Car Detailing for Mazda Mazda3

Detailing your Mazda Mazda3

A Mazda3 in Soul Red Crystal is the car that gets people asking who did the paint, and the answer is that the colour is a multi-layer finish that rewards a careful polish and punishes a careless one, so we always test a spot first. The light leather Mazda offers in the GT shows jean dye quickly and gets a dedicated cleaner. The hatchback's tiny rear window needs to be spotless inside, and the piano-black console gets microfibre and nothing rougher.

What we watch for on a Mazda3

• Soul Red Crystal and Machine Grey are multi-layer paints; we test a spot before polishing to match pad and compound
• Light Greige and Pure White leather show denim dye on the driver's seat and need a proper leather cleaner
• The current hatchback's small rear glass and thick pillars make a clean interior glass surface essential
• Piano-black console trim scratches easily and is cleaned with microfibre only
• The previous generation's grille and lower bumper catch bugs and need soaking before washing

Compact cars: small cabins, big wear

Small cabins mean every surface is within reach of a stray coffee or a boot print, and the carpets take it all. Outside, compact cars live a hard life in parking lots and on the 401, so the lower panels collect salt and stone chips.