Cleaning Your Truck's Windows

Talking care of your truck or SUV is something your absolutely have to do for maintaining its safety, dependability and resale value. As you know, next to a home, a vehicle is the largest purchase many of  us will ever make. And a well-maintained appearance can add up to $1,000's to a used vehicle's resale price. That also means keeping your windows in good shape.

Have you ever wondered where the haze comes from that gets on your inside windows? Well, it isn't just from dust and dirt in the air, or bad body scum. Your truck's interior materials are a big source of the film on the inside of the windows.

Vinyl is used on dashes, door panels and even the backs of leather seats. This material is constantly under attack by ultraviolet rays from the Sun, which break down the vinyl's surface molecules and allows gases to escape  in a process called outgassing.

These fumes form the haze on your windshield, which is difficult to remove.

Household cleaners typically are not up to the job of removing the haze or splatted bugs on the exterior. Nor can they remove the tree sap that gets on the windows. For those tasks, you should use the specially formulated automotive glass cleaners you can buy, say at O'Reilly's or some other auto parts retailer. Be sure also to use a clean tower that you use only for glass. The residue from waxes, or other cleaners can leave streaks or smears, maybe from something that will be even harder to remove.