What Car? Q&A - Is paint shine treatment worth the cash?

Q: I'm considering buying a new car and the dealer is trying to get me to opt for AutoGlym's Life Shine treatment. I do 20,000 miles a year and live in the country, so my car can get pretty filthy. Is it worth it?
Martin Glynn, Grewelthorpe, North Yorkshire

A: It depends how much your dealer is asking you to pay for it. We've found that dealers charge between £250-£300 for this kind of protection, which can include the paint sealant, an interior upholstery treatment such as Scotchguard, and a Life Shine kit which includes car care accessories like polish, wheel cleaner and car shampoo.

As with most optional extras, you should be able to haggle some money off the initial price.

Generally speaking, if you wash your car every weekend using a decent car shampoo and keep it clean, you won't notice much benefit, but if your car gets dirty regularly, it's certainly worth considering.

There are also other paint sealant protection systems available such as Diamondbrite, Supaguard and Silver Seal, although none of them match AutoGlym's 10-year warranty.