Hi, just wondering if the forum are willing to share how long they take to clean their CX-3. I was cleaning ours yesterday and just to wash and dry the body including inside door/boot sills took approximately 2 hours. I didn't clean the wheels yesterday or polish the paintwork as it was a bit parky!
A second question - does anyone clean the engine bay as well? As our car is white I usually wash/wipe the underside of the bonnet and sides otherwise the white paint looks really tacky or am I the only muppet who does this?
It takes me about an hour to wash the car and leather off but that includes the wheels with a Daytona Speedmaster brush so the insides get done. For the interior, I use an airline for the dash which gets everything back to factory new and then a vacuum of the carpets, quick wipe the seats with damp cloth and the same with Meguires Interior Shampoo on the mats takes another ten minutes or so. I've got a high powered twin motor vac that sits beside the car in the garage so any carpets that have been "occupied" get vacuumed most nights before locking up. The engine gets done about twice a year with APC or TFR and then dried with the airline. Takes about ten minutes. Got some photos somewhere!
Takes me about an hour. I had the paint protection 'Diamondbrite' (I think that's it!?) so I use their shampoo then a conditioner then a leather off. I don't do the wheels everytime as I wax them so they take care of themselves for a good while. I'm glad I had the treatment as the car only needs a clean once a month if that, so I'm happy with that as it's a right faff as I don't have a garage or driveway so have to do the biz in the street. I steer clear of garage car washes!
Deepblue, I stand corrected but I believe your "Diamondbrite" is the £299 Mazda extra called 'Lifeshine' from Autoglym.
My wife and I invested in this extra and, your right, our CX-3 remains clean for an impressive amount of time. The treatment involved Interior Protectant, Bodywork Gloss (including Carbon Shield Technology) and Glass Guard.
Interestingly, the Autoglym life time guarantee states: "We will re-treat your vehicle free of charge in the event of general or panel by panel colour fading of the exterior paintwork".
So, maybe Autoglym can solve the mystery of our 'front and rear plastic bumpers appearing really noticeably darker than the paintwork on the rest of the car". At the moment, it looks like Mazda sprayed the bodywork in 'Soul Red' and the bumpers in 'Soul Deep Crimson'. I'll get on to Autoglym.
CX-3 Sport Nav 2.0L Petrol. Manual. Soul Red & Half Stone interior. From new Sept 2015. South Lincolnshire UK.
Just read your post just joined the club, so over a year since your post the answer is :- plastic components have a static charge so the paint doesn't settle in the same way as it does on metal panels. This causes pigment floatation which causes the problem.
Generally it is more noticeable on lighter colours.
Manufacturers have improved this in recent years however, have a look at new cars in a showroom and you will still see a subtle difference on the plastic bumpers, most people don't spot it till they have a accident repair then they look really close and see a difference and accuse the paint shop of a poor job.
CX3 Sport Nav - Petrol - Auto - safety pack - snowflake white - 2019
I take about an hour with a bucket and sponge, using rainwater and a car shampoo, rinsing with more rainwater then leathering off. My car is also white, and yes I do clean the under bonnet area. It reminds me to top up the washer fluid and check the other levels, not that they have ever needed topping up between services.
The car is garaged and had Safegard paint and upholstery protection applied by the supplying dealer free of charge. They also threw in a large holdall full of cleaning materials. The combination of garaging and Safegard protection means that the car only needs cleaning after it has been out in wet weather. Polishing has not been necessary in 16 months ownership.
I manage to wash and dry both my CX-3 and the wifes Qashqai in an hour. That includes all wheels, and washing round the inside of my wheels - Great for removing skin on those pesky disk guards!!
All hand washing and certainly no jet washer action.
I find a drying towel works really well on all the black plastic parts and windows, but leather the painted surfaces.
I too like to clean round the engine bay every now and then. Just to keep it looking presentable.
Last edited by MartC on Tue Nov 28, 2017 1:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
