5 Ways to Protect Your Car's Interior from the Australian Sun

Few things age a car's interior faster than the Australian sun. UV rays fade upholstery, crack dashboards and make the whole cabin feel tired years before its time. The good news: protecting your interior is cheap and easy. Here are five ways to do it.

1. Fit a custom dash mat

Your dashboard takes the most direct sunlight of any surface in the car. A custom-fit dash mat shields it from UV, prevents cracking and fading, and cuts glare on your windscreen at the same time.

2. Cover your seats

Sunlight fades and dries out upholstery, especially leather. A set of tailored seat covers keeps your original seats out of the sun and protected from wear, spills and heat.

3. Use a windscreen sunshade

A reflective shade across the windscreen can dramatically lower cabin temperature and protect the dash, wheel and seats while you're parked.

4. Park in the shade — or nose-in

Whenever you can, park under cover. If you can't, parking nose-in keeps the sun off the dashboard, which is the most vulnerable surface.

5. Crack the windows and clean regularly

Letting a little heat escape reduces the "oven effect" that bakes your interior, and regular cleaning stops dust and grit from grinding into surfaces over time.

Start with the two surfaces that suffer most. Shop by your vehicle's make to find dash mats and seat covers cut for your exact car.