How to Choose Indoor Car Covers
One of the first things people often do when looking for indoor car covers is to head down to the high street and pick up one of the first products they come across which seems suitable, but in fact there’s a great deal more choice to be had, and more types of car covers than many people think.
It’s important to make the right choice because often people tend to assume that all indoor covers are more or less the same, offering the same degree of protection, and the same type of protection, but in fact this isn’t the case.
In fact there are more types of car covers than ways to break the highway code, so let’s look at a few points to bear in mind next time you’re looking for the best way to protect your car from the moggy, the kids or the perennial rain of dust which seems to magically appear from nowhere.
The first distinction is between tailor made indoor car covers and semi-tailored covers. What’s the difference? Essentially the difference is the same as going to Saville Row and having a suit made exactly for you, and popping to Asda and picking one off the shelf that’s the best fit.
Clearly both serve a valuable purpose, but besides the inevitable difference in price there is also a clear difference is quality. But whereas a tailor made suit is designed to be a comfortable fit and a good look, tailor made car covers are designed to be an exact fit for the body of your car, whereas semi-tailor made car covers provide a best fit, rather than an exact one.
If your car has no external modifications, and is a very average shape and size then a semi-tailor made solution may well be perfectly suitable and offer enough protection. However, if your car is something a bit special, has any additional modifications (such as spoilers, lowered body panels and such like) then a tailor made cover is clearly going to provide the level of protection that’s really needed.
If looks are what you’re interested in then tailor made indoor covers provide a stunning appearance, but if you’re more interested in the practicalities and the price, then look for a semi-tailored car cover that’s designed for the type of car you own (such as a saloon or a sports car body).
The second thing to consider is the material, because this is an aspect that is again open to a variety of possible options. Cotton based materials are soft, pliable and will allow your car to breathe (yes, it does need to – moisture that builds up needs to escape), but if your car is parked in a barn or a car port then you may find that it doesn’t protect adequately against external dampness.
If your car is likely to be kept in an area which is very damp then a waterproof material such as Supertex or polycotton may be a better choice, especially if it has a fleece underlay for added protection.