there is some yellow stuff on the wheel arches of my MINI (see picture below) and was wondering how to get it off. it doesn't come off when i wash it and i picked up my MINI on 8.3.07 and it appeared shortly after i recieved it





is this the stuff i've read about here that they put on the MINIs when they are shipped and i need to use peanut butter (i think that's what i read here) to get it off?

just wanting to make sure before i do anything

thanks for your help
(wasn't sure where to put this thread, since it involed cleaning i thought this would be the best place. if not then if one of the mods will move it to the right place that will be helpful.......thanks)

 

It's cosmoline! Lots of stuff will take it off - goo-gone, Simple Green, WD-40, any degreaser, really. Just be sure to condition the trim after so it doesn't get dried out by whatever chemical you use.

 

thanks!

here comes a stupid question (i never was a car washing person, until the MINI) what kind of stuff should i use to condition the trim?

thanks for your help

 

My answer would be Black Wow, which you can buy from OctaneGuy's shop. I use this maybe once every 6 weeks or so to make the trim like new. Then, in between, I use Prima Nero.

But there are a lot of things out there that you can use that you can buy locally as well, if you are adverse to buying online. 303 Aerospace Protectant is a great one that's available at most auto supply stores, and Meguiar's makes a host of vinyl/rubber conditioners that you can usually find at least one of at your auto store. I would caution you to stay away from Armor-All; it tends to dry out the plastic over time, even though on first blush it does appear to condition the trim.

 

I just washed my mini for the first time, and used Klasse All-in-One polish, which removed the cosmoline bits I could find. It took a little rubbing (be careful to use microfiber towels without any sand contaminants), but it came off. I have used Klasse AIO on black plastic parts without any white staining, and I am fairly sure it's safe, but I make no guarantee.

 

i was at my local advance auot parts store yesterday looking around and they didn't have the 303 aerospace protectant. they had a product call back to black made by mothers. is this any good and will it do the same thing as the black wow and 303 aerospace?

 

Back To Black is more of a 'restoration' type of product, it's not a dressing, so I wouldn't consider it a dressing, or a conditioner.

 

Back to Black is basically a dye. It won't do what you need done.

 

k thanks.........i just ordered the black wow.

thanks for all of your help.

 

Peanut butter is awesome, the cosmoline comes right off, then just condition. Total cost 99c for the peanut butter (smooth), and $2.00 for the toothbrush