Getting the 'old man' stench out of an old car

[spudboy]

Well, stench may be too strong a word, but I've got a 30 year old car which I bought from a deceased estate, and it's got 30 years of tobacco and "old man" smell about it. It spent a year shut up in a shed before I got it.

So far, I have
- given it a good wipe down inside (dash, etc)
- left all the doors open under the carport for a fortnight to air it,
- put in a deodorising Xmas-Tree thing, that actually made it smell worse
- scrubbed the seats with Jif (now looks lovely, but still smells)

Anyone got any other useful ideas, short of getting the Karcher onto the insides? Is there some special liquid to wash down things with (like vanilla essence, or coffee beans , or whatever) that will help, or something to absorb the smell?

My missus is refusing to ride in it until it smells better.....

Thanks
David

[pop058]

what sort of car is it (trying to get an idea of the type of interior materials) ??

[spudboy]

It is an old 2 door Mercedes Coupe in pretty mint condition.

[Disco Steve]

what you do is go out for a 3day bender with freinds and get one of them to throw up in the back.
it will get rid of "THAT" smell:wasntme:

[big guy]

Spudboy

I have a Ozone generator at home that I will lend you if you like.

I own a Cigar bar in town, well used to be a cigar bar anyway.

Ozone (O3) attaches itself to everything pretty much and neutralizes all smells.
It works a treat.

Its fan forced, just plug and play.

Put it in the car, open window slightly and switch on for 3-5hrs.
Than air the car and the stench should be gone.
The air(O3) it produces should not be inhaled for any length of time though.

[Pierre]

You may find that the thing that carries the most odour is the carpet. The bacteria, etc causing the smell have to be removed

Some alternatives -

1..take it out and steam clean it (hot water extraction). Replace the underlay while the carpet is out .
2..steam clean it in place - make sure whoever does it uses very hot water and a good prespray.
3..mask the odour with a deodourizer obtainable from a good trade cleaning supplier.

Plenty of sunshine will help.

HTH

Pete

[incisor]

your local cleaning supplies wholesaler will have an odour neutraliser on the shelf.

500 mls of it and a chemical spray head (normally black) will do the deed.

i use one with a slightly citrus after smell.

takes about 2 - 3 weeks to get rid of really really bad smoke smells using it every couple of days...

[Sprint]

get a young woman in the back...... your missus will stop whinging about the smell, garunteed!

[Xavie]

I ended up going with odour neutraliser.

I bought a car from someone who smoked in it and I left the windows down for more then 12 months and tried doing everything. It never totally went away but it got slightly better over a very long time. I will never buy a vehicle which has been smoked in again.

It is really bad when it gets through the a/c too. Even after changing filters etc... it still stays.

dirty dirty dirty.

[strangy]

Gday, try "Febreeze"(Ithink thats the way its spelled) Off the supermarket shelf for the trapped odours.
We use stuff called Ozium in the aircraft works wonders on the airborne smells.

If the upholstery is leather you may be better off with a commercial leather cleaner for that, but, the leather will hold smells for quite while.

Cheers

Mark

[clean32]

the only way is O3 eather from a generator or a spray. O3 is actualy a poison it kills the bacteria that generates the smell.

any thing else is a waste of time, even cleaning may clean but will not kill the bacteria

[BigJon]

We use stuff called Ozium in the aircraft works wonders on the airborne smells.



You aren't trying to say that some of your passengers smell a bit?

[Corgie Carrier]

I bought a WH Statesman that was smoked in, infact the dirty bahstards used the storage compartment under the radio as an ashtray.:mad:

I tried to get the smell out but like you I couldn't, so I took it to a professional detailing place. They removed the seats and steam cleaned the carpet and roof lining (according to them the roof holds more smell than the floor), then they used Wurtz leather conditioner on the seats.

When I got it back, it smelt like a brand new car and 2 years later the smell hasn't returned.

Oh and it only cost $200.

Hope this helps.

Neale

[spudboy]

That's a lot of advice in a short time. Thanks.

Frank - I will take you up on the offer of your Ozone machine if that's ok. Send me a PM and I will organise to call over. You've shifted from Norwood haven't you?

I'll have to find out who supplies the stuff that Incisor mentioned. Yellow Pages on Monday I guess.

Smoking in cars should be BANNED :mad:

[spudboy]

...I took it to a professional detailing place. They removed the seats and steam cleaned the carpet and roof lining (according to them the roof holds more smell than the floor), then they used Wurtz leather conditioner on the seats.
Neale

Did they have to remove the headlining from the car, or is it done in-place? $200 would be a reasonable price to pay to have it smelling good again.

[McDisco]

Try an open box of bicarb soda. I got a whole bunch of water into my Toyota corona carpet once when I lived in Qld. It was summer and the carpets stunk!! Placed the bicarb under the seat and it fixed the smell no worries...

Angus

[George130]

Bicarb works.
One car I owned smelled a lot better after I lost an apple in the back. Never did find the apple but it always smelled of fresh apples.:eek:

[clean32]

Try an open box of bicarb soda. I got a whole bunch of water into my Toyota corona carpet once when I lived in Qld. It was summer and the carpets stunk!! Placed the bicarb under the seat and it fixed the smell no worries...

Angus

Yep that works, but realy only on mold

[McDisco]

Yep that works, but realy only on mold

I dont know...I used in my fridge to freshen it up. It absorbs odours...

Angus

[Tank]

It is an old 2 door Mercedes Coupe in pretty mint condition.
Try Fabreeze fabric deodouriser, will take a few goes to get the stink of tobacco out though, Regards Frank.

[CraigE]

Nilodour is another product and should be available at your supermarket. Only put a drop or two in as it will become overpowering itself.
The O3 device is probablly the best long term.

[rovercare]

Take up smoking, you won;t smell a thing:D:wasntme:

[Disco_owner]

Spudboy , This will mask the oldman's smells inside the cabin.
http://www.faurotforensics.com/images/e-1800%20kit%20shot%20newb.jpg

[strangy]

You aren't trying to say that some of your passengers smell a bit?


No... some smell quite a lot!!

[Corgie Carrier]

Did they have to remove the headlining from the car, or is it done in-place? $200 would be a reasonable price to pay to have it smelling good again.

Headlining stayed in position, only the seats were removed.

Not sure how long it took, as I was away for the week with work, so they had plenty of time for it to dry out.

Best $200 I've spent on a car.

Neale

[dullbird]

just get it detailed

[DiscoTDI]

Take up smoking, you won;t smell a thing:D:wasntme:

:Rolling::Rolling::Rolling::Rolling::Rolling: