# Door rubber seals - Which product (Sonax, Nextzett, BMW, Caramba)?



## Lazac (Apr 18, 2019)

Hey Guys,

I'd like to buy a dedicated product for the rubber seals for my car. As I know, nowdays this seals are made from EPDM, not from natural rubber. Which product would be the best for them?

In reviews I have seen Nextzett Gummi Pflege is good, but that I can not purchase in my country.

I can order Sonax Gummi Pflege, Caramba Gummi Pflege and BMW Rubber Care. Have you got some expreiences with them? Which is the most similar to Nextzett? In a video I have seen Nextzett is a white, bit creamy liquid, with water based silicones.

Sonax is also water based, but is it also a bit creamy or its rather a milky type?









BMW's rubber care I can not find anything, neither ingredients or the consistency or the colour of it, so I don't know if its water based, or solvent based, or its use glycerin.









Caramba Gummi Pflege uses glycerin, instead of water based silicone. But I dont know which is better for EPDM rubber, glycerin or water based silicone (PDMS).


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## Chris Dyson (Feb 29, 2012)

I've been using Swissvax Sealfeed for several years now and find it keeps the rubber seals soft and flexible. Although it seems expensive you only need to apply it once or twice a year and only need a little on each seal.


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

Chris Dyson said:


> I've been using Swissvax Sealfeed for several years now and find it keeps the rubber seals soft and flexible. Although it seems expensive you only need to apply it once or twice a year and only need a little on each seal.


£55 Jesus Christ

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

Fairtony said:


> £55 Jesus Christ
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


It's expensive because its made using real seals, not synthetic ones.... They are specially hand clubbed to death in small batches by artisan craftsmen.


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## Vossman (Aug 5, 2010)

GleemSpray said:


> It's expensive because its made using real seals, not synthetic ones.... They are specially hand clubbed to death in small batches by artisan craftsmen.


:lol::lol::lol:


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## WristyManchego (Sep 9, 2018)

Throwing 303 into the mix.

Top performance, excellent economy, great value. 

Plus, isn’t a one trick pony, has plenty of other uses.


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

I know i sometimes sound like an Autoglym advert... but i do like Vinyl and Rubber care, because it can be used for so many different things, if applied thoughtfully, and it certainly works well on door seals, in my experience .


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## Lazac (Apr 18, 2019)

As I figured it out already, BMW Gummi Pflege has glycerin (transparent gel) and not silicone, like Sonax, or Nextzett. As I see in videos this Swissvax look the same, like BMW's.


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## garage_dweller (Apr 10, 2018)

You could just go to a chemist and buy a bottle of glycerin, does the same thing.


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

I have nextzett, Sonax, but not the bmw ones
Nextzett as you know is a white liquid
Sonax is a transparent gel, so not what you’re looking for, it doesn’t feel or work like nextzett

BMW, not sure, but most of their stuff used to be made by Sonax

Can you not find Nextzett on eBay or eBay.de?

The closest thing I have used in look and consistency is 3M Tyre Restorer (black 500ml trigger bottle), is that available in your country?

I have the Swissvax and it is very good

303 is a good suggestion, you can buy that in very small bottles as well. You have to buff it in though; don’t let it dry on its own. 

Another thing I would recommend is Koch Chemie PlastStar (PS), but it’s a solvent type dressing, not water based, probably not what you’re looking for. They specifically state it can be used on rubber seals, inside and out. They also do a PSS which is silicone free, but haven’t tried it. 

As to epdm vs rubber, not sure of the differences when using a dressing, I guess everyone assumes that there is no natural rubber any more. 

Can you go into a BMW dealership and see if they can order you a bottle; you don’t have to buy it if it isn’t what you were expecting (I.e. liquid vs gel)? I’ve found multiple part numbers for BMW dressings so perhaps there is one that is what you are looking for. They used to have something called “plastic care emulsion” which was awesome, but don’t sell it any more.


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## Lazac (Apr 18, 2019)

garage_dweller said:


> You could just go to a chemist and buy a bottle of glycerin, does the same thing.


Here, you can not buy glycerin.
Or maybe I just shouldn't try to buy it in a t-shirt with a "nitro" logo.:lol::lol::lol:


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## Lazac (Apr 18, 2019)

tosh said:


> I have nextzett, Sonax, but not the bmw ones
> Nextzett as you know is a white liquid
> Sonax is a transparent gel, so not what you're looking for, it doesn't feel or work like nextzett
> 
> ...


Thanx for your answer! 
Nextzett I can find on ebay, but with post it would be 17 £, while BMW or Sonax 6 £.

Which Sonax do you have, the black one, or the blue one? Cause for the black bottled one I thought that is also a white liquid.:doublesho (I attached 2 photos)

Koch Chemie PSS I was checked, and it is also solvent based according to its data sheet.

As I see EPDM is perfectly compatible also with Glycerine and Silicone.


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

I have both
The black one when I open it, is a gel
The white one is like a crayon/glue stick

I buy my 1z from here
https://www.micksgarage.com/d/dash-rubber-and-plastics/products/2517984/gummi-pflege-stift-100ml

CarPro Perl is another thing you can try if you have it; diluted 4:1


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

If you look at this link
https://www.sonax.com/Product-Searc...(show)/parent-product#collapse-parent-product
And choose all sizes
You can see it is the same product, but starting in a small 100ml bottle, then an aerosol spray, then larger sizes
They are the same product
The aerosol is very good on a cloth, and then wipe it on the rubber seals, better than using the small bottle and applicator (see the video)
Very good on tyres as well

But looking at my bottle of 100ml, definitely a gel.


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

Lazac said:


> Here, you can not buy glycerin.
> 
> Or maybe I just shouldn't try to buy it in a t-shirt with a "nitro" logo.:lol::lol::lol:


In the UK, you can buy glycerin from a chemist, we use it for blowing large bubbles with washing liquid for children...


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## Lazac (Apr 18, 2019)

tosh said:


> If you look at this link
> https://www.sonax.com/Product-Searc...(show)/parent-product#collapse-parent-product
> And choose all sizes
> You can see it is the same product, but starting in a small 100ml bottle, then an aerosol spray, then larger sizes
> ...


Yes, I see, the same product in different forms. And that Sonax gel you have is absolutely transparent?

I have Gyeon Preserve, maybe it would do the same job?


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

It's more of a milky white liquid. Not liquid, but a runny gel. 
I'll take a pic in a minute









The aerosol I have sprayed and it came out white, then went clear immediately. It has the same smell and feeling as the gel on my fingers.

I have found 5 bottles of 1z Gummi in my garage, send me your address and I'll send you one.

If Gyeon preserve is for rubber/vinyl, I would say yes. If you want to test it, try it in your boot/trunk rubber first.


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## Lazac (Apr 18, 2019)

Thank you for your effort to take a pic! 

Gyeon Preserve is for plastic as I know. But its very a thin/weak liquid.

I wrote a PM just now!


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

tosh said:


> It's more of a milky white liquid. Not liquid, but a runny gel.
> I'll take a pic in a minute
> 
> 
> ...


So, is the 1z Gummi the one to go for, as I need to pick some up - cracking information previously, I've always wondered if there was a difference between this and Sonax version :thumb:


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

Andyblue said:


> So, is the 1z Gummi the one to go for, as I need to pick some up - cracking information previously, I've always wondered if there was a difference between this and Sonax version :thumb:


Personally, yes. 1z/Nextzett.

The Sonax stuff works well on a Matt seal, but if they're shiny in any way, it doesn't really penetrate. Sonax spray Gummi is very very good on tyres.

303 is probably the closest to 1z on seals, but like I said, apply 303 and then buff in, rather than apply 1z and leave to dry.

303 have a dedicated seal product now, haven't tried it. This says apply and walk away.

https://www.motorgeek.co.uk/cgi-bin/ecom.cgi?Command=ShowProduct&db_pid=1137

If you have KC PS already, try that first.


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

tosh said:


> Personally, yes. 1z/Nextzett.
> 
> The Sonax stuff works well on a Matt seal, but if they're shiny in any way, it doesn't really penetrate. Sonax spray Gummi is very very good on tyres.
> 
> ...


Cheers mate, great information :thumb:


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

Swissvax seal feed is nice enough, just too expensive. Stresses you out if you pour too much on your app sponge. 

Reminds me of using Krytox? It was some special stuff for convertible hood seals which was £30 for 10ml. Probably more expensive now.

I’m experimenting with CarPro Perl on tyres at the moment at 1:1. I may have to go neat or 2:1. I have a feeling that I can use the same ratio for seals. So I can do the tyres and seals with the same bottle, and look at nice fresh rubber every time I get in the car.


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## Chris Dyson (Feb 29, 2012)

Fairtony said:


> £55 Jesus Christ
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yes, it seems expensive but will last for years as only a small drop will do a complete door seal and last all year. I am still using a bottle I purchased nearly seven years ago, so in the long run.... not that expensive after all. No seals were harmed during the making of this reply.


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

I found Seal Feed to be OK, not a panacea for all the woes of rubber trim. 

e.g. 10 yr old BMW coupe, frameless doors. Dried out rubber, applied seal feed many times. Looks fantastic but it doesn’t solve the problem, and they eventually go back to the original dried out state over time. I agree if you use it on a car where the rubbers are good, it will keep them that way indefinitely. But it doesn’t repair any neglect that has been done. Nothing I have found can repair damage, so keep on top of it guys...

If anyone has found something, or makes this stuff for a living, I would be very interested in a repair product and not a temporary fix.


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

I may have found something that is a cheaper alternative to Seal Feed... testing it this weekend. Feels very similar in use; thin clear slippery liquid. Perhaps a bit thinner than Seal Feed, but should make it easier to apply.


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## \Rian (Aug 23, 2017)

tosh said:


> Swissvax seal feed is nice enough, just too expensive. Stresses you out if you pour too much on your app sponge.
> 
> Reminds me of using Krytox? It was some special stuff for convertible hood seals which was £30 for 10ml. Probably more expensive now.
> 
> I'm experimenting with CarPro Perl on tyres at the moment at 1:1. I may have to go neat or 2:1. I have a feeling that I can use the same ratio for seals. So I can do the tyres and seals with the same bottle, and look at nice fresh rubber every time I get in the car.


I use PERL 1:1 on rubber trim works well,


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## westerman (Oct 12, 2008)

The easiest one to acquire off the shelf is Autoglym Bumper and Trim Gel. It works perfectly, I have used nothing else for years. Particularly good at stopping seals from freezing too.

Harry


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

Found this on my internet travels:

Shin-Etsu Silicone Grease
https://chilternconnections.co.uk/p...m30g-shin-etsu-g-30m-honda-grease-30g-syringe

From the site
"It is recommended in Honda manuals that you apply silicone grease to the rubber seals of your car every 3-6 months to protect against squeaks and leaks"

Lots of other internet articles on this, mainly from the USA.

Has anyone used this on rubber? It appears to be a Honda part for all seals.


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## J55TTC (Apr 11, 2008)

Gummi flege every time


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