Simple Corvette Interior Detail



A few weeks ago I detailed a 2012 Corvette to prep it for a local Corvette Car Show. I used this Corvette to showcase the brand new (at that time), DP Quick Coat. Here's the link to that article.

Review: DP Quick Coat





The owner also wanted the interior detailed. While the interior was "clean" it wasn't "detailed". The two areas that needed the most attention were the black leather seats and surrounding leather surfaces like the center console, arm rests and door panels and the floor mats. The rest of the interior could be taken care of simply by cleaning the inside glass, (SONAX Glass Cleaner), blowing out the inside of the cabin plus the dash and vents, and vacuuming the trunk areas.


61 steps to valet a car

A few years ago a UK Pro Detailer made a splash in the online car detailing world with a video on how he performed 61 steps to detail a car. His name is Paul Dalton and he's a professional detailer in London and his attention to detail was impressive. I've e-mailed him a few times over the years and even signed a copy my how-to book and sent it to him. I don't believe we've ever met but maybe someday as the real-world and online detailing world is a tight community. I've been to WaxStock once in my life and hope to go again in the future and this is the sort of event where detailers have the chance to meet one another from around the world.

Me? While I'm fully capable of breaking any car detailing project into multiple multiple steps, I'd rather use as few step as possible to get the job done and call it a day. Everyone has their own style and the most important thing is reaching the goal - however we do it. This is why you often see me type,

KISS or Keep it Simple Simon

As a practice, I don't take things that should be and usually are very simple and turn them into rocket science. This also means reducing steps to reach the goal while maintaining pro-grade quality results.



Floor Mats

I started with the floor mats so after a thorough cleaning I could get them in front of some moving air to get them drying so I could re-install them the next day.


Meguiar's Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner

I love this product. It's a one-and-done approach to cleaning fabrics, upholstery and carpet. It comes in an aerosol can as this type of delivery system foams the cleaner so it sits ON TOP of the surface where you want it. A spray liquid tends to soak in and this can lead to saturation. And Meguiar's is an established and respected brand in our industry. I fully trust Meguiar's chemist know what they are doing when they create products like this and if I just follow the directions the product will perform as advertised.

Here I've sprayed an ample amount of the foamy cleaner on to the carpet and you can easily see how it's sitting ON TOP of the fibers, not soaking in.





The key is to get busy, don't get on your phone. Get to work agitating the cleaner over the floor mat.






I'm using the cordless FLEX PE14 with a Lake Country 4 3/4" rotary backing plate and a Heavy Duty DA Brush with the long bristles.








With this approach I'm able to scrub the hell out of the floor mats while working safe at the same time.








After blotting and wiping the carpets thoroughly to remove as much as the cleaner and accumulated, loosened dirt and grime as possible, I place them against some patio chairs with a mesh backing and then get air blowing over them ASAP. Here at Autogeek we have one Shop-Vac Air Mover, which I'm using and then I used the small round fan from my office to blow on the other floor mat.

If you look closely, you can see from their appearance - the carpet and the rubber section are completely clean and also look brand new again.






Here's the small office fan set-up on a cart to blow against one of the floor mats. Look at the actual fibers of the carpet - they are clean and very uniform in appearance.






Corvette Leather Seats

The seats were still in good shape for their age, (9 years old as I type in the year 2021), but they were dry looking and dry and hard feeling. They needed some attention.






The stitching is still intact and the outside bolster is still in good shape, not all worn and torn-up. BUT - look how dry, dull and lifeless the leather itself looks?






Leather All-in-One

As mentioned above, there's multiple ways to approach cleaning and detailing leather. For me? I like a quality all-in-one type product. Something that will clean, condition and protect in one application. The KEY for neglected leather like this is to apply an ample amount and then THOROUGHLY work and massage the product over the leather surfaces.






Spraying an ample amount or a generous amount of product on to the seat face.






Then spraying a generous amount onto the seat back.






I used a Griot's Garage PFM Wax Removal Microfiber Towel to work the product over the seat. I've placed a CLEAN towel next to the USED towel so you can easily see how much dirt, soil and grime I was able to remove using an all-in-one product.






Impressive huh?






And here's the final results.






My comments...

When the owner picked up his car, I showed him the clean versus dirty towels. I strongly recommended he CONTINUE to use the same product and re-apply once a month for the next several months. I told him by doing so, he would bring the leather back to a better, factory feel and look with each application. I have know idea if he took my advice. I did the hard part. All he had to do was the easy part - re-apply, lightly work the product over the surface and then wipe-off any excess. Super simple and it can be done in minutes.

Like any aspect of car detailing, you make the process as simple or as complicated as you like. It is true that generally speaking, when you break a process up into multiple steps using "dedicated" products formulated to do ONE specific thing, for example a dedicated leather cleaner where all it does is clean the leather - you will tend to get better results.

That said, if you use a quality all-in-one type product and use it on a regular basis - you'll achieve about 95% of the results a multiple-step approach would achieve you just do it faster and with less work. Your choice, at the end of the day as long as you're happy and you reach your goal... that's what's most important...



On Autogeek.com


Carpet Cleaning

Meguiars D102 Detailer Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner - $8.00

FLEX PE-150 Cordless Rotary Polisher - $600.00 - includes battery charger and two 5amp batteries.

Rotary 4 ¾ inch Flexible Backing Plate - $17.00

Heavy-Duty DA Carpet Brush – Long Bristles $18.00




Leather Detailing

Pinnacle Leather Cleaner & Conditioner - $30.00

Griots Garage PFM Wax Removal Towel, Set of 4 - $23.00