Re: detailing a 2003 Honda Civic LX
 

I just used 3M Perfect It Show Car Wax liquid (39026) on my brand new
2003 Accord and loved it. I also used Zymol liquid (ie Zymol by Turtle
Wax) on my wife's 6 month old 2003 CRX. (3M is at Pep Boys and auto
paint sellers. Zymol at many stores.)

The Zymol smells wonderful, costs a bit more and shines great. Consumer
Reports said it was one of the best for shine and it's true. They also
said it doesn't clean that well and that's true too. It drys quickly and
may be tough to get off black trim once dry. Some folks don't like a
cleaner wax for new cars but this stuff seems rather tame.

3M has many products. The autobody places use it. The non-cleaner liquid
wax smells like petroleum, but in other repects meets or exceeds the
Zymol. It provides a wet look shine about as good as the Zymol. It more
easily wipes off black plastic trim. It doesn't dry too quickly so you
can wipe it off much later without obvious problem. The real big
difference is in cleaning off tar or tree sap. This stuff works better
than bug and tar cleaner. For me Zymol didn't easily handle that tar you
get low on the car. 3M did. You should probably use a nitrile glove to
avoid prolonged contact with the petroleum products.

So far I prefer 3M. (I understand their paste wax (39526) smells like
Pina Colada if you need that.) It's less work, cleans off tar, great
shine. With the saved time I can make myself a real Pina Colada.

Both products are good for dark cars as they don't easliy cause swirl
marks. If you have light cars, like I do, then their cleaning ability
matters more.


Dave Thompson wrote:

>Just bought a brand new Honda Civic LX today, Love it!
>color is Silver with black cloth interior
>needs some tips on detailing this car as far as
>
>what type of wax does everyone recommend
>what to use on the dash as a protectants
>what to use on the side mirrors they are black not body color I assume this
>is a plastic?
>
>and any other tips or ideas you may have.
>
>thanks
>
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