Over time, you may have noticed that without regular cleaning and maintenance, your vehicle’s gear shift knobs become incredibly dirty and let’s just say it, gross.
Learn how to bust the dirt and restore your gear shift knobs from grimy to grand.
Why is the Gear Shift Knob so Dirty?
Here are some of the main reasons why gear shift knobs become covered in layers of grime:
Dirty Hands
Although you think your hands are clean, your gear shift knob will prove you wrong every time.
Sweat, oil, and dirt accumulate on your hands continuously throughout the day. Without even realizing it, those dirty hands transfer everything on to the shift knob.
Eating something greasy or even using hand lotion also leaves residue behind on the shifter.
Everyday Dirt and Grime
In addition to dirty hands, dust, grime, and dirt gets inside your car and settles onto the gear shift knob. This happens when you roll down the windows, open the doors or from air that blows out of your vents.
Heat and Sun Damage
While the sun beats down on your vehicle, it can take a real toll on your gear shift knob, steering wheel, dash, and interior seats.
Much like UV rays are very dangerous to unprotected skin, the same applies to your vehicle’s interior.
UV rays, heat and humidity dry up the natural oil that protects leather. Eventually, any dirt, sweat or grime remaining on a gear shift knob heats up, settles into the grooves, and becomes far more difficult to remove. The grime tends to accumulate in layers.
“Pleather” Material
You may believe you are dealing with genuine leather, but your gear shift knob and/or steering wheel could be formed instead from a synthetic material made to mimic the look of leather.
Cleaning a plastic or vinyl gear shift knob with leather-specific products can leave your shifter looking worse.
If using the wrong cleaner and conditioner, the synthetic materials may respond by becoming dirtier, sticky and/or tacky to the touch.
Solutions for Cleaning a Dirty Gear Shift Knob
Clean Hands, Clean Gear Shift Knob
Wash hands often throughout the day. Better yet, keep a supply of hand wipes in the car to clean hands before shifting into gear and driving.
Cleaning and Conditioning
Make sure you know if you have a genuine leather or imitation material on the gear shift knob before cleaning with material-specific products.
For leather gear shift knobs and steering wheels, use specially formulated leather cleaner, followed by a conditioner. Use the conditioner sparingly as too much can make the areas tacky.
For vinyl or other material, wipe down the gear shift knob and steering wheel with an all-purpose cleaner and microfiber cloth daily or weekly to keep dirt and grime away.
For a more intense clean, use diluted all-purpose cleaner and soft toothbrush or non-abrasive sponge to loosen up the grimy dirt. Wipe dirt away with a clean microfiber cloth.
Protection
If possible, park your vehicle indoors or use a sun shield to help prevent UV damage to your gear shift knob and overall vehicle interior.
While it’s important to keep leather components conditioned, a UV-protectant gives more protection from those harmful UV rays.
Conclusion
Getting rid of gear shift knob grime is not as hard as you think. Keeping it grime-free is much easier with frequent TLC.
When your auto body or paint needs TLC, don’t hesitate to call Downtown Autobody in Rohnert Park for expert service and results.