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Make Your Old Car Look Like New

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My daughter, Eleanor, headed back to college last week, for her second year. Last year she was a nervous freshman, but this year she is a self assured sophomore! In fact she is a resident assistant in a dorm this year, so she has all kinds of responsibilities, and she had to go back to college a week before everyone else for training. Now she would have loved to show up on campus in a fancy new car, to impress the rest of the staff and her friends, and show how sophisticated she is. But the reality is she driving a 2003 Oldsmobile Intrigue that she inherited from my Dad, and it shows its age!

Make Your Old Car Look Like New - Get your car ready for college with these seven easy steps for making an old car look like new and getting your car college ready.

My Dad loved this car, and he took meticulous care of it. It was clean and polished, and never driven in the winter. After he passed away my Mom gave the car to my kids, and well, they have been a little bit neglectful. So to help Eleanor make a good a first impression on campus we set out to clean it and make the old car look like new. Here are seven easy steps for making an old car college ready!

Eleanor on campus

Step 1 – Get Rid of the Garbage and Vacuum

My girls did quite a bit of commuting with car this summer, and seemed to do quite a bit of eating in it too! There were receipts, straw wrappers and crumbs all over the car, along with random debris like highlighters and flip flops. So the first step was to pick up the garbage, and then get out the shop vac and vacuum thoroughly.

Vacuuming the Car

Step 2 – Clean the Interior Trim

There were years of dust and grime inside the car! The door handles were especially dirty, but dust was everywhere. So we took a cloth wiped the inside down, and then used a little dish detergent on the really dirty areas. After we had everything cleaned off we used some Armor All® Outlast Trim & Plastic Restorer to shine up the plastic and give it a protective coating. Now it looks like new!

apply armor all

Step 3 – Clean the Windows

The amount dirt that accumulates on the inside windows is surprising. The back windows were especially bad, with lots of smears from dog noses pressing up against them. Of course smeared windows don’t just look bad, they are a safety hazard too, so it is important to clean them often.

Cleaning the car windows

Step 4 – Wash the Car

My daughter insisted on getting out the pressure washer for washing the car, and it did make it faster. We soaped it up, scrubbed it down, rinsed it off and let it dry in the sunshine. It is amazing how much mud and dirt a car picks up just from everyday use.

Washing the car

Step 5 – Glaze the Tires

Bright and glossy tires are the finishing touch on a car makeover. We used Armor All® Outlast Tire Glaze to take the tires from dull to shiny, and it really makes the car look sharp. The glaze is easy to use, and sprays on in just a few seconds. Check out my before and after pictures:

Tire Glaze

Step 6 – Accessorize

Once the car is clean and shiny you have to accessorize it to show your personality. Maybe you want to hang fuzzy dice from the mirror, or add a bumper sticker for your favorite band. Eleanor, for example, has a window decal proudly displaying her Alma Mater, so everyone at college knows what high school she graduated from.

Hogwarts Alumni Car Sticker

Step 7 – Check Safety Equipment

Before your child heads off to college make sure the car is ready to go! We checked the oil, checked the tire tread, and made sure there was a car emergency kit in the trunk.

Car Safety Kit

After all this work and effort the Oldsmobile looks like – well it still looks like a 2003 car. But a clean and polished 2003 car, which does make a great first impression. It says you don’t have to have the latest and greatest to appreciate and care for what you have.

Armor All Outlast products

So this back-to-school season don’t neglect your car! Since my daughter was cleaning the Oldsmobile I had her clean my car too – and I love how it looks now. These simple steps and Outlast products from Armor All can keep your car looking new too, so you can make a great first impression, on campus or at work.  We found the products in the car care section of our local Walmart.

armor all at walmart

Enter the giveaway below for a chance to win some Walmart Gift Cards, perfect for getting supplies to take care of your car.

Armor All Outlast #1stImpressionsCount SweepstakesArmor All Outlast #1stImpressionsCount Sweepstakes

Do you need to make your old car look like new? Check out all the Armor All products, like the Trim Plastic Restorer and Tire Glaze.  Share your favorite car memories with me below!

anne

Hi, I’m Anne!

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31 thoughts on “Make Your Old Car Look Like New”

  1. You can’t go wrong with a car that hasn’t been driven to death. “From an investment point of view, when you’re looking at what you can do to turn your money into more money, low-mileage vehicles are like a sure thing,

    Reply
  2. Respect to the first owner! “never driven in the winter” is sth hard to achieve and he did it!
    Thanks for the sincere & useful article.

    Reply
  3. I just bought an older car, and I want to know how to take good care of it. I liked what you said about how it would be smart to try glazing my tires. It might also be smart for me to consider getting newer car parts. That way the tires and rims look nice and last a long time.

    Reply
  4. Taking care of your car like it’s one of your own kids. It really is necessary to be maintained regularly to lasts a long long time.

    Reply
  5. Okay, this might not contribute directly to the appearance of your car, but keeping your car in good running condition is even more important than making sure it looks good.

    Reply
  6. Safety Equipment, Washing Regular basis and as well as essential oil time to time maintenance, With help of Auto care products easily we make an old car look like new as well as the Running condition can achieve good.

    Reply
  7. Safety Equipment, Washing Regular basis and as well as essential oil time to time maintenance, With help of Auto care products easily we make an old car look like new as well as the Running condition can achieve good.

    Reply
  8. Usage of certain chemicals on the surface of the vehicle can cause extensive damage to both the surface as well as the paint. You must make use of the right products to get rid of the stains from the surface.

    Reply
  9. Thanks sharing this information and idea I am try this blog in life my cars is to good thanks sharing this article

    Reply

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