CLEAN ME! ONE IN FIVE PEOPLE FROM WALES ARE EMBARRASSED ABOUT THEIR ‘FILTHY’ CAR, ACCORDING TO A NEW REPORT

A shocking new report into the state of the nation’s motors has revealed one in five (20 percent) people in Wales admit their car is filthy.

19 percent of Wales say they are embarrassed when a friend or family member gets into their car with them, so much so that 3 percent have refused to give someone a lift, even if they are going in the same direction.

As many as 22 percent have a muddy exterior, while seven percent of the nation have boots stuffed to the brim with clothes and fast-food wrappers.

In fact, nearly half (48 percent) wish that someone would just come along and clean their car, according to the study by webuyanycar.

Over one in 10 (14 percent) admit to having leaves stuck between the bonnet and windscreen, with a further eight percent confessing that the handles and side mirrors are covered in cobwebs.

Sweet wrappers stuffed into drink spaces, door pockets and around the gear stick (six percent), bird mess all over the motor (10 percent), food stains on the upholstery (seven percent) and dirt all over the back window (four percent) are also common sights in the nation’s cars.

The news comes following last year’s new Highway Code laws that state drivers could be fined as much as £1,000 for failing to keep their car clean and free from obstruction to vision.

Richard Evans, head of technical services at webuyanycar, commented: “We may not be able to provide a cleaning service to solve the ‘filthy’ car embarrassment that people from Wales suffer from, but we can certainly take the hassle out of selling your car.

“Cleaning your car might not be convenient, but selling your car with webuyanycar is, with customers being able to sell their car in under an hour from quote to sale, the same time that it would take to deep clean your car.”

The study found that residents of Yorkshire have the grubbiest cars, followed by Kent, Essex and Hampshire.

According to experts, you should clean your car once a week, with an estimated 700 germs residing on your steering wheel, more than a public toilet which has 80, according to a separate report².

One in ten (12 percent) of those with a filthy car claim the reason their car is so dirty is that they can’t be bothered, while 16 percent say they only use it occasionally so there is no need to keep it clean. It’s always rainy (12 percent), not having the right equipment (three percent) and having nowhere to clean it (10 percent) are also reasons for not cleaning the car.

Despite this, 81 percent agree that it is easier and safer to drive a clean car with close to two thirds (62 percent) admitting they have judged someone for the state of their car, and even refused a lift because the vehicle is too dirty (14 percent).

Two in three of Wales (62 percent) dream of having a new, clean motor with Audis (35 percent), BMWs (23 percent), Land Rovers (20 percent) and Mercedes-Benz (14 percent) emerging as the dream cars in Wales.

TOP 15 DIRTY CAR SECRETS OF WALES 

1. Dusty, muddy exteriors – 22%
2. Mud all over the wheels and wheel trims – 18%
3. Leaves stuck on the windscreen – 14%
4. Bird mess all over the outside – 10%
5. Rubbish on the seats – 10%
6. Children’s toys gathering around the footwell – 9%
7. Half empty drink bottles dotted around – 9%
8. Cobwebs all over the handles and side mirrors – 8%
9. Fast food wrappers over the floor – 8%
10. Food stains on the upholstery – 7%
11. Dirt all over the back window – 7%
12. Sweet wrappers in the drink spaces, door pockets and gear area – 6%
13. The boot full to the brim – 4%
14. Paper and files lying on the backseats – 6%
15. Tools in the footwell – 3%