wiping at the spots.
Try to remember that manuals are written by Engineers and Technical Writers. They are edited by Lawyers.... Having damp carpets due to cleaning is one thing, but flooding the interior with a hose or bucket of cleaning solution is another matter. Just use common sense...... Keith
I just picked up my 2010 Prius IV with sunroof and nav. Don't get me wrong, I like the car, but how do you call this "carpeting"? What is the opposite of plush?
Don't worry about it. This is for the idiot who washed out his car with a garden hose and thinks Toyota should pay to fix it.
just try to take your carpet out in your prius and use bissell in cleaning your carpet or maybe use a vacuum cleaner.
I pre-treated the area by spraying Super Clean Degreaser (purple container) diluted at a 1:6 ratio. I then rub the area with a microfiber towel. Then I use my Hoover MaxExtract carpet cleaner with ZEP premium carpet shampoo to extract. This process works fairly well. I also steam clean my floor mats every other car wash to keep them clean.
