Just minutes from the
Long Island Sound coastline, in a quiet, unassuming office and warehouse
in Branford, Connecticut, Germany is advancing the state-of-the-art in car and
motorcycle care technology. This is the home of Brookside Import Specialties,
the importer of P21S and S100 products.
B.I.S. was founded by Steve Gay as an importer of German
bolt-on automotive accessories. In the course of doing research with
German car dealers, Steve became aware that Porsche dealers were coping with a
growing host of unhappy car owners. The five spoke alloy wheels on the 911 were
being instantly and irrevocably stained during routine washing! With replacement
wheels costing $1,200. for a set of four wheels (an unheard of price at the
time) something had to be done fast.
The culprit was wheel
cleaners which were all acid or lye based (as many are today!). These cleaners
quickly cleaned wheel covers which were standard on domestic vehicles but
Porsche used forged aluminum wheels featuring five black center spokes with a
polished outer rim that was clear anodized. Spraying Porsche alloy wheels with
an acid or lye-based cleaner instantly removed the clear finish, staining the
wheel a milky-white.
Steve found this wasn't
happening in Germany where enthusiasts were using a pH-balanced, detergent-based
wheel cleaning system with the funny name of P21S. Mr. Gay contacted the German
chemical company manufacturing P21S and negotiated the rights to import P21S
Wheel Cleaners into the United States.
P21S became an instant
hit among German automobile owners. As word spread, Porsche, BMW and
Mercedes-Benz dealers began selling and recommending P21S wheel cleaners to
their customers! Steve and P21S had hit a home run!