Protect your Car's Finish Easily!

You may ask yourself... What does protecting my Car's Finish have to do with a "Mileage Website?" Thanks for asking!

Please read back through a few articles where we discussed the look of Race Cars at the START of a race. Why at the Start? Well, they often get banged up and each of them wears out tires and they throw that excess rubber, sometimes oil spray, etc... on the other cars and they do get dirty as a race goes on! That's why they created the "tear-off's" for windshields. At pit stops, one of the pit crew members runs out and "tears-off" a layer of plastic that has been placed strategically on the windshield. That gives a CLEAN view out the front of the car for the driver.

How does this relate to you? If you keep YOUR car clean and shiny, it will flow through the air with LESS resistance and in effect you will get "just a bit" better fuel economy. And, with the rising price of fuel today... Every Little Bit counts!

In doing some research for this article, I discovered a story about a product that you might not expect would have ANYTHING to do with your car's finish... but it seems to be "just what the doctor ordered" when it comes to removing "Bug Guts" from your car's finish!

Here is the "rest of the story" as I discovered it...



I thought that you might like to know more about this well-known WD-40 product.

When you read the "shower door" part, try it. It's the first thing that has cleaned that spotty shower door. If yours is plastic, it works just as well as glass. It's a miracle!

Then try it on your stovetop... Viola! It's now shinier than it's ever been. You'll be amazed.

The product began from a search for a rust preventative solvent and de-greaser to protect missile parts. WD-40 was created in 1953 by three technicians at the San Diego Rocket Chemical Company. Its name comes from the project that was to find a "Water Displacement" compound. They were successful with the Fortieth formulation, thus WD-40.

The Corvair Company bought it in bulk to protect their Atlas missile parts. The workers were so pleased with the product they began smuggling (also known as "shrinkage" or "stealing") it out to use at home. The executives decided there might be a consumer market for it and put it in aerosol cans. The rest is hist-ory. Ken East (one of the original founders) says there is nothing in WD-40 that would hurt you.

Here are a few of the 1000s of uses:

~Protects silver from tarnishing.

~Cleans and lubricates guitar strings.

~Gets oil spots off concrete driveways.

~Gives floors that 'just-waxed' sheen without making them slippery.

~Keeps flies off cows.

~Restores and cleans chalkboards.

~Removes lipstick stains.

~Loosens stubborn zippers.

~Untangles jewelry chains.

~Removes stains from stainless steel sinks.

~Removes dirt and grime from the bar-becue grill.

~Keeps ceramic/terra cotta garden pots from oxidizing.

~Removes tomato stains from clothing.

~Keeps glass shower doors free of water spots.

~Camouflages scratches in ceramic and marble floors.

~Keeps scissors working smoothly.

~Lubricates noisy door hinges on vehicles and doors in homes.

~Gives a children's play gym slide a shine for a super fast slide.

~Lubricates gear shift and mower-deck lever for ease of handling on riding mowers.

~Rids rocking chairs and swings of squeaky noises.

~Lubricates tracks in sticking home windows and makes them easier to open.

~Spraying an umbrella stem makes it easier to open and close.

~Restores and cleans padded leather dashboards and vinyl bumpers.

~Restores and cleans roof racks on vehicles.

~Lubricates and stops squeaks in electric fans.

~Lubricates wheel sprockets on tri-cycles, wagons and bicycles for easy handling.

~Lubricates fan belts on washers and dryers and keeps them running smoothly.

~Keeps rust from forming on saws and saw blades, and other tools.

~Removes splattered grease on stove.

~Keeps bathroom mirror from fogging.

~Lubricates prosthetic limbs.

~Keeps pigeons off the balcony. (they hate the smell)

~Removes all traces of duct tape. (our other "can't do without")

~I have even heard of folks spraying it on their arms, hands, and knees to re-lieve arthritis pain.

~Florida's favorite use was "cleans and removes love bugs from grills and bumpers".

~WD-40 protects the Statue of Liberty from the elements.

~WD-40 attracts fish. Spray a LITTLE on live bait or lures and you will be catching the big one in no time. It's a lot cheaper than the chemical attractants that are made for just that purpose. Keep in mind though, using some chemical laced baits or lures for fishing are not allowed in some states.

~Keeps chiggers away from the kids.

~Use it for fire ant bites. It takes the sting away immediately, and stops the itch.

~WD-40 is great for removing crayon from walls. Spray on the mark and wipe with a clean rag.

~Also, if you've discovered that your teenage daughter has washed and dried a tube of lipstick with a load of laundry, saturate the lipstick spots with WD-40 and re-wash. Presto! Lipstick is gone!

~If you sprayed WD-40 on the distributor cap, it would displace the moisture and allow the car to start. (If I knew what a distributor cap was, it might help.)

~WD-40, long known for its ability to remove leftover tape smunges (sticky label tape), is also a lovely perfume and air freshener! Sprayed liberally on every hinge in the house, it leaves that dis-tinctive clean fresh scent for up to two days!

~Seriously though, it removes black scuff marks from the kitchen floor! Use WD-40 for those nasty tar and scuff marks on flooring. It doesn't seem to harm the finish, and you won't have to scrub nearly as hard to get them off . Just remember to open some windows if you have a lot of marks.

~Bug guts will eat away the finish on your car if not removed quickly! Use WD-40!