About Menzerna

About Menzerna.

There's a shake-up going on in the automotive compound and polishing industry in this country. It's being caused by a company in Oetigheim, Germany.

For those of you that didn't know, there's one, huge, U.S. supplier of polish and compounds to America's automakers. They virtually monopolize that position. I don't know if they got there through superior products or very competitive pricing but they've had a lock on that business for decades. While it's a prestigious position to be in, the real money is made in the aftermarket. This position allows the company's reps to go into every paint and body shop in the country and say, "We can supply you with the same compounding, polishing and finishing products used by the automaker." Not that there's anything wrong with that. If you have a competitive advantage, by all means run it up the flagpole.

The shake up that's occurring at U.S. auto plants is that this domestic supplier is being replaced by a German manufacturer of polishing compounds. That's unheard of!

In Germany, polish manufacturers compete fiercely for Mercedes', Volkswagen's and BMW's business. While price is a consideration, the German mind is much more inclined toward technological superiority rather than low-ball pricing. The leading supplier to German automakers, including Mercedes, is Menzerna-werk. This is the company headquartered in Oetigheim. It's an old business. The Menzerna company has been making abrasives and polishing compounds since 1888. That's one year before Gottlieb Daimler founded Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, the company that was to become Mercedes Benz!

Unlike it's U.S. counterpart, Menzerna is still a family-owned company and only makes abrasives, compounds and polishes. They mill, in house, a variety of micro-fine abrasives for various industries and are recognized as a world leader in abrasive and polishing technology.
	Menzerna only makes abrasives and polishes.
Not only does Menzerna mill abrasives as fine as 0.3 micron, they have developed some of the tightest quality control procedures in the industry. Everything from raw material certification and testing to the finished product is rigorously inspected and controlled. While many companies pay lip service to quality control, it's a way of life at Menzerna. This dedication and focus on
	Menzerna products are TUV approved and ISO 9001 certified.

quality control results in unheard of levels of product uniformity. What this means to you is the elimination of polishing swirl lines that can occur from an oversize abrasive particle getting through the quality control process.

Menzerna polishing compounds are TUV approved (the German Automotive Safety Council) and meet or exceed ISO 9001 standards, the highest in the world.


Menzerna factory at Oetigheim, Germany.
About the time Daimler merged (I'm being polite) with Chrysler (1999), Menzerna opened a sales and warehouse facility in the United States. Product presentations were made to U.S. automakers and little by little, Menzerna products started showing up at domestic auto plants starting with Mercedes and Chrysler.
Today, in addition to Daimler- Chrysler, a significant portion of General Motors plants in the U.S. have started using Menzerna polishing compounds. So why would American automakers start using German polishing compounds?
	Approximately one third of General Motors plants have switched to Menzerna products.
What's the big deal with Menzerna? To begin with, Menzerna polishes are water-based! Technically, they're an oil-in-water emulsion. They do contain a petroleum distillate but it's a lubricant, not a solvent. Menzerna polishes contain no solvent cleaners! They also contain no fillers, no glaze, no wax and no silicones.
What they do contain are the finest, in size, quality, and uniformity, milled abrasives in the world. Before you say you don't want to use an abrasive polish on your car, hear me out. These polishes are like nothing you or I have ever used!
	Menzerna products are water- based with no solvent cleaners!
The reason these polishes are being used by automakers, here and in Germany, on brand new paint, is they can remove 2500 grit sanding lines, swirls and paint defects with minimum to no surface dulling! Compounds capable of removing sanding trace lines invariably leave finer, compounding, lines which are seen as dull patches or haze on the paint. Removing this haze requires an additional polishing step and often a glaze to fill any remaining polishing lines. If you were to spend 10 minutes compounding out a paint defect, you would typically spend another 10 to 20 minutes applying a polish and glaze.
With Menzerna, you can often go directly from compounding (defect removal) to finishing (final wax or sealant) on light color paints. The secondary polishing and glaze step can be completely eliminated! On dark color paints, secondary polishing to a high gloss finish can be accomplished in a fraction of the time it would normally take.
	Menzerna cuts total polishing time in half!

Other Menzerna advantages include:

Safe for use on factory cured paint and brand new paint.
Excellent for one stage and base coat-clear coat finishes.
Can be used on lacquer and acrylic paints
No petroleum solvent is being introduced back in to the paint.

Menzerna polishing compounds are used by Mercedes in the
U.S. and in Germany.

Minimum dusting.
One-step, rapid, swirl, line and defect removal with minimal or no surface haze on light color paints.
Minimal follow-up polishing required on dark color paints.
Swirls and defects are removed, not just covered-up.
Can be applied by hand, orbital, dual-action or circular polishers.

Classic Motoring Accessories is proud to have been selected by Menzerna to introduce their polishing products to the American D.I.Y. and enthusiast market.