What’s Really Living in a Trade-In Vehicle Before It Hits Your Lot?
A trade-in may feature factory-painted panels and a freshly wiped dash, but it still carries the imprint of years in use. Motorists eat junk food, transport pets, adjust and grip touch panels, spill beverages, introduce moisture, transfer and circulate air. Drivers who purchase used vehicles carry the same habits with them. That isn’t to say every used vehicle carries contaminants, but a detailing service is unlikely to fully resolve the organic residue, allergens, odors, and microorganisms transferred via regular operation.
A dealership’s reconditioning and disinfectant service needs to allow for a multi-step process beginning with examination, cleaning activities, and concluding with sanitizing or disinfection.
What Contaminants Accumulate Inside a Used Vehicle?
An interior accumulates flakes of shed skin, perspiration, bits of food, liquid spills, airborne particles, pet dander, and the soils tracked inside from footwear. It settles onto smooth panels, but also infiltrates the porosity of carpets and upholstery, the indentations and crevices of cupholders, and the confines of storage bins and beneath seats.
The sources of bacteria that infiltrate motor vehicles are the same as those of their owners. A 2018 study that swabbed surfaces of commonly touched objects found bacteria associated with the skin microbiome were in abundance, supporting the theory that they’re transferred to interior touchpoints in the course of regular operation. Finding bacteria isn’t an indicator that a vehicle is hazardous, but an analysis of type, viability, quantity, location, and exposure is key to determining if it can be a concern.
High-Touch Surfaces Within the Interior
Steering wheels, gear shifts, door handles, belt buckles, control panels, touchscreens, windows, sunroofs, keys, radio and climate controls are frequently grasped by hands that spread the oils, grime, and germs from their fingertips, palms, and nails. The grooves of a wheel, the seams that hold surfaces together, the ridges of a button or the edges of an opening are difficult to thoroughly clean with just a wipe-down.
Anchored within seatbelts or beneath a child safety seat are pieces of snack food and gummy candies, while tools, construction materials, and other work supplies are brought inside and stored. A standard pressure wash is insufficient for the examination and decontamination of a trade-in.
Can Upholstery, Carpet and Sealing Allow More Contamination?
The porosity of materials can retain soil, bits of food, and moisture. Leaking weatherstripping, a wet floor mat, damp carpet, an improperly dried shampoo, or the absorption capacity of a carpet cushion can create conditions that encourage mold or bacteria to flourish. Cleaners should look beneath mats, around crevices, the floor wells behind and around seats, and the inner surfaces of a spare tire well or cargo gate.
Detecting musty smells, stains, damp spots, cloudy glass, or evidence of water penetration allows for further investigation. Any deodorizing agent should be applied with caution and never to mask suspicious moisture sources.
“A trade-in can look spotless and still carry years of residue in its upholstery, vents, seams, and high-touch surfaces. A strong reconditioning process goes beyond making the cabin smell fresh. It removes the underlying contamination and gives the next owner a genuinely cleaner vehicle.”–Jason Gardienr, CEO
HVAC Vents, Cabin Air and Smells
The cabin air filter and recirculation system can gather and hold onto allergens, dust, debris, odors, and moisture as it moves air through the cabin, but so can the interior. A putrid cabin smell isn’t necessarily an indication of the source, but rather of the accumulation along the path of circulation. It might be the cabin filter, the air intake, or some other location, but replacing a cabin filter rarely constitutes a full interior decontamination. A vehicle’s interior can carry moisture as well, and the combination of the two can encourage bacteria, mold, mildew, algae, or protozoa to bloom.
While replacing a neglected cabin filter during reconditioning is often a recommended activity, it doesn’t constitute cleaning and disinfecting the seats, touch panels, floor coverings, and all the interior surfaces of the heating and air conditioning system. The smell should be found, identified, and neutralized or eliminated. A dealership shouldn’t presume a decontamination process has succeeded when the odor simply changes.
What’s the Difference Between Cleaning, Sanitizing and Disinfecting?
Cleaning utilizes soap, water, rubbing, or other mechanical means to remove adhesion, dissolve contaminants, and eliminate certain types of microorganisms. Sanitizing, by contrast, reduces numbers to an acceptable or standards-compliant level, and disinfecting utilizes a biocide to destroy specific microorganisms on a surface. The CDC recommends cleaning contaminated surfaces prior to sanitizing or disinfecting them.
A gleaming wheel may still have a seam, crevice, corner, or area of contact that hasn’t received the same attention, but the reverse problem also exists. A disinfectant that’s too harsh or improperly diluted on an unprepared or dissimilar surface may cause more harm than good.
Standardized Interior Decontamination for Trade-Ins
An ideal process starts with a record of the interior findings and should guide the cleaning process. Service technicians should note any observed soil, moisture, odor, pet hair, food soils, staining, chemical residue, allergen sources, and high-use touchpoints. Loose matter and other surface soils should be removed, then cleaned with appropriate materials, products and methods. If the process requires sanitization or disinfection, the documentation, warnings, safety requirements, dilution ratios, and application instructions should be followed during the process. Physical methods of decontamination can be supplemented with advanced technology solutions within a repeated, standardized process.
What Are the Limitations of Its Decontamination Method?
In seeking a decontamination technology, a dealership should ask what types of microorganisms they’ve tested or claim to target, and which surfaces and environments are compatible with its use. Technicians should observe the suggested dwell time, safety precautions, required follow-up steps, and the degree of surface preparation necessary for an appropriate result. An appropriate process will state conditions under which the method isn’t recommended and shouldn’t be used.
A service shouldn’t presume that because a “germ-free” or “sterile” condition is achievable, it’s advisable or sustainable, since introducing passengers re-introduces variables beyond their control. A more realistic outcome is a repeatable, standardized process that produces consistently better results with every application.
A Professional Interior Decontamination Program for Used Vehicles
A used-vehicle reconditioning process delivers far more than simple appearances. It enables the seller to effectively remove odors, achieve consistent standards during reconditioning of every vehicle, avoid oversights, and reduce concerns from would-be buyers.
Each vehicle is different, and every trade-in presents new challenges. By implementing an examination, cleaning, and decontamination process, a dealership can ensure there are no surprises when the buyer takes delivery or goes for a test drive. Contact the professionals at Big Sky Decon if you are interested in understanding living in a trade-in vehicle before making the purchase.
What Questions Do Buyers Ask About Contamination of Used Vehicles?
Q: Can a seemingly clean used vehicle be a source of bacteria or allergies?
A: Yes, contaminants are often present in a vehicle that aren’t immediately visible or detectable to the senses. While such microorganisms aren’t always present, the likelihood of an allergy or sensitivity is increased by the accumulation of pollen, pet dander, mold spores, dust, and other particles that become trapped in carpets, floor mats, upholstery, seats, vents, seat tracks, and gaps between and behind panels. This isn’t always a concern, but it supports the need to truly clean the interior as well as the need for decontamination beyond an initial appearance or scent.
Q: Does disinfecting a vehicle remove smoke, pet, and food odors?
A: Disinfecting touches only the microorganisms stated by the manufacturer. This doesn’t necessarily remove odors that can linger beneath mats, upholstery, or carpet padding, or those that have soaked into seams and crevices of touch panels or vents. Smoke often deposits on a variety of surfaces, and pet odors often absorb into seat cushions and other fibers. Cleaning and decontaminating those areas, along with a cabin filter change, odor-eliminating process, or other methods may be necessary.
Q: Does a disinfectant process effectively sanitize all interior surfaces of a vehicle?
A: No single process is likely to have the same effect on every surface type, contaminant, or area within the vehicle. Hard surfaces and seams differ from plastics, leather, fabric, foam, electronics, and the interior of a heating/air conditioning system. The effectiveness of each procedure is dependent on the equipment or chemical used, the application method and dilution, the duration of exposure, ventilation, and the materials of the surfaces being treated.
Q: What should a buyer examine when test driving a used vehicle?
A: Pay attention to the overall scent of the cabin prior to the vehicle’s controls or air fresheners masking an unpleasant odor. This is also an opportunity to look beneath the floor mats, under and behind seats, within storage bins, door pockets, and on seat tracks for any evidence of staining, dampness, or other soils. It’s also worth testing the heating/air conditioning, inspecting the passenger compartments, and inquiring about the process that’s been used. Unusual odors or mustiness despite the use of air fresheners, the presence of cigarette smoke, strong perfumes, or unexpected dampness should receive closer scrutiny.