Care Of The Car - BMW 840Ci Owner's Handbook Manual

Care of the car

Paintwork
The car's body is protected by multi-
ple coats of paint against corrosion.
Note that body cavities have been
protected in addition to cataphoretic
dip coating by applying specially
developed materials which have been
subjected to prolonged testing.
The complete underside of the body is
sprayed with a resilient PVC coating
and then fully protected by a wax-based
underseal.
Always remember that regular care of
your car will go a long way towards
maintaining not only its safe condition
but also its resale value.
Environmental influences which differ
from one region to another can affect
your car's paintwork; the nature and fre-
quency of the care you give the car
should be governed by these factors.
Road dirt, tar stains, dead insects,
bird droppings (powerful alkaline
action) and also resin and pollen from
trees and bushes all contain sub-
stances which could damage the
paint surface after a period of time
(stains, blistering, caustic burns, peel-
ing off of the top paint layer).
In industrial areas, airborne fly ash,
lime, oily soot, acid rain or sulphur diox-
ide as well as other impurities in the air
are bound to attack the paintwork if not
cleaned with sufficient regularity,
though in most cases only the horizon-
tal panel surfaces are affected.
In coastal regions the high salt content
and humidity of the air encourages
more rapid corrosion.
In the case of mechanical loads caused
by sand, road salt, stone chippings or
similar, the paint surface may be broken
and corrosion may then be able to
develop under the paint, and spread
out from the damaged areas.
Awareness of these negative environ-
mental effects on the paintwork has
stimulated motor vehicle and paint
manufacturers to increase the durabil-
ity and strength of their paints wher-
ever possible.
BMW Service stations supply factory-
tested Original BMW car care products
for all general work of this kind which
you intend to carry out yourself.
Care of paintwork
Washing the car once a week will pre-
vent harmful substances from causing
long-term damage to the paint finish,
particularly if the car is parked or driven
in regions where atmospheric pollution
levels are high or natural impurities
occur in the air (sap from trees, pollen).
Please remove particularly aggressive
substances immediately, or else the
paint may be attacked or discoloured.
Such substances include spilled fuel,
oil, grease, brake fluid or bird drop-
pings.
After washing, residual dirt will be
clearly visible. It should be removed
without delay, using cleaning-grade
benzene or white spirit on a clean
cloth or wadding. Remove tar stains
with a suitable tar remover, but do not
apply this product to lenses and
headlight covers. Finally, apply a paint
preserving product to the treated
areas.
b
Cleaning and care products can
be obtained from BMW Service.c
Online Edition for Part-No. 01 41 9 790 191 - © 12/98 BMW AG
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