How tough is the paint on the 5?

[daan]

The wife drives the 5 99% of the time, and with the 2 little ones (and my 2 fulltime jobs) I don't have the time to detail (or wash better than the crappy gas station carwash) like I did when I was single (and didn't have a car worth putting the time into, duh). Anyway our car is FILTHY and she has put scrapes all over it in the last year, so will this be able to get "buffed out" and look OK, or is the paint trashed already? I plan on keeping this forever, so it's not resale I care about, more like needing a repaint to keep rust away. Thanks!

 

[jaxmazda5]

Mazda paint is generally considered 'soft' from a detailer's perspective. I do some detailing on the side and my wife's 5 has soft clearcoat. It scratches easily. BUT soft paint means it'll be easier to buff out minor scratches too.

If you care about the finish, avoid gas station carwashes and visit Autopia.org.