Appearance Care; Maintenance and Care; It will do more harm than good to wet - Page 411

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Maintenance and Care

Appearance Care

 Repairing Damage to the Finish

    Deep scratches or chips on the fi nish 
should be repaired promptly. Exposed 
metal quickly rusts and can lead to major 
repairs.

CAUTION

  If your Mazda is damaged and needs 
metal parts repaired or replaced, 
make sure the body shop applies anti-
corrosion materials to all parts, both 
repaired and new. This will prevent 
them from rusting.

 Bright-Metal  Maintenance

y

 Use tar remover to remove road tar and 

insects. Never do this with a knife or 
similar tool.

y

 To prevent corrosion on bright-

metal surfaces, apply wax or chrome 
preservative and rub it to a high luster.

y

 During cold weather or in coastal areas, 

cover bright-metal parts with a coating 
of wax or preservative heavier than 
usual. It would also help to coat them 
with noncorrosive petroleum jelly or 
some other protective compound.

CAUTION

  Do not use steel wool, abrasive 
cleaners, or strong detergents 
containing highly alkaline or caustic 
agents on chrome-plated or anodized 
aluminum parts. This may result in 
damage to the protective coating 
and cause discoloration or paint 
deterioration.

 Underbody  Maintenance

    Road chemicals and salt used for ice and 
snow removal and solvents used for dust 
control may collect on the underbody. If 
not removed, they will speed up rusting 
and deterioration of such underbody parts 
as fuel lines, frame, fl oor pan, and exhaust 
system, even though these parts may be 
coated with anti-corrosive material.

  Thoroughly  fl ush the underbody and wheel 
housings with lukewarm or cold water at 
the end of each winter. Try also to do this 
every month.

  Pay special attention to these areas 
because they easily hide mud and dirt. 

It will do more harm than good to wet 
down the road grime without removing 
it.

  The lower edges of doors, rocker panels, 
and frame members have drain holes that 
should not be clogged. Water trapped there 
will cause rusting.

WARNING

  Dry  off  brakes that have become 
wet by driving slowly, releasing the 
accelerator pedal and lightly applying 
the brakes several times until the brake 
performance returns to normal:

  Driving with wet brakes is dangerous. 
Increased stopping distance or the 
vehicle pulling to one side when 
braking could result in a serious 
accident. Light braking will indicate 
whether the brakes have been aff ected.