AKlowriderZ71

iTrader: (22)

It sticks to EVERYTHING!! Glass, plastic, wiring, metal, paint, you name it. Find a smoker's vehicle & wash the windows. They have a yellowish film. The odor permeates (sp) everything no matter what.

The method I told you about works. Even with the full interior in the vehicle. Fixes up old nasty smelly coolers also. lol

wheeliE-maxx

Probably alot of funk in the hvac tubing. My truck only stinks when I have the air on. Recirc. on combined with smoking..

lownslo

iTrader: (3)

sounds funny but when i did mobile detailing and didn't do any shampoo or anthing, people would ask about smells in their car. I would take a few off brand dryer sheets and put them under the front seats! I would go for a few weeks before my next cleanup on that car and do it again. The smell would go away if they didn't smoke or anything in there! best bet is to wipe down all the pannels with a good cleaner ( I use adam's leather and interior cleaner. http://www.adamspolishes.com/p-131-a...r-cleaner.aspx)

follow that up with the conditioner and it will pull all the dirt and crap off the dash and all the plastic panels. I hope this helps, I am curious as to what happens!

Matt@adams

A lot of home spun remedies here, many of which might put a dent in it, most won't have much of an impact that will last. Charcoal and things like that only absorb the odor out of the air. As soon as the source is re-disturbed (hot day in the sun with the windows up for example) the smell will return.

I'll offer my input coming from a background of detailing professionally for a long time before coming onboard with Adams:

Start by cleaning everything. You don't need some heavy perfume scented cleaner... just cleaners. Getting the source of the odor out of the interior is the first part of the battle. Shampoo carpets, clean seats, glass, cupholders, the dash, EVERYTHING. Use appropriate cleaners for every surface, change towels often, and be meticulous. The smoke has settled into every possible pore of the interior and you need to get it out.

Pull your dash and clean inside the hvac ducts using an all purpose cleaner and a long skinny brush or rolled up towel. The smoke will have settled into the vents and each time you turn on the AC or heater it will start to smell again unless this is done. Luckily pulling a Chevy truck dash apart is easy so this shouldn't be that much of a hassle.

Lastly rent (or buy if you have the cash) an ozone generator. There are tons of places online that rent them out and locally you may be able to find a place as well. Depending on the size of the unit and the area its intended to treat it may take overnight so renting for at least a couple days is needed. If you decide to buy it will easily pay for itself if you rent it out a few times yourself or charge a couple buddies for the service.

Follow the directions closely. An ozone generator can create chlorine if used incorrectly which will bleach the interior so following the instructions is important.

After thats done your interior will be 100% odor free. There simply aren't shortcuts to this kind of stuff... its why smoking in a vehicle is such a HUGE NO NO!

Bad Ass Silvy

iTrader: (4)

Agreed, using an air purifier or an air ionizer (or negative ion generator) should work.
It's is a device that uses high voltage to ionize (electrically charge) air molecules. Negative ions, or anions, are particles with one or more extra electrons, conferring a net negative charge to the particle. Cations are positive ions missing one or more electrons, resulting in a net positive charge. Most commercial air purifiers are designed to generate negative ions. Another type of air ionizer is the ESD ionizer (balanced ion generator) used to neutralize static charge.
What these ionizers do is find all air molecules wherever they may be in the interior that stink and scientifically convert them into a non stinking molecule lol. I have used them in homes and vehicles before and always work.

Atomic

iTrader: (42)

Is there any particular brand or type of ozone generator you guys recommend? I see a lot of different ozone production rates thrown around, but am not sure what would be adequate or overkill for something the size of a regular cab truck...

AKlowriderZ71

iTrader: (22)

http://www.alpineairtechnologies.com/

The one I borrowed was small, about a cubic foot or so. Any one of them will do.

slow2500

I worked at a shop years ago and we had a vent cleaning can. You can get them from autozone but as always the stuff that professionals have works best.

The one from work you sprayed in under the base of the windshield. Ran the ac on high and non-recirc for 15-20 minutes. The ones I have bought is a can you put inside the car turn on the re-circ and let it run for 20-30 minutes. Wile it is working you don't really want to smell it because it will smell HORRID!!!!!!!!!!!!! Once it is done the entire car(with full interior event) will smell like heaven.

This stuff is amazing and I really wish I still had my contact to get the good stuff. Autozone works great but I usually got the professional stuff for free as "samples."

MikeGyver

iTrader: (5)

I never had smoke, the only way to fully eliminate it would be to replace the interior, plus clean the inside of the HVAC system, including removing and chemically cleaning the evaporator and heater core.
Without the smoke in my case, I sprayed Sparkle window cleaner on the fabric and carpet, and vacuumed with a wet/dry machine. I did that twice, put an ozone generator in, and there was no smell for quite awhile. In my other vehicle, I sprayed the fabric and carpet with some odor eliminator that you spray on your clothes before you go deer hunting. It worked great.

ws6ls1

iTrader: (1)

We have a specially designed HVAC system cleaner we use bc 99% of foreign smells in vehicles reside in the vents and such. Its all in how you handle it. I smoke in my truck and nobody can tell and I mean nobody. I think its a combo of regularly detailing the inside of my truck and using that HVAC cleaner. We always shoot it in the vents on our customers cars at work when we do services. It has a very light citrus/fresh linen scent to it but that goes away after a day or so. After that it smells like a brand new car.