Mercedes-Benz C 230 1998 Owner's Manual page 130

Cleaning and C are of the Vehicle
W arning!
M any cleaning products can
be hazardous. Som e are
poisonous, others are flam ­
mable. A lw ays follow the
instructions on the particular
container. A lw ays open your
car's doors or w indow s when
cleaning the inside.
Never use fluids or solvents
that are not designed for
cleaning you r car.
In operation, your vehicle is
subjected to varying external
influences which, if gone un­
checked, can attack the paint­
w ork as well as the underbody
and cause lasting dam age.
Such dam age is caused not only
by extrem e and varying clim atic
conditions, but also by air pol­
lution, road salt, tar, gravel and
stone chipping. G rease and oil,
fuel, coolant, brake fluid, bird
droppings, insects, tree resins etc.
should be rem oved im m ediately to
avoid paint dam age. Frequent
128
w ashing reduces and/or elim inates
the aggressiveness and potency of
the above adverse influences.
More frequent washings are
necessary to deal with unfavorable
conditions; for example, near the
ocean, in industrial areas (smoke,
exhaust em issions), or during
w inter operation.
You should check your vehicle
from tim e to tim e for stone chipping
or other dam age. Any dam age
should be repaired as soon as
possible to prevent the start of
corrosion.
In doing so, do not neglect the
underside of the car. A prerequisite
for a thorough check is a washing
of the underbody followed by a
thorough inspection. Damaged
areas need to be reundercoated.
Y our vehicle has been treated at
the factory with a w ax-base rust-
proofing in the body cavities which
will last for the lifetime of the
vehicle. Post-production treatm ent
is neither necessary nor recom ­
mended by M ercedes-Benz
because of the possibility of
incom patibility between m aterials
used in the production process and
others applied later.
W e have selected car care
products and com piled recom ­
m endations which are specially
matched to our vehicles and which
alw ays reflect the latest te chn o ­
logy. You can obtain M ercedes-
Benz approved car care products
at your authorized M ercedes-Benz
dealer.
Scratches, corrosive deposits,
corrosion or dam age due to ne­
gligent or incorrect care cannot
alw ays be rem oved or repaired
with the car care products re­
com m ended here. In such cases it
is best to seek aid at your autho­
rized M ercedes-Benz dealer.
The follow ing topics deal with the
cleaning and care of your vehicle
and give im portant "how -to"
inform ation as well as references
to M ercedes-Benz approved car
care products.
Additional inform ation can be found
in the booklet titled "C ar Care".