Hello fellow CX 5 owners. I'm a new owner (2016.5 GT with tech, pearl white).

I'm considering Mazda's front mask. I want to protect the nose from bugs. Will be driving it down south in a few weeks and I can only imagine the bugs that will get stuck to the front.

Any thoughts on third party masks?

Thanks!
Doug

 

I assume you're talking about black cloth/vinyl masks (or "bras") here. In general, they're a bad idea with good intentions. They were originally developed and popularized in the mid '60s for cars like the 911 Porsche that had lots of exposed frontal sheet metal. They worked reasonably well in that application as long as they were used as intended. That is, you put them on before a long road trip and took them off immediately after. Otherwise, by leaving one on for a prolonged period of time, you ran the risk of paint abrasion by all the crud that eventually finds its way under the bra. Unfortunately, over the years these devices were adopted for broader automotive application, marketed in large numbers mainly to people who thought they looked cool, but who never bothered to remove them. The result was lots of damaged paint jobs and unhappy owners. The alternative to this is the "clear film bra" marketed by 3M and others. It's not cheap to have one of these applied, but it gets the job done unobtrusively and doesn't damage the finish. I suggest you look into that.

 

Well stated paris and I am in agreement. Paint takes a bigger hit from the bra than any damage the bugs might do. Throw a fresh layer of wax on the snout and motor on down the road.

 

A white car is advantageous as I have done the wax trick that Sparky202 already mentioned. Ours is driven extensively 500-1000 miles per week so we went with a paint film called Xpel on the front bumper, headlights, partial hood and mirrors. 10 year warranty and is self healing. Look up a few videos on You Tube.

 

Thanks all for the great advise! And saving me from spending $125 on a mask.