[Jazzwithme]

Any precautionary measures while switching on the AC after a long time? So far I have started my car at regular intervals but have never switched on the AC. Was coming across AC cleaning foams in multiple forums. Will this help?

[nkrishnap]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

There can be a grain of truth even in fake news. Alcohol vapour is very inflammable: we should not be using it in a closed environment such as a car. On top of that, it's not good to breathe that vapour.

Completely agree. Ethanol-based sanitisers may not be safe to be used on the interiors after all. Unfortunately, I have seen a couple of instances at a dealership of a popular manufacturer where they are spraying the Ethanol-based sanitizer on the interiors especially the steering wheel, dashboard, center console, and the driver side switches. Not sure how this is going to turn out to.

Originally Posted by TROOPER

I didn't include IPA or sanitizers/sanitizing in the opening post.

But what I have noticed is, most pro detailers on YouTube will show it as a last resort or the last product to use in the lineup. So even they're not so gung-ho on using it.

IPA will not be used directly without dilution. Diluted IPA (to the tune of 20 to 25%) would be instantly inflammable.

[MSC]

Hello all.
I am due to receive my Hyundai Venue somewhere around 28 or 29 May. I had booked it in February but due to long waiting for BS6 model and then due to lockdown the delivery has been delayed by almost 2 months.
Just read on some news portal that 3 employees in Hyundai plant have been found positive for Corona and somewhere around 14-16 people have been asked to remain in quarantine till tests find these people safe.
Now according to my Sales Advisor, the car was among the first batch which were produced after the Chennai plant reopened for work on 5 May. And the car was dispatched on 20 May, is there any possibility that car may have infection from affected person?
There is practically zero chance to know about exact information. I am being paranoid but when safety of loved ones is concerned, I don't want to take even 0.001% risk.
If I am not wrong, corona doesn't has lifespan more than 5 or 6 days on various articles, so literally there is very remote chance of car being infected.
Also, dealer has assured that they will sanitize car inside out, before delivery.
Again I have doubt. The sodium hypochlorite used for sanitation is some form of bleach if I am not wrong. Will spraying car with bleach be safe? I hope it won't damage body paint or other things.
Can knowledgeable people please guide.

[TROOPER]

Originally Posted by Jazzwithme

Any precautionary measures while switching on the AC after a long time?

Don't think there's much to worry on that front. Just regular cleaning of cabin filter should do. If at all a corona infected person travels in your car, it'd be prudent to replace the filter.

Originally Posted by MSC

Hello all.
I am due to receive my Hyundai Venue somewhere around 28 or 29 May....
Can knowledgeable people please guide.

I don't think it should be an issue.

Although I would strongly advise you to ask your dealer to give the car exterior a thorough wash with any car shampoo, which should suffice. Bleach or anything similar should be avoided IMO.

Ask them to follow the manufacturer's protocol for the interior. No Bleach or disinfectants on leather surfaces. Just a soap wash should suffice.

And to be completely worry free, drive your car home safely and follow the procedure from post #1 on this thread.

I would go alone to get the delivery formalities done, get the car home, do the cleaning/disinfecting and only after that let my family in and have a nice ride

[BoneCollector]

Great thread.

I've been using this from Dettol since some time, even before Corona hit us. I use it over the seat fabric mainly. For other contact areas, I've been using Sterillium . I take it in cotton and wipe the steering wheel, gear knob, door handles, grab rails, switches, AC switches and all other possible points. But point to note is that I do this when I get back from a drive or on a day when the car is not supposed to go out. Basically, no cleaning when car is operational or needs to be taken out immediately. Any alcohol based sanitiser should not be put inside any place where electricals are there so as to prevent any fire. Such sanitiser would evaporate in few minutes. So we must give some time gap.

Now with Corona, I'll be using soap wash liberally outside. Corona has lipid outside layer which is damaged by soap. For inside, I'll still stick with these that I've been using. I had taken my Brezza for 4 year service this Saturday. They did some sort of sanitization but I did my own sanitization once I came back. Moreover, Brezza has occupancy only from immediate family, mainly 5 of us. Wagon R is driven by driver and we are chauffeured around. Once we start going out again, I'll be doing the same stuff more liberally and frequently.

[prithm]

Originally Posted by Jazzwithme

Any precautionary measures while switching on the AC after a long time? So far I have started my car at regular intervals but have never switched on the AC. Was coming across AC cleaning foams in multiple forums. Will this help?

I would really take time to clean the A/C filter every week (if you are living in high humidity areas) to make sure your A/C system has no fungus growth, open it just to even observe. Since most of our cars are not running long distance that they used to, they are safe from Covid perspective. But not from usual Fungal and Mold attack. Since A/C systems usually generate moisture from cabin air (if used in recirculation mode), there is a high chance for microbial growth.

If your A/C filter is sponge type, no harm cleaning with soap water and drying it before installing. For paper, we are left with no option but to blow pressurized air and tap it on hard surfaces. I spray a coat of liquid hand sanitizer (not gel) on the filter and dry it before installing. Won't use the car for an hour to allow any lingering alcohol to dissipate. Did this couple of times during lock down.

One thing that has helped me get rid of nasty smell from molds and fungal growth is cleaning floor mats and vacuuming interiors before long term halt.

[balenoed_]

Saw this circulating over WA. Not sure this is a sensible practice that will be taken up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr1cPC6LWLk

[PetrolRider]

My car was due 20K free servicing last month, thanks to Hyundai I got 2 months extension.

Now, under warranty means, a visit to ASC and that is my current nightmare. I can imagine the entire interior area would be touched and bombarded with body fluids (sweat) and exhale extracts. Again, not adhering to servicing schedule means saying bye bye to warranty at 2nd year itself.

I am thinking in line of using diluted Dettol solution to wipe plastic / knobs / switches / steering wheel and dashboard area. Healthy use of Savlon Ethanol based spray on seat, carpet and other fabric areas (my car has fabric seats) including boot carpet and roof lining. A regular soap-based wash for exterior. And at last, leaving the car unused for at least 7 days or longer till I can manage.

My society rules would not permit a home visit service. I dare not visit the service center. I am hoping to use pick-up and drop this time which means no control on internal space use by the service center personnel.

Are these steps enough? Am I getting over paranoid?
What are your suggestions? Please free to pour in.

[sumeethaldankar]

My office Laptop has conked off. The Laptop company (Lenovo) is checking if someone can be sent to my home to repair same under warranty if possible as no one is available at office to take care of this.

Due to society rules and due to the current situation no one is allowed inside peoples homes from outside. I am thinking of requesting the person whenever he comes to sit and fix the laptop in my car impolite though it may sound, I have no choice).

Post that I plan not to use the car for 15 days. Do you guys think it's a bad idea to do so? The car is now not used and I took it out once in the last 3 months. What precautions I need to take?

[ashishskapoor]

Hi guys, here's a short 4 min video on how to how to sanitise and disinfect the car after lockdown, and how make keep your car corona-free. Am sure you guys will find it useful!

https://youtu.be/Kr1CLOR9GaE

[ramnaresh_2000]

Originally Posted by PetrolRider

I can imagine the entire interior area would be touched and bombarded with body fluids (sweat) and exhale extracts.

Are these steps enough? Am I getting over paranoid?
What are your suggestions? Please free to pour in.

Don't worry, specially don't get paranoid during these uncertain times. Once your vehicle is serviced, ask them to sanitize your vehicle. Ask them to do it in front of you before taking delivery. They use a special chemical with a fog machine to sanitize your vehicle. Mahindra charges around 750 bucks for this. I am sure Hyundai charges same price. It will hardly take 5 minutes. You can then drive vehicle without any worries.

[Zen2001]

Unless unavoidable, don't service/hand your car over to anyone else! If this condition is met, no need to go overboard with all these "remedies"! I'm a doctor and all I've been doing for the past 3 months is driving my own car (which I anyway used to even before), not allowing anyone else inside (including family, considering I keep my hospital PPE inside ), washing/sanitizing my hands frequently and most importantly, avoiding parking under the shade. Even a surface temperature of 45 degrees kills ANY viruses within minutes. If any doubts, don't come at me with your guns, read a textbook of medical microbiology or virology.

[anandbangalore]

My car was begging for a scheduled servicing since Mar and I got it completed yesterday. I used Wheels Wisdom (blr based) who manage the entire servicing bit. Which meant I did not have to visit the service centre. However, the car was obviously touched and used by multiple people when being serviced.

Post servicing, I was also keen to get the upholstery washed by a 3m sort of service. However, the 3M near my house doesn't have a pickup/drop service.

Any recommendations for a Bangalore based 3m-like service who can pickup/drop-off my car?

Once I have a thoroughly cleaned car, I can self follow the steps OP has listed on Page1.

[phamilyman]

This is applicable for folks who are chauffeured and want 100% peace of mind. I would suggest:
a. Plastic partition for driver
b. Belkin DC-AC inverter
c. TruSens Z1000 UVC HEPA air purifier
d. Recirculation set to OFF if you don't live in a dusty hellhole like Gurgaon (sadly choke worthy at 6am)

As I have said before
Risk of any activity = Duration of exposure X Extent of exposure X Ventilation / Masking (for small duration only)

Why is masking nearly irrelevant here?
The 2 page version of the answer is available in my Quora post but the summary is that masks trap most aerosols & retard exhaled velocity of the rest. That means you could be safe even if you're getting a haircut without a mask from a masked hairdresser (I still recommend a mask). Else if you were speaking indoor, the risks are tremendously high.

Problem in most Indian cities is that the cabin is small and AC air is always recirculating so even if you're masked, you get exposed eventually unless your car AC has a HEPA filter.

My solution basically works at multiple levels:
a. Limits the direct air interaction between driver and us (masking + partition)
b. The filtered air I get from the normal AC filter is then purified by the UV purifier working at full blast (designed for 23 sqm room)

Why Belkin? This is a workhorse product - has low battery indicator and inbuilt fan to keep cool vs the cheaper products. Offroad gurus like .anshuman use it for hours!
Why Trusens? Product of UK Acco group - very high quality product. Slightly overpriced but most affordable room sized UVC air purifier
PS: As always, this is a repost of what I put on my personal blog - just reposting here for reaching the wider BHPian community!
PPS: Taleb shares a similar setup link (seems to be non-recirculated air + air partition only): https://twitter.com/nntaleb/status/1...973760?lang=en

Credit for validating the thoughts and helping me choose the products? our BHPian, out of the box! Thank you, chief!