Routine car maintenance (Renault Scenic 1)

Car wash

Environmental protection laws prohibit washing cars in unauthorized places.

Many petrol stations offer the opportunity to wash your car yourself, by hand.

Wash the dirty car as quickly as possible. Before washing, wet the surfaces with stuck dead insects, and then wash them off.

Use plenty of water for washing. Wash the car with a soft sponge or a soft brush attached to the end of the washing hose. Avoid sharp corners when applying water from the hose to the surface of the body. Water should be applied in a "rain" to soften dirt.

Rinse the softened dirt with plenty of water from top to bottom. Squeeze the sponge frequently.

Use a chamois cloth to wipe dry. Use only high-quality detergent with a water-repellent effect. Rinse off any remaining detergent with plenty of clean water.

To protect the paintwork, you can add a preservative to the water for washing your car. If you use a detergent regularly, the surface of the car body should be rubbed with a preservative more often.

Never wash or dry your car in the sun. This will inevitably cause water spots.

Traces of salt used on roads in winter are especially dangerous for all folds and bends, flanges and joints of doors and hood. Therefore, such places should be thoroughly cleaned with a sponge at each car wash, including even after an automatic car wash, then rinsed with water and wiped dry with a dry chamois cloth.

Attention! After washing the car, the braking effect is reduced due to the wet surface of the brake pads. Therefore, dry the brake discs by lightly braking while driving.

Care of varnish coating

Conservation

The clean, dry-wiped varnish coating should be coated with a preservative at such intervals and as often as necessary to provide protection of the surface from the weather with a water-repellent and pore-closing wax composition.

Any fuel, oil, grease or brake fluid that gets on the paintwork must be removed immediately, otherwise it will cause the paintwork to become discolored.

Preserve the paintwork more often if, when washing the car, it is clearly visible that water flows from the paintwork not in the form of droplets, but in a solid mass. Regular use of a preservative helps to preserve the paintwork.

Another option for preserving the varnish coating is to use wax compounds used when washing the car. However, they provide good protection only if they are used at every car wash and only if the period between two washes does not exceed 2-3 weeks. Use varnish preservatives containing natural or synthetic wax.

After using detergent (car wash with foam) it is especially recommended to treat the body surface with a preservative (please read the instructions for use of the preservative beforehand).

Polishing

Polishing is only necessary when the varnish coating has lost its original appearance due to insufficient care or exposure to dust, industrial emissions, sun and rain and is no longer shiny even with the use of preservatives. Do not use highly abrasive polishing agents or polishing agents with increased chemical aggressiveness for this purpose, even if the first attempt at such polishing was successful.



Before each polishing, the car must be washed thoroughly and wiped dry. Subsequently, follow the manufacturer's instructions for using the polishing agent.

Avoid treating a large area at once to avoid premature drying of the polish. Most polishes require the application of a preservative after use. Do not polish in direct sunlight! Matte varnished parts must not be treated with polishes or preservatives.

Removal resin/tar stains

Resin-containing substances quickly eat into the paintwork and cannot be completely removed. Fresh stains can be removed with a rag soaked in washing gasoline. If necessary, you can also use gasoline, kerosene or turpentine oil. A varnish preservative also works very well against such stains. When using it, you can skip subsequent washing.

Insect Removal

Insects contain aggressive substances that damage the varnish coating. Therefore, the affected areas should be washed immediately with warm soapy water or a detergent solution, because insects that have hardened on the surface are difficult to remove with ordinary sprinkling. There are also special means for removing insects.

Removal traces of splashes with residues of various building materials

Remove traces of drops on various parts of the car with a warm neutral solution of detergent. Do not rub hard, so as not to damage the varnish coating. Then rinse with clean water.

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Care of plastic parts

Clean plastic parts, leatherette seats, headliner, matt black parts only with water with added shampoo. Do not soak the headliner. Plastic parts can be cleaned with a suitable plastic cleaner. Do not use solvents such as nitro thinner, cold cleaning agents or gasoline.

Glass cleaning

Wipe the glass inside and out with a clean soft cloth. For heavy dirt, use alcohol or ammonia and warm water or a special glass cleaner. When cleaning the windshield, fold the wiper arms forward.

When cleaning the windshield, also clean the wiper blades.

Attention! When using products containing silicone, brushes, sponges, rags and towels used for cleaning the varnish coating cannot be used for cleaning glass. When spraying varnish products containing silicone, the glass must be covered with thick paper or other material.

Caring for rubber seals

Sprinkle talc or spray silicone compound on the sealing and sliding surfaces of the rubber gaskets from time to time. This will help avoid squeaking when closing the doors. Rubbing the above-mentioned surfaces with liquid soap also reduces noise.

Tire cleaning

Clean light alloy wheels with a brush and treat with an appropriate agent, especially in winter, but do not use aggressive, acid-containing, highly alkaline agents, abrasive cleaning agents or a washing machine with a water temperature above +60°C.

Clean seat belts only with a mild soap solution, without removing them. Do not use chemical cleaners, as they destroy the fabric. Roll up automatic belts only after they are completely dry. Do not dry seat belts at temperatures above +80°C or in the sun.

Bottom protection and cavity preservation

The underbody of the vehicle, including the wheel arches, is covered with a protective PVC layer. Particularly vulnerable areas of the front end around the wheels are protected against stone impacts by a plastic coating. In addition, parts of the body exposed to the risk of corrosion are made of galvanized sheets.



Before the onset of cold weather and after each underbody wash, check the condition of the protective layer of the underbody and, if necessary, eliminate its defects.

Some areas of the underbody may accumulate dust, clay and sand. Remove the accumulated dirt, which in winter may also contain salt.

Engine cleaning and preservation

To prevent corrosion on the front parts of the car (for example, on side members, cross beams), as well as the power unit, the engine compartment, including all parts and units located in the engine compartment must be covered with a high-quality preservative. This should be done first of all after washing the car.

Attention! Before washing the engine under a stream of cold water from a washing unit or a steam generator, cover the generator, fuse box, and brake fluid reservoir with plastic bags.

Caring for and cleaning seat covers

Fabric covers

Clean the covers with a vacuum cleaner or a fairly stiff brush. If they are heavily soiled, they can be cleaned with foam.

Remove greasy and oily stains with washing benzine or stain remover. Do not wet the stain directly with the stain remover, because this will inevitably leave streaks on the fabric around the area that was wetted with the stain remover. Treat the stain in a circle, moving from the outside in. Other stains are usually removed with warm soapy water.

Leather covers

In case of strong exposure to sunlight and long periods of parking, remove the covers to prevent them from fading.

Use a slightly damp knitted or woolen cloth to clean the leather surfaces, without soaking the leather or seams completely. Finally, wipe the damp leather with a dry, clean cloth.



Heavily soiled leather surfaces can be treated with solutions of mild detergents without bleach (2 tablespoons per 1 liter of water). Remove greasy and oily stains carefully with cleaning gasoline without rubbing them.

Patent leather seats should be treated with a regular commercially available leather care product after cleaning. Such products can be purchased at a specialty store or at a car shop. Shake the product well before use and apply a thin layer with a soft cloth.

After drying, wipe the surface with a clean soft cloth. Perform this treatment once every 6 months if external influence is normal.