Help me! (2000 TL)

Ok -- so I went down to VA with my girl and I didn't want to use the A/C so I opened my windows and sunroof for some fresh air. We got to the hotel we were going to stay at and I closed my windows, but left the Sunroof wide open. Well.. You can guess what happened.. That night, it rained and thundered and you name it.... I got to my car only to notice it the next morning. First off... nothing seemed wet. I looked at the seats, they were pretty dry.. and the back mats were only a bit wet. I looked in the center console.. was wet inside.. and cup holders had a little bit of water in them. Under the cupholders was probably the biggest wet area -- not too bad either. I do however have a musty odor in the car now... Can anyone give me some advice as to what to do now? Should I Lysol the car to kill the mold spores probably growing within? What about Steam cleaning the Mats -- I have a steam cleaner. Should I use a leather protectant or a leather cleaner?

Thanks for any help!

 

Well I wouldnt use lysol but it will kill the bacteria. Im not sure but you can call an insurance company and ask them for any recomended vehicle flood restoration people in your area. They may be able to help you out with some products. I would definitly leave the windows down in the hot sun to help get all the water out. Hope this helps. You can also use one of those little green steam machine. We have one and works great to get out stubborn stains and dog piss in the home carpet. Im sure it would do good to help get rid of that musty smell.

 

I don't know what else to use.
It's mainly the Musty smell that is bothering me.. I opened all of the windows. and left it in the sun.. We'll see how it does. Are there any posts about this?

 

Dude, take that shit to a detail shop/cleaner and get the car deep shampooed, should cost you about $30-$60. Then tell them what happened and I am sure they will treat your carpet and the such for you.... I say use a professional bacause doing it yourself is hard and also we don't usually have the luxury of all the chemicals they have....

For the leather, wipe it down with some water and dry it off, and then condition it... should be no thing
but a chicken wing..... Definitely leave the car open and get out all the water.... Don't use Lysol or anything....

btw You desi??? man, that was stupid.... I hope your girl was worth it on that trip... Later..

 

1. Girl was definitely worth it --
2. Hellz yea I'm Desi --

Thanks for the help.. As far as the mats go, I think I'm going to clean them myself -- I soak them and then steam clean them. I actually started using laundry detergent.. that stuff actually works.

I let the leather dry off and today it didn't smell musty.. sweet.

Thanks a lot guys.

 

Also post this question on autopia.org and you'll get a perfect answer. Lot of pro-detailers hang out there.

 

damn i would kill myself if i did somethin like that. don't get any ideas tho.

 

why's ur name george if ur desi lol...j/k

 

alright! another desi TL owner keep us posted on what develops next!

 

I used to have an S2000 and I've left the top down in rain twice. First time was a little "teach me a lesson" thing. Second time mother nature was like "What the f^ck were you thinking?...I warned you". I shampood the carpets and left an oscillating fan in there overnight. Then some open boxes of Baking Soda...don't just poor the stuff in your car, leave it in the box, like in the fridge.

EDIT: "so I went down to VA with my girl and I didn't want to use the A/C"
If any, the reason that you should use A/C is if there's a girl in the car. Whatever.

 

Boy that would be one I would hate to detail. You may ultimately end up having to replace the crapets if the smell doesnt dissipate. Its important to get it dry as soon as possible to elleviate any moldspore growth. Once the mold starts, your screwed. I gather you have probably already taken a wet/dry vac and vacuumed up any left over water? Go to the hardware store and get a product that actually absorbs humidity. They make them for household rooms, i see no reason why you couldnt use it in this application, get that sucker dry!!

 

you could just let the A/C run full blast with recirculation OFF. I know in a little car it helped.

 

I opened all my windows -- shot CLOROX disinfectant spray into the car -- (without bleach) -- and pretty much sprayed the entire carpet area of the car. It has a strong anti-mold agent. Then, I left my car out in the sun to dry --- windows down. I took all of the mats out of the car and washed them with laundry detergent. LAUNDRY DETERGENT IS THE BEST WAY TO REMOVE STAINS! I mean, it cleaned everything off of the mats -- even those stupid hard stains... just pour it directly onto the mat, scrub a bit -- soak it in hot water with mild agitation and scrub all of the stains away... then wet vac the mats to get the excess water off -- and put it under a fan to dry.

 

One of the issues with being a desi you need to get the girl home on time :P , did you need to drive that much faster -leaving the AC off- so you could have as much time with her , before her dad hunted you down?:sqnteek: