Waxing Your Vehicle; Repairing Paint Chips; Cleaning The Wheels; Cleaning The Engine - Mercury Sable 1999 Owner's Manual

Maintenance and care

Waxing your vehicle

Wax when water stops beading on the surface. This
could be every three or four months, depending on
operating conditions.
Use only carnauba or synthetic-based waxes. Use
cleaning fluid or alcohol with a clean cloth to remove
any bugs and tar before waxing vehicle. Use tar
remover to remove any tar spots.
Avoid getting wax on the windshield. If you have
wax applied at a commercial car wash, it is
recommended that you clean the wiper blades and
windshield as described in Cleaning the wiper
blades and windshield.

Repairing paint chips

Minor scratches or paint damage from road debris
may be repaired with touch-up paint, repair foil or
aerosol paint spray from the Ford Car Care
Chemicals line. Observe the application instructions
on the products.
Remove particles such as bird droppings, tree sap,
insect remains, tar spots, road salt and industrial
fallout immediately.

Cleaning the wheels

Wash with the same detergent as the body of your
vehicle. Do not use acid-based or alcohol-based
wheel cleaners, steel wool, fuel or strong detergents.
Never use abrasives that will damage the finish of
special wheel surfaces. Use a tar remover to remove
grease and tar.
The brushes used in some automatic car washes may
damage the finish on your wheels. Before going to a
car wash, find out if the brushes are abrasive.

Cleaning the engine

Engines are more efficient when they are clean
because grease and dirt buildup keep the engine
warmer than normal. When washing:
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