Scott Jacobs wrote a hilarious blog post about how the armrest in the 2004 Toyota Prius reminded him of a couch his college roommate had that they had nicknamed the "deal breaker." If a woman came to visit them, and had to sit on the couch, she would never come back. The armrest of the Prius was like that for me. It was the first thing I saw when I opened the door to get in. Looking at the evil, dark stains I imagined it was emitting the foul odors some editors had remarked on. After months of shrinking from contact with the armrest I snapped into action.
I took the Prius to our local car wash and asked about shampooing the interior. They said it would cost a hundred big ones and take an hour. I didn't have the money or the time so I let them do their usual vacuum and wash. While I was waiting for it to be scrubbed, I browsed the car care products and my eyes fell on a can of foam upholstery shampoo. The advertising said it could be used on "the toughest stains." But it didn't say anything about deal breakers.
On my way back to the office from the car wash I pulled to the curb and hosed the armrest with foam. It was like I was trying to extinguish a flaming jetliner on an airport runway. Foam went everywhere, billowing like cumulonimbus clouds. I scrubbed the arm rest with the brush built into the top of the can. Inky rivulets of grime steamed off the arm rest and down the door panel. I blotted the mess with tissues I found in the backseat. I kept foaming and blotting. The next day, I did it again.
I can't tell you how satisfying it was to have it dry, fluffy and fragrant. I kept looking at the before picture to remind myself of how far it had come. I still think it seems impossible that it could have come back from the dead like that.
Philip Reed, Edmunds.com Senior Consumer Advice Editor @ 86,740 miles
85se says:
07:34 AM, 11/ 9/10
I keep a can of that stuff in the house for cleaning up after the occasional hairball emitted by my cats. It's great stuff.
I think it's amazing how well that armrest cleaned up...I'm sure I read posts where other editors thought it was permanently damaged. Good stuff!
hybris says:
07:46 AM, 11/ 9/10
That's honestly a good job right there.
lostboyz says:
07:52 AM, 11/ 9/10
instead of being ridiculously dirty, now its just really dirty
stingray454 says:
08:01 AM, 11/ 9/10
That is impressive for sure. I think that cleaning product deserves recognition for a job well done. How about a picture of the can? At least list the brand and product name.
yellowmiata says:
08:27 AM, 11/ 9/10
Amazing. I do think we need at least a fuzzy pic of the can so we know what product can perform miracles.
Kevin
viss1 says:
08:32 AM, 11/ 9/10
With all due respect to IL columnists, I continue to be surprised by the apparent lack of car care knowledge among the staff. Interior cleaning is one of the basics that any enthusiast should have a handle on. Dousing the armrest with product and then blotting the runoff with tissues sounds like something my Mom would do.
audisport says:
09:22 AM, 11/ 9/10
Looks like you replaced it. Night and day.
maxedoutmax says:
09:40 AM, 11/ 9/10
Excellent work! Looks close to new!
allenychung says:
09:41 AM, 11/ 9/10
Wow, nice!
roadburner says:
11:16 AM, 11/ 9/10
I've had excellent luck with Armorall upholstery cleaner.
banhugh says:
11:29 AM, 11/ 9/10
Philip Reed is the first columnist in IL that has ever tried, on his own, not hiring somebody to do it for him with IL funds, to clean the interior instead of whining about it. Congrats to you and job well done! the results are amazing...
carguy622 says:
12:39 PM, 11/ 9/10
I still can't believe how gross it was initially.
ptcdawg says:
12:42 PM, 11/ 9/10
I can't believe I'm reading about someone cleaning up their car. Or commenting on it for that matter.
dougtheeng says:
12:47 PM, 11/ 9/10
good work!
bodyblue says:
03:54 PM, 11/ 9/10
I just scrubbed in Formula 409 into my wife's Prius armrest and had about the same results. It does not take anything special to clean the interior. It got dirty quick but has not worn at all. Just like the drive train, the interior has performed very well. I hate driving it but it sure is a well built car that is cheap as hell to drive.
sharpend says:
02:29 AM, 11/10/10
Really makes you wonder why the sick bastards at IL didn't just take the 5 minutes to clean it and do it a long time ago.
I'd hate to see what their bathrooms look like at home.
philip17 says:
07:34 AM, 11/10/10
Thanks for comments. There is a real satisfaction to cleaning something that is a daily eyesore. So I appreciate the comments about doing it myself but that was part of the fun. I admit it was kind of a seat of the pants approach but it worked so much better than I ever thought.
By the way, the stuff I used was called Heavy Foam Upholstery Cleaner by a company called Blue Magic. http://www.amazon.com/BlueMagic-914-Heavy-Upholstery-Cleaner/dp/B001RUH8ES What I liked was that it had a brush built into the cap so, other than tissues for blotting up the mess (seat of the pants again, sorry)I had everything I needed.
Philip Reed, Edmunds.com