s WHITBY FREE PRESS, DURIAM MOVES.I , UN ., 1 > Perma-Shine - Don't wax car again By DONNA DONALDSON Perma-Shine, located at 1199 Kingston Rd., Pickering, guaran- tees you will never have to wax your car again. Owned by Glen McMahon of Pickering, the franchise supports three other outlets in south Durham and will eventually be opening another locationin Oshawa. "This location is good in the Pickering Auto Centre, it's con- venient for people to get everything done on their car that they want," says McMahon. Before opening his Perma-Shine outlet, McMahon had worked as an accounts supervisor for an adver- tising business, ran Radio Shack at the Eaton Centre, worked in m.arketing management, was a sales manager in retail for the Merchants Association of Canada and has done private consulting in marketing. McMahon also used to race cars and said that working with cars is hiN naqsi-' "I got fed 'up working for other people, and I love cars.-Everyone who works for me has that passion, that's the key to our success," he says. McMahon said Perma-Shine is a Canadian invention which started in 1974, and all products are en- .vironmentally safe. "We stay away from waxes and heavy detergents which pollute the paint," he says. McMahon says the Perma Shine process begins by a thorough Lights save lives The use of daytime running lights (DRLs) on road vehicles to help cut down on daytime accidents is an idea that is growing in popularity. Studies conducted in Canada, the United States, Sweden and Finland consistently show that the use of daytime rúnning Iight systems reduce multiple vehicle crashes and accidents involving pedestrians and cyclists during daylight hours. Transport Canada has stated that -for Canadians, use of DRLs would save 120 lives, prevent 38,000 ac- cidents, eliminate 11,000 injuries, and save $200 million in related medical costs annually. In short, use of DRLs would make roads safer' for all Canadians because they make vehicles more visible when viewed from the front at times other than when headlights are required. In light of the support DRL use, Canadian federal and provincial governments recently asked CSA to begin work on a standard for DRL retrofit kits. The CSA standard when published will serve as a guideline to manufacturers of DRL kits in- tended for installation in vehicles which have not been factory equip- ped with such a system, says Grant Davidson, Chairman of the com- mittee working on the draft stan- dard. Lights reduce daytime accidents The CSA standard will include requirements to ensure that retrofit systems will operate automatically when the car is started and that they shut off when the car is swit- ched off, Mr. Davidson says. Work on the standard is expected to be completed by December, 1987. The 14-member CSA committee began work in early 1987 after Transport Canada announced that DRLs would be required on all new vehicles beginning with the 1990 model year, says Jim White, the CSA committee's Transport Canada representative. Currently many Canadians voluntarily use headlights during the day to improve safety on the road. But there are some drawbacks.. "Experience shows that many Canadians 'who use headlights during the day forget to turn them off when they park their car. This leads to battery drain and staring problems," says Mr. White. Using headlights originally in- tended for night time use results in more frequent lamp burnout as well as a slight increase in fuel con- sumption. A separate retrofit system is preferable because it would be designed to operate automatically and may also be designed to use lower intensity lamps and less wat- tage. Many provincial governments, under whose authority legislation affecting existing vehicles lies, now are developing ways to promote the voluntary use of DRLs. The Saskatchewan government has actively promoted DRLs since 1984. Many other organizations concerned with traffic safety also support DRL use.-A few are the In- surance Bureau of Canada, Canada Safety Council, Canadian Automobile Association, Canadian Medical Association, Canadian Hospital Association, and the Canadian Rehabilitation Council for th*Disabled. cleaning of the car, removing waxes, pollutants and road tar. A combination of cleaners are then applied, followed by a high speed polishing, which locks their chemistry into the paints' natural lustre. Then fixer is applied, with another machine polishing. Finally, there is the detail cleaning of all "cracks and cran- nies" on the car. Perma-Shine also offers rust- proofing, full interior cleaning, and custom car washes, which Mc- Mahon calls an "old fashioned deluxe wash" done by hand. "People should be aware that car wash brushes will scratch the paint on cars and heavy detergents will leave a film. Most car washes use a light wax in the rinse cycle to blow the water off, but it also leaves a *film," says Mcmahon. The shop has recently added win- dow tinting for cars, trucks and recreational vehicles. The tint is a product called Gila Insul Film with scratch guard, and comes with a five-year warranty. McMahon says his company works with two local car dealers, king Church Motors and Wildwood Ford. "Some car salesmen will sell their own wax and call it Perma- Shine. The wax comes off, it's not a Perma-Shine product. Perma- Shine is only available at our outlets or dealers we work with," he says. McMahon says. their busiest season coincides with the new cars coming on the market, usually Oc- tober to November. may and June are also busy months. The shop also sells everything needed for people to wash their own cars. "The whole philosophy of * the business is to do a first-class job, and be competitively priced to other specialists. In most cases we're below dealer prices," says McMahon. McMahon adds that they go out of their way to service their customers. "If a customer needs a ride home or to the office, we will give them one at no charge." He says any coins that are picked up by the vacuum are put into a piggy bank. At Christmas time the money is thenn donated to the Toronto Star Christmas Fund. Any paper money, of course, is returned to the owner. PERMAUSIN