Detail after bodywork?

tonio5555 · 11-07-09, 02:53

I'm getting some bodywork done next week. I have some nasty damage on my dirver side door, I'm getting a new panel. Anyway I want to detail my car before winter. How long should I wait after the bodywork to polish the paint? Should I just skip the polish and throw on a coat of Collinite for the winter? What's the proper procedure here?

solekeeper · 11-07-09, 04:16

Put it this way, we spray cars and the next day they are sanded and polished

wagonproject · 11-07-09, 05:22

I have done a car the same day it was painted (baked). But its going through the winter so "chances" are that its going to possibly get some swirls/scratches. I would just wait till spring to polish it. Also check with your painter to see how long he says to wait to apply a wax to the surface. I usually tell my customers 60-90 days just to be on the safe side, though I don't think a lot know what wax is anyways, lol.

red kiosk · 11-07-09, 05:31

I had four coats of Zymol Royale on my Murano until my daughter did a number on the front bumper and fender. I was advised to wait 90 days before l I had the Zymol re-applied to those areas. That's life. Take care!

Accumulator · 11-08-09, 08:24

This topic usually leads to

IME the paint will continue to harden for some time, so if you polish it right away expect it to be soft. As noted, it's already been washed/sanded/polished/etc. most of the time anyhow (by the shop).

Sometimes the fresh paint is *so* soft that it'll be tough to get a nice final finish, in that case just wait a while and redo it.

*I* wait at least 90 days to wax/seal (using a fresh-paint-safe glaze in the meantime), so as to avoid intefering with the outgassing, which could result in the paint not attaining its maximum potential hardness. Others believe that this waiting isn't necessary.