remove cigarette smoke

[thecheat]

There is a product called "Auto Vaccine" but I have never used it personally. It looks like it uses chlorine gas to break down the odors.

https://www.amazon.com/Auto-Vaccine-Elim ... B001H8VLFC

[gregandterra]

As ex smoker I wanted to get smell out of all my vehicles. When selling a truck I had, the salesman suggested we fill a coffee can with paper towels (loosely wadded) and pour a small bottle of vanilla extract onto the paper towels. Then leave the can on the floorboard for the weekend with a window cracked. The smell is completly gone, and we ended up keeping the truck. My wife was, and still is allergect to many cleaners and perfumes, she cannot smell the cigarette smoke smell and the truck interior is like new with no residual "cover" up scents like Fabreeze.

[Steven89]

There are going to be serious issues with removing the smoke smell. If it’s really, really bad, you may never fully eliminate it. However, there are a number of things you might be able to do.

If it’s a light smell, you might manage to get away with using Febreze. If not, a number of sites recommend baking soda and some vinegar. Basically, they’re more/less giving you the home remedy for any of those Oxy cleaners. Now remember, you’re not just dealing with the seats, but also any fabric inside the car. You’ll likely want to get the cabin air filter changed as well, since if they ran A/C or heat on circulate, then the smoke went into that filter.

If you have leather seats, you may be spared the issue of deep down smoke inside the seats. You’ll need to scrub the leather with a good leather cleaner to remove the smell, but if it hasn’t gotten into the cushions, the rest of the fabric in the car is so thin, it should be easy to clean. If not, you may well have to treat those seats relatively often.

A product that was mentioned was Vamoose 1080T, and apparently Hill Country Distribution has a complete care treatment kit. Reviews have been pretty good about that, though I have no experience. People say often that Febreze simply masks the smell, although I’ve known people to use it on their hair after smoking, and it does eliminate the odor.

Lastly, should you have any real wood panelling in the car, that may need to be treated with wood soap and sealed. Smoke is nigh on impossible to permanently get out of wood. Additionally, any porous rubber seals/gaskets may need to be replaced, depending on the smoke saturation.

[m491]

I am about to run a car I just bought through a big car recon shop who,does work for a bunch of car dealers in my area. They have the only thing that works for bad car odors. They use an ozone generator to kill the smell. My guy gets $100 to run the ozone generator for a full day. If you want the best way to kill the smell call a local new car dealer and ask who they use for this on heir used cars.

Good luck

[Matty Moo]

I smoke and I use my ashtray. I don't empty it until it's full, I just don't like flicking butts out the window. But, I always smoke with the window down some. I don't like smelling like smoke.

Because I only smoke in the car or outside, I'm not around it all the time and I do recognize the smell when it's there. About 3 times a year I completely clean the inside of my car...every single surface gets cleaned including the headliner. The carpets get a heavy detergent carpet cleaner solution, the seats get Lexol'd and the headliner gets a weak solution of woolite. Everything else gets wiped down with soap and water. Every time the smell is gone.

[JRL]

May I comment since I smoke
Obviously, I'm very aware of it, I hold my cigarettes out the window and clean my car's interiors ALL the time, but to the sensitive nose they can tell so I have my interior guy "de-smoke" my cars twice a year.
He has this commercial product. He sprayes the entire interior including the headliner, waits about 20 minutes and wipes it off.
All the rags are yellow with nicotine residue!
Whatever this stuff is, it works. It leaves a sweet smell in the car that disappates in a day or two, after that.. nothing!
In between those treatments my normal detailer cleans my headliners every other week to a month and that really helps

NO ONE TO A PERSON HAS EVER COMMENTED THAT MY CARS SMELL, IT WORKS.
(Obviously I don't smoke in the cars I buy to sell)
and NEVER use an ashtray, that holds the smell inside the car.
In my house I smoke in only one room, my office/computer room. As soon as a cigarette is out it does not stay in the ashtray, it goes into a plastic bag that's covered and thrown out overy hour or so

[JimBee]

JRL-can you find out from your detailer how to get some of that commercial cleaning product? Maybe it's just ZEP or something that's generally available.

[JRL]

Remind me Monday
and I just gave myself an idea. I wonder how this will work in my computer room?
I'll have to have him try it

[Ou2mame]

What I did was take a few Chinese food containers and put some holes in the lids. Then put sponges in them and fill them a quarter way with vinegar. Stick them in inconspicuous places like under the seats and in the trunk. Totally got the smell out of my car.

[cbpitt01]

Another vote for the ozone generator! In my opinion, it is the ONLY thing that will remove the smell permanently - most all other solutions simply mask the odor. I worked several years at a dry cleaner store, and even the dry-cleaning process wouldn’t remove smoke odor. We’d hang the offensive clothing in one of those framed zippered bags like you’d store wool items in in your closet, put the ozone generator inside, run the zipper closed to the cord, and in about an hour, that wool suit or wool/fur coat was odorless! Of course, it’ll take longer to do a car interior - at least several hours - possibly all day, depending on the size of the ozone generator, but it WILL get rid of that stench. You’ll still want to (beforehand) clean and wipe down all interior surfaces, and maybe clean the fabric/leather/carpet, as the ozone generator does nothing for particulates. And use the ozone generator only outdoors, with it placed inside the car and the windows most of the way up to just allow for a tiny amount of ventilation. You do not want to use it in an enclosed area, nor be inside the car while it is doing its job, as ozone can cause respiratory distress. But once it’s done its job in a few hours or all day, let the car air out thoroughly to dissipate the ozone, and all should be well.
Good luck!