When out buying a used car have you ever been put off an otherwise good car because there was an ungodly smell emanating from the interior? A smell that clearly goes beyond the capabilities of regular air fresheners and appears to be deeply embedded in the fabric.
If that’s the case and the usual dangly air freshener from the petrol station won’t cut through the smell what are your choices? The most extreme method is to go out and buy an air freshener bomb. These will remove any evidence of a bad odour but can be quite expensive and are a one-use item. The other is to look at buying some proper fabric freshener that’ll remove odours with a quick squirt to the offending area. We’ve chosen our favourite fabric freshers for your car, looking at effectiveness, price and how nice the product smells.
The best fabric sprays for your car
Autoglym Autofresh
The best fabric spray
Price: £5.56 | VIEW OFFER
Our top choice for breathing new life into tired and smelly fabrics, Autofresh is an effective way of removing bad odours and leaves behind a subtle fragrance instead. We like that it can be applied to pretty much any fabric and that it’s good value for money. It’s also part of Amazon’s Climate Pledge which means you know you’re buying something that won’t harm the planet.
26JPN Satsuma Air Freshener
The best scented fabric spray
Price: £11 | VIEW OFFER
If you’re wanting to both remove bad odours and replace them with a new scent then we recommend this 26JPN Satsuma Air Freshener. This spray will not only remove bad odours, but it’ll also leave a long-lasting satsuma scent. It’s water-based and can even be diluted to last longer or provide a weaker scent if you have a particularly sensitive nose. And if satsuma isn’t to your fancy, 26JPN also sell cherry and candyfloss versions.
Febreze Anti Tobacco Fabric Freshener Spray
The best fabric spray for cigarette smoke
Price: £6.99 | VIEW OFFER
The smell of old cigarette smoke is just the worst, especially as it clings to car interiors like chewing gum to the sole of a shoe. If you happen to buy a car from a smoker or have recently quit and want to remove the smell, this spray from Febreeze is our top choice. While it’s not specially designed for cars it’s really effective at removing tobacco smell permanently and leaves a nice citrus scent in its place.
Meguiar’s New Car Scent Interior Dash & Trim Protectant
The best fabric spray for a new car smell
Price: £14 | VIEW OFFER
Enjoying those couple of weeks where your car has that ‘new car smell’ when you first buy it is a nice time, and there are plenty of products designed to recapture that smell once it disappears. This fabric spray from Meguiar’s is our favourite however because it’s non-greasy, really effective against odours and helps block UV damage.
Autobrite Direct LTD Dark Temptation
The best fabric spray for a rich scent
Price: £5.34 | VIEW OFFER
The perfect choice if you want a smell as rich as a fancy bottle of aftershave, this spray from Autobrite has notes of chocolate, caramel, vanilla & cream. It’s an aerosol but is still effective as a fabric freshener. It’s also effective for sanitising and generally improving how your car smells.
Chemical Guys – Zesty Lemon & Lime Air Freshener & Odor Eliminator
The best fabric spray for a fruity scent
Price: £11.59 | VIEW OFFER
A good choice for leaving a fruity scent in your car, this fabric freshener will help eliminate odours and leave behind a fresh and zingy citrus scent. The scent supposedly doesn’t last as long as the other fabric sprays on this list but it’s still a nice choice for refreshing the inside of your car.
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