Aston Martin DB9

[avatar71]

Hello, I am new here so, I hope this post is in the right place. I was hoping someone could give me some suggestion on caring for the finish on a new DB9. The dealer said the paint is water based and requires special care. He recommended Klasse but did not specify.

The paint is a navy blue and is very sensitive. A misplaced touch of the hand resulted in some scratching! I was hoping for tips on specific products that would be recommended for cleaning, polishing and waxing.

I did search aston martin and came up dry and I have some understanding on what is good for many cars and what seems to be liked by many here on this board.

Ideally, I am looking for some personal experiences on one of these. Any help?

thanks in advance!

[holland_patrick]

Also use the Help botten on the top of the page

I bought a few kits and they made all the differance becaus of the MF and other bonus i got with themm

http://www.autogeek.net/
Wolfgang Elastic Poly Clay Kit
I love this clay
Klasse Kit
what can i say it's the best(zanio lovers would pic zanio I just haven't tried that and I get results with klasse)

http://www.premiumautocare.com/
Four Star Ultimate Detailing Clay Kit Deluxe
never used it but you get FOUR towels
Detail City Favorite Kit #1
Some say UPP is better then SG Plus you get MORE TOWELS ( you can never have enough towels)
Menzerna Get Acquainted Kit
Cheep, good produts(I posted about them in the detailing dissution fourm) and should be enough for your car

http://www.ocdpharmacy.com/
it's anouther place but I didn't see too much there


and last but not least
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/

Sonüs Perfect Paint Finish Kit
Never used it But I LOVE sonus Cockpit spray

Sonus makes it easy. Start with the Sonüs Perfect Shine Base Finish Kit (SON-BASE-KIT), then select the top-coat kit that best suits your needs.


So there you go a few place to look around and get some stuff I'm not really recomending one store over another just wanteding you to see what is out there and to beable to get the most for your money

patrick

you can always PM me if needed

[gbackus]

Almost all new cars have water based paints, with a few exceptions(such as the plant where the new Grand Cherokess are built, they're still using solvent based systems). The hardness of the paints depends are the manufacturers specifications, but as far as I know, Aston is using PPG. I would believe that most luxury manufacturers using PPG now would be using Cermiclear based paints, but I don't know about that. If the paint is really as soft as you say, and this is a car you will drive often, there is not much you can do to avoid minor marring. Of course I would only recomend products from Einszett, Meguiars, and AutoInt, but I'm a bit biased. Others could probably provide better answers, but in my experience, technique goes a lot further than any specific product will.

[G35stilez]

First off,

Amazing machine you have there! and Welcome to Autopia!


Dk blue is a great color with plenty of potential. I don't have any personal experiences, but I did a metallic navy car a couple months ago with:

-Wolfgang Clay
-Menzerna Final Polish
-4* Ultimate Paint Cleaner
-4* Ultimate Paint Protection











It provided for a very clear, wet look. The metallic really shined through and the clarity of relfections was excellent.

[TDMAN]

There are some excellent choices. I would personally go to this site: www.autopolish.net. This stuff is amazing! It lasts for a long time. It's not very popular, but it works great. You could then start using other sealants and waxes, but I would use this product as the base. I have this on my 2005 Chrysler C and it has held up. Amazing, simply amazing look!

[Accumulator]

avatar71- Welcome to Autopia! A dark blue DB9 would be one very attractive car, but dark blue is a challenging color (as you're finding out).

Nothing all that special about soft water-based paint. Don't scratch if it you can help it, remove the scratches as best you can when they do happen. Dealers (especially those of high-end cars) seem to enjoy making the paint on their wares sound "special" just for the sake of, well, sounding special Paint is either hard (e.g., the CeramiClear) or it's soft. Sounds like yours is soft. That's both a blessing and a curse.

Read up on the basics here; you're gonna need certain products (such as Micro Fiber towels, proper wash mitts, etc.) to keep it nice if you're doing it yourself. Even if you decide to have it done by a pro, knowing what you're talking about will be a big help.

To remove the marring (scratches/swirls/etc.) you'll need to use a *mildly* abrasive polish. If the paint's soft this will be easier (that's the "blessing" of soft paint). If you're new to this I'd get some 1Z Paint Polish. My "non-Autopian" friends consider it user-friendly. If you can use something milder due to the softness of your paint (won't know until you try) you could try 3M Perfect-It III Machine Glaze (pn 05937), which is also user-friendly.

Klasse products ("AIO" and "SG) are for cleaning (the AIO product) and protection (the SG product), but they won't remove the scratches. These are good products, but they can be a little unforgiving when it comes to marring- you can see every little flaw. You can get perfectly good protection with other products that are a bit more forgiving.

Keeping the scratches at bay might be a challenge (that's the "curse" of soft paint). You might check out My Wash Technique . It works OK on my '85 Jag, which almost certainly has softer paint than your Aston.

BTW, how do you open the DB9's door handles without touching the paint (and thus marring it if it's dirty)? IIRC it has "flush" door handles that you have to touch to open the doors...

[the other pc]

Hi avatar71 to Autopia.

You have a magnificent machine. You've come to right place in your search to keep it looking beautiful. (Please post pictures!)

Be assured that there are many companies that make products suitable for maintaining such a fine finish. I'm a pretty loyal Meguiar's guy myself but Klasse, Pinnacle, 3M, PS21, Poorboy's and others all make products that will very well work for you.

More important than the brand of chemical products you use are the techniques and tools you employ. Around here we converse endlessly about the very subtle differences between this wax and that sealant but if you apply any of them with an old tee shirt after washing with a gritty sponge your finish will be a scratched up mess.

So relax, take a deep breath and start cruising around the threads here and especially spend some time reading the how-to articles. You'll be shining in no time.


PC.


(p.s. If you happen to be anywhere near Orange County, Ca. I would be more than happy to show you the stuff I have, set you up with multiple wash buckets and just plain grovel on my hands and knees for a ride in it. )

[avatar71]

WOW, what an amazing response! Thank you all for your time. I will do my best and hope to post some pictures ASAP (which translates to, when it gets warmer out)

Dear Accumulator, yes, the doors are tricky. It's a catch 22. I try to press the handle with the smallest part of my finger tip. I can see these things getting "hammered" over time, particularly the passenger door.

Dear the other pc, sorry, I live in NY and you're not missing much...

[the other pc]

Figured it was a long shot (but it never hurts to ask ).

Be forewarned, glossy paint is addictive. You may find yourself carrying a bottle of QD and wearing microfiber gloves just to get in and out of your car.

On a more practical note, since the handles are independent pieces you can probably have a painter shoot them with a coat of a harder clear.


PC.

[Bence]

Or a custom clear bra?

[pocon1]

What about a piece of clear bra material applied just to the door handles? this might give it the masking protection it needs and tucking it under will keep a nice clean edge that will not be visible.

Just a thought, never tried anything like it myself.

Edit, bence beat me to it, while I was typing.

[Accumulator]

avatar71- Thanks for responding regarding the doors. I'd sure look into putting some clear-bra-type protection on those. Note that you can't use many such products after repainting, so I'd get them on there before you have any serious problems. That's the only way I can imagine being able to *close* the doors from outside the vehicle too (without marring the paint).

You can get cut-your-own clear protection from a number of sources, including Griot's Garage (no link handy, but it's something like www.griotsgarage.com).

And, heh heh, I'd also invest a little time in educating your passengers That car is one where somebody could do a fair bit of damage without being all that careless. Everybody I know knows that you just don't touch the paint on my vehicles, the time spent educating them was nothing compared to the time it would take to polish out scratches. And mine even have conventional door handles