Gaari Means Car. Car Reviews & Car News

Protecting your car, truck, RV, or boat from enemies such as ultraviolet light, ozone damage, and inclement weather is important if you want your vehicle’s appearance to have a fresh, new look for a long time. You can accomplish this by applying a protecting finish to the interior and exterior surfaces of your vehicle to guard against damage from environmental elements as well as scratches, spills, and stains.

Unfortunately, many of the car cleaning waxes and sealants on the market today may actually be contributing to your car’s damage, especially if they contain petroleum distillates as ingredients. Petroleum distillates are used in car care products because they dissolve waxes and silicones in order to make them spreadable. They will also cut through oily dirt, light grease, and help to lubricate your car’s surface to prevent scratching.

However, that’s not the whole story. What they haven’t told you is that if the petroleum distillates used in your car care products are not formulated properly, they can cause cracking of plastic, rubber, and vinyl. Additionally, when applied to the new generation of softer, water-based paints, the petroleum distillates can remove the sealant, leaving your paint vulnerable to the aging effects of the environment.

They can also dissolve the adhesive on the back of decals, striping, or lettering. Both 3M and Avery, makers of adhesive-backed striping and decals, have specifically recommended against using petroleum distillate-based products on their products.

Petroleum distillates also come with health hazards. They can cause eye irritation, respiratory irritation, and gastrointestinal irritation. And if you’re a green car owner, you’ll want to find an alternative to petroleum distillates since they’re obviously derived from crude oil.

Not all petroleum distillates will cause problems, however. There are different grades of petroleum distillates, but unfortunately, there is no way of know what type of petroleum distillate is used in any one product you may want to use on your vehicle. The only way to be safe, therefore, is to avoid petroleum distillates whenever possible.

Protect your vehicle with a greener, safer wash wax, like Laura Klein’s Green Car Wash & Wax Concentrate. This is a plant, water-based, nontoxic, biodegradable cleaner that is free of petroleum distillates and is safe for all vehicle surfaces, including plastics, rubber, vinyl, metal, paint, and more. Its proprietary blend of protective, wax-like coatings  that work in all types of water providing UVA and UVB protection for full sun exposure.