When I first joined BMW Digest in 1994 ago all those crazy Americans were raving about a product called Zymol. There were long threads about it on a monthly basis to the exclusion of "real" BMW threads. I tried to import some myself but the cost was prohibative.

Then a few years ago a UK distributor was found! Naturally I wasted no time ordering some but 75 quid did seem a bit steep, until I saw the effect it had. For that I got Vinyl cleaner (leather is a no cost replacement), AutoBathe, HD Cleanse, Wax, a towel, an applicator, a cleaning pad, a users manual and more stuff about the company and its founder than I could read in one evening!

The first task was take some old 100% cotton towels and deep clean the car, this is done every six month. HD-Cleanse is a very mild cutting compound which strips off dead paint and road gunk without harming good paint. It is applied quite vigorously unitl the paint literally squeaks clean. The whole point is that this doesn't damage or thin the pain like T-Cut.

After HD-Cleansing the car was so clean I didn't think the wax would improve things. Boy was I wrong. The wax went on quickly and effortlessly, if you get it onto plastic trim it doesn't leave a nasty white residue like most waxes. At one point I put a cloth on the bonnet and when I looked round the finish was so smooth it had just slipped off! I have never seen such a shiny car, even a new one. The swirl marks from the previous owner had almost vanished and I was astonished by the reflections. One tip, spray a small amount of water on to help the wax buff off.

Since then several strangers including Porsche and BMW owners have asked me how I got the car so shiny. One thought I'd bought a new car! After I HD-Cleansed a friends car he bought some next day. I have never seen a product like this before. If you get the car wet the rain drops just glide off the bonnet in a sheet once you exceed 35mph. I used it on an 11 year old white Mercedes 280SL which was badly oxidised and an almost pink VW Golf that should have been red, both came up wonderfully.

You are told in the manual to wax once a month, I find it lasts longer than that. Between waxings you use AutoBathe applied with a cotton towel to wash off the dirt. It's great too and isn't harmful like many products. All Zymol products are enviromentally friendly by the way.

Zymol is made from only natural ingrediants. The wax smells wonderful, lots of coconut and tropical fruit odours, you even have to store it in a refrigerator. The user manual explains the details such as how Zymol helps keep paint elastic and protects it. Zymol do several types of wax, some cost thousands of dollars and are for show cars.

Zymol's contact details are on my BMW resources page. In the UK and europe you can click the banner below. One tip, the AutoBathe is what you use most quickly, when you order a starter kit get a second bottle of AutoBathe to save on carriage costs. Please READ THE MANUAL before using Zymol.

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