How to get rid of a smoke smell in a used car???? Help!!!

[Antonia]

My brother bought a 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe and it has a cigarette smoke smell that he cannot get rid of. He has a filter on order for the air conditioning system so that will probably help, but it is in the cloth seats and even the plastic dashboard as well as the cloth ceiling. He has tried Febreeze, but the smell lingers. This smell is driving him crazy. Anybody have any suggestions????

 

[jan/cape]

I have absolutely no idea how much this would cost, but can he bring car to a dealership and have them 'detail' it?

Or is there a local auto shop that will detail the car?
I have a friend that does this to her car once a year.
Good luck.

 

[newmousecateer]

How about upholstery shampoo in the can? Then take Bounce or Snuggle fabric sheets and put them under the seats.

 

[lilboo]

Place a bag of McDonald's fries in car for 30 seconds...voila! That should take care of the smoke smell...

 

[disykat]

Here's what I did with my first car that I definately do not recommend. Buy an air freshener that is so strong you throw it in the trunk and forget about it. Melted air freshener gunk will beat out cigarette smell any day.

I once lived in an apartment that had smokers previously. They cleaned the carpet twice and repainted. The reality is there is very little you can do except continue to try every remedy you can think of (baking soda is a pretty harmless one that comes to mind), clean it really well (including all hard surfaces), keep the windows open as much as possible and wait for time to help. In my old car, by the time the air freshener disapated the smoke had too.

 

[mickeyfan1]

There is an easy, clean solution. Place coffee grounds (NOT USED) in shallow dishes under the seats. They will absorb a lot of the smell, and leave thier own. Also, consult the Heloise Help Line, I think you can find it on the Good Housekeeping Website, and the Queen of Clean (I am sure there is a website for her) may also have some hints. It may take a while and he may need to have it cleaned by a good detailer to really get rid of the smell. One more thought, Yankee Candle Auto Freshener, maybe they have an odor neutralizer scent?

 

[MerryPoppins]

Don't charcoal and bakind soda both absorb odors? You might be able to do something with one of those.

 

[bambii]

that stuff you spray on your couches and drapes and other stuff around the house,

spray it everywere on the ceiling of the car the floor boards the mats, the seats and even spray in the vents.

That is what we did when we borrowed my moms car when my husband smoke thank God he quit.

 

[jfulcer]

Most good car detailers and some dealerships have Ionizers that they use to help get rid of the scent. My brother has worked for both and has used it at both places. It's like the sharper image ionizer you can get. He said they put it on for a couple hours and it's like the smell was never there.

I would go the detailer route and see what you can get done.

 

[faith]

If it stays in a garage keep the windows down. Set a couple of bowls of vinegar on the floor boards (when not driving) Lol!
Put a few Bounce dryer sheets around. They helped my neice's car.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I vote for going to the detail shop. Not only will they be able to possibly get rid of the smoke smell but you can have the rest detailed and boy it will look alot better.

 

[fklhou]

The detail shop can do a great deal. In addition, there are some crystals in a mesh bag that really took the smell out of one of vehicles after it was stolen in a car jacking.

 

[Ricola]

go to an auto shop and buy a spray bottle of Meguiar's car odor eliminator. It worked wonders for our car and it cost about 4 bucks.

 

[jfulcer]

Originally posted by Ricola
go to an auto shop and buy a spray bottle of Meguiar's car odor eliminator. It worked wonders for our car and it cost about 4 bucks.

Meguiar's