Lusso Car Care Products is a new
sponsor of Miata.net. After discussing building their web site,
Kevin Pike, Lusso President, gave me samples of Lusso Oro
and Lusso Cleaner and asked me to try them and tell him
what I thought. The following Saturday was "bath day"
for my Miata so I figured I'd try them out.
The instructions recommended using the Lusso Revitalizing Cream first. They further recommend using an orbital buffer for the cleaner. So I borrowed a friend's buffer and went to work.
Within a few seconds, the pad on the buffer was bright red. The cleaner was quickly removing small scuff marks, water marks, dead paint, bird droppings that wouldn't wash off, and a host of other things. It didn't help with scratches so I wouldn't equate it to rubbing compound - it is far milder. After going over the entire car, I put a clean pad on the buffer and cleaned up the residue.
The shine was incredible! Swirl marks were non-existent, and even better, the dull plastic on the mirrors and bumpers was showing signs of new life.
According to Kevin, the cleaner contains just a small percentage of protective material. This is to prevent the paint from oxidizing before the wax is applied, but wouldn't last more than 30 days without wax.
On to the Lusso Oro wax.
The first thing I noticed was the smell. Coconuts. Lots of coconuts. Oro is, evidently, a blend of Carnauba wax, Montan wax, and probably coconuts, among other things. The instructions recommend using very little wax as it spreads thin and using too much would just be a waste. They also recommend applying it with a bare hand! Sounded interesting, but I'll stick with an applicator pad. Like some other premium wax products, Oro does not harden on the car. Although the instructions indicate that only very small sections should be done at a time since it "sets up" quickly, I didn't notice any problem with working the Oro into the finish and buffing it out. I did the entire car by hand (which, in my opinion, is easier than an orbital), and barely made a dent in the jar of Oro.
The car looks incredible! Aside from a few chips in the paint, one would never believe it has 140,000 miles on the clock! Kevin claims that the Oro should last three to five months which is the big advantage over other premium wax products.
I plan to continue using Lusso products. Oro may smell like coconuts, but it most definitely is not a dessert topping!
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