Initially, I was going to use the armor all general protectant (because that's all I have in my garage at the moment), but decided not to because of what others have said with it collecting dust/dirt, which would drive me insane in the long run haha. So, I did use turtle wax ICE on then trim, and it worked alright, because it's a clear liquid, no residue to worry about, but it didn't really give me the results I was looking for. I'll have to go shopping for shine products especially for vinyl. I can see tiny imperfections in the trim although the car is brand new, like, in the right light, you can see where the plastic is stretched and swirled-is that normal? Sounds stupid, but it's my first new car, and I just want everything to be perfect and keep it that way!

 

Sounds like another OCD MINIac in our midst!!

You will certainly have enough opinions on here to make your head hurt, so I'll give you another observation...here is what I've found that works for keeping the Black Trim Black but not Shiney.

1. Prior to washing your MINI simply wet it down paying attention to the Black Trim, use a good hard spray, black trim only.
Note: I've not tried Pre-Wow yet, so for cleaning the trim this is a product I would definitely do some research on...lots of people really like it.
2. Use BW (Black Wow) on a round yellow foam pad, just a pea size will cover a large area.
3. Wash your MINI as normal, the residue left over from the BW should bead like you put wax on it, then you'll know that the Black Trim is now protected.

I do this about every 3 washes in the Summer, washing once a week. Other times, like Winter I use a 50/50 Nero Solution.

Good luck and Welcome!!

 

303 has a few different products at a local boating store here. Which one specifically are you guys using?

 

Jaydub...I use 303 Aerospace Protectant it seems to be the one most MINIacs are using!!