> I have a white 2003 Accord EX V6 4-door. I didn't think an EX Accord
> came without a sunroof. How did you manage that?

I simply purchased a white Accord LX and then purchased all of the
EX parts to get the car without the sunroof. This includes the larger
OEM wheels and tires, the body-colored side garnishes, the birds-eye wood
trim on the console and doors, the carpeted trunk lid liner (available
on your model), the chrome EX emblem on the trunk, and even options like
the day-night rear view mirror, trunk tray, and tan Weathertech rubber
ribbed floor mats.

I took off the mudguards because I think that they detracted from the
clean lower body contours (especially the front ones), but I might paint
mine white (the prev-gen Maximas had body-colored ones).


> White is the color least likely to show swirl marks. Dark colors are
> more sensitive. So we might not be the best owners to answer this
> question. Cleaning is more of an issue with white.

Agreed. My two former cars over the last twelve years were also white
too, and I am simply basing my advice on experience. Each time when my
former cars needed washing, I would instead spend all the time washing
and waxing the entire car! No wonder I often needed to wear my shades
in sunlight. <g>


> I think the key is lots of water and only scrubbing as needed with as
> clean a cloth/brush/sponge as you can manage. I wash lightly and rinse
> and area before I scrub. The cloth gets dipped often and the water
> changed several times.
>
> Keeping a good layer of wax is good to avoid needing to scrub.
>
> Cloth automatic car washes are frightening for a bunch of reasons. Free
> sand blasting with every wash? <g>

Also, I only use 100% cotton towels to dry the car (bath towels are ideal,
I keep about five large folded bath towels, frequently washed in a campus
washing machine, in the trunk). I won't use a towel if the label says
85% cotton and 15% polyester -- it must say 100% cotton. When the car has
been washed and the surfaces still wet, I take one of these towels, open it
up, and drape it across the hood, for example. I lightly and slowly drag
it across the hood, letting gravity exert the pressure to absorb the beads
of water and dry the paint.