Buying a new black car soon...help me protect it

[Express]

As the title suggests, I`m about to purchase ANOTHER black car. As this one will be brand new (or very mildly used) I hope to have a clean slate to work with. I`m wondering what the absolute best products for the following categories are......

1. Clay system.

2. Polish.....I would like something that I can apply very easily by hand with microfiber towels.

3. Sealant....longest lasting with the deepest shine by hand.

4. Wash mitts....the least scratch prone

5. Bug remover....I road trip ALOT so bugs are a fact of life. Whats the best bug remover out there?



I`ve also heard alot about the 3M clear bra. A few people say it actually increases the bug stains and others say they just wipe off. Whats the story?

[JAGOWNER1981]

Originally posted by ZoominLude

As the title suggests, I`m about to purchase ANOTHER black car. As this one will be brand new (or very mildly used) I hope to have a clean slate to work with. I`m wondering what the absolute best products for the following categories are......

1. Clay system.

2. Polish.....I would like something that I can apply very easily by hand with microfiber towels.

3. Sealant....longest lasting with the deepest shine by hand.

4. Wash mitts....the least scratch prone

5. Bug remover....I road trip ALOT so bugs are a fact of life. Whats the best bug remover out there?



I`ve also heard alot about the 3M clear bra. A few people say it actually increases the bug stains and others say they just wipe off. Whats the story?



Xpel is a must for a new black car. Get an MF wash mitt & Zaino. Ull be all set.

[TazmanSS]

I have Xpel on mx black SC430 and couldn`t be happier.



I have to disagree on the Zaino, IMHO, a good carnuba is much better than Zaino on a dark color. I tried Zaino and it offered no "depth".. One Grand Blitz made it look incredible.

[imported_doug]

Honestly, the products you choose will have less to do with how it looks than whether you "get it" about swirls in the first place - what causes them, how to avoid them. It is far better to avoid them than to work constantly to remove/hide them. You`ll have to do that sooner rather than later ANYWAY. But don`t make it harder on yourself. Allow me to offer the following advice, which is the result of 2 years of obsessive black car ownership and a whole lot of experimentation, mistakes, observation, etc.:



The enemy is dust, which begins landing on your car at the front while you`re still drying the back. Any time you rub dust around on the car (e.g., any time you rub the car with anything) you are instroducing these scratches. Worse, the layer can be so thin you will not see it unless you find perfect lighting conditions. (http://www.heumann.com/paintcare/viewing.html)



My recipe has improved greatly as of late after proving to my own satisfaction (http://www.autopia-carport.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10615) that the "California Car Duster " safely removes dust without scratching. I dust the black car every time I pull into the garage (or even better, before I pull back out, when it is cooler), and then I can safely use detail spray and a microfiber towel to remove oily fingerprints, smudges, etc. In this way I have been able to reduce the frequency of washing dramatically, and I am getting far fewer swirls.



SO - dust your car frequently. Never, ever wipe on it - even to dust, unless you`ve removed as much dust as you can with the CCD first. Minimize rubbing when buffing or drying as well. NOTHING rubs my paint except microfiber wipes and foam pads for compound application (and mitts for washing). Note that this applies even when you wash and dry. Here`s a hint on drying (http://www.autopia-carport.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=5120) as well.

[JAGOWNER1981]

Originally posted by carguy

SO - dust your car frequently. Never, ever wipe on it - even to dust, unless you`ve removed as much dust as you can with the CWB first.



CWB means cali water blade, I sure hope that was a typo :nixweiss




Originally posted by Gene Arch

I have Xpel on mx black SC430 and couldn`t be happier.



I have to disagree on the Zaino, IMHO, a good carnuba is much better than Zaino on a dark color. I tried Zaino and it offered no "depth".. One Grand Blitz made it look incredible.



hmm not sure what u mean by no depth... This is Z5 on our black ML (3 coats) looks pretty deep to me



http://home.attbi.com/~busnaina/PIC00191.JPG



http://home.attbi.com/~busnaina/PIC00174.JPG

[ClayBartrug]

Originally posted by carguy

Minimize rubbing when buffing or drying as well. NOTHING rubs my paint except microfiber wipes and foam pads for compound application. Note that this applies even when you wash and dry.



Carguy,



How do you not "rub" when you wash the car? You have to move a sponge or mitt over the car`s surface...Is this not rubbing persay?



thx

[medic]

Originally posted by Gene Arch

I have Xpel on mx black SC430 and couldn`t be happier.



I have to disagree on the Zaino, IMHO, a good carnuba is much better than Zaino on a dark color. I tried Zaino and it offered no "depth".. One Grand Blitz made it look incredible.



So you can wax or use polymers on a clear bra? Interesting. How does this impact the plastic material since you`re adding chemicals to it (stains or yellowing). Any pics of the final result since I figure the clear bra reguces some of the impact.

[vroddad]

Xpel is a very well made product and will repond favorably to most paint products.

[boywonder]

In a short bit, the Maxima will be wearing an Xpel Bra, headlight covers, and mirror covers. God knows it`s needed up here with all the construction.

[imported_doug]

AlBoston, ChrisS - you`re right - must have been late (or too much wine ;) ) when I typed that... anyway - I edited the post once but it must have gotten dropped in the "revert to saved" autopia database restore. SO - it is now (again) taken care of. Thanks for catching my errors!