Do I Need to Wash Pollen Off My Car?

Spring is ramping up and, as anyone with allergies knows, that means pollen. As pretty as flowers look when they bloom with the warmer months, your car can become coated with yellow dust and require a trip to your local car wash.

But as you get in your car and go to the car wash, you may be wondering whether the effects of pollen go beyond skin deep. It is a fair question. Pollen may leave an ugly hue that may look especially bad on dark-colored vehicles, but is it really all that bad?

How Pollen Affects Your Vehicle

Pollen are microscopic thorny balls that blow in the wind and attach themselves to many surfaces. They are an integral part of a plant’s reproductive system which is why plants are so keen on mass producing this irritating dust.

While tiny-thorned balls that float across your car’s exterior may sound like scratch-inducing mayhem, this aspect of pollen is actually quite harmless. The acidity, on the other hand, is cited by a few online articles as a cause for concern. While Flagstop was unable to verify the scientific grounds for the acidic level of pollen, many sources maintain that pine pollen is acidic when it comes in contact with water. If true, this oxidation could eat away at the exterior of your paint and make your car susceptible to rusting.

Another area of concern for your vehicle is the way pollen dust can find its way into your air filters and the internal mechanics of your car. When driving through pollen-infested air, your car sucks in a large amount of pollen dust, and the air filter can clog and circulate allergy-causing air throughout your car’s cabin.

The Best Solution for a Pollen-Free Car

In all cases of removing pollen from your car, it is imperative that you wash thoroughly. This includes vacuuming the dust out of some of the nooks and crannies of the car and checking under the hood for dust in the air filter.

After washing your car, you will want to consider a good coating of wax to make your car a slippery surface that the pollen won’t want to stick to. This will protect your car’s paint from any threat to its integrity, such as acidity or oxidation. Wax is best applied before pollen season is in full swing as the microscopic pollen particles can be everywhere in a pollen storm. You wouldn’t want to trap the dust that you are trying to ward off underneath the layer of protective wax.

How Flagstop Can Help You Fight Pollen

With vacuums available at many of our car wash locations, Flagstop can help clean both your car’s interior and exterior. Flagstop car wash has locations in and around Richmond, Chesterfield, Colonial Heights and Hopewell. What’s more, RVA Wash Club members can wash their car free of pollen anytime for a monthly fee so they don’t have to worry about needing to wash more often when the pollen is at its worst.