No Prep Coating

[Dan]

So my wife`s car got hit with the sprinklers and had some solid water spots that weren`t budging even with my goto QD. I did an A-B-C wash using the Finish Kare system, worked great, all the spots just melted away... but the paint needed some protection. I started thinking about doing some SNS or some 845 or maybe a 1 step with McKee`s... but then I thought, why not just throw on M37 coating. It would be less work than 845 and for sure will be more durable. I love that stuff, it is so goof proof. 90 degree day, full sun (white car), no issues. Put it on nice and thick, lots of high spots. Even 30 minutes later they weren`t that hard to wipe off.

Now to see how long it actually lasts!

[Bill D]

Did you mean Valugard ABC system?

[Coleroad]

See what you started Budgetplan. Now people don`t want to follow rules.

[TheMeanGreen]

There are two benefits to polishing before a coating appearance enhancement and exfoliating the top coat of oxidized paint. Otherwise one could apply a coating without polishing. I would also argue that using a wash like Meguiar’s Wash+ could almost eliminate the need for dedicated polishing, if the main goal is solely to apply protection regardless of paint appearance.

[BudgetPlan1]

See what you started Budgetplan. Now people don`t want to follow rules.

Just trying to be helpful! Fortunately, I have 2 unique circumstances:

1. My personal cars, which follow all the `rules`...and then some.

2. A fleet of vehicles at work which, well...anything is better for them than they were when I got here so it`s open season for whatever comes to mind. We just got the van back that I used CSL/EXOV4 on last winter when it was new; someone whacked the front fender and it was replaced so now I get to watch `panel-to-panel` how the totally un-coated fender does in comparison to the rest of the coated vehicle. Entertainment is where ya find it! We`re getting 4 or 6 new vehicles in a month or two, trying to figure out what to try next. Already kinda settled on 22ple Insanity (Thanks for the heads up, The Guz!), SPS Graphene & Kamikaze ISM 2.0. May go with a single layer of Zipang on another, maybe ISM1.0 on one as well...I kinda like the prospect of a single-layer coating (Zipang & ISM) cuz these things seem to be getting bigger each year (even though they`re really not).

Maybe I`ll do one w/ just a prep wipe down as opposed to the entire polishing/correction thing to see just how magnified the factory defects are when coated over. They`re new but they`re always a bit swirled up. Nice thing about fleet vehicles as it`s not so much the need for perfect paint (w/ regards to scratches and such) but rather the goal is that they always look `3ft away clean` w/ no effort for 2-3 years...the right coatings makes that possible.

[Accumulator]

The "A" can be surprisingly effective on oxidation (if not as much so as the discontinued FK1119), so IMO it wasn`t necessarily a "No Prep" situation..it just seemed that way since it was so nice and easy Hey, doing it that way doesn`t affect conventional LSPs, not all that surprised that it worked OK with a coating.

I`m really happy that Dan was able to skip a time-consuming, and apparently unnecessary, step and still get great results, well done!

[Dan]

Did you mean Valugard ABC system?

No, I still have the old FK system, its not really called ABC.. but you know... kleenex/tissue

There are two benefits to polishing before a coating appearance enhancement and exfoliating the top coat of oxidized paint. Otherwise one could apply a coating without polishing. I would also argue that using a wash like Meguiar’s Wash+ could almost eliminate the need for dedicated polishing, if the main goal is solely to apply protection regardless of paint appearance.

Car had no (visible) oxidation, its well maintained and has been AIO`d once or twice as well as a few clay towelings. What surprised me was how much pop the coating gave the paint. I thought my usually polishing was responsible for most of that pop, on other cars, but nope. It certainly did not make the very minor swirling worse, it possibly made it better. Still plenty of crap on top of the paint though, ideally I would have at least clayed, but then the lube would have required at least an IPA wipedown, which was more work than I was after on such a hot day.

The "A" can be surprisingly effective on oxidation (if not as much so as the discontinued FK1119), so IMO it wasn`t necessarily a "No Prep" situation..it just seemed that way since it was so nice and easy Hey, doing it that way doesn`t affect conventional LSPs, not all that surprised that it worked OK with a coating.

I`m really happy that Dan was able to skip a time-consuming, and apparently unnecessary, step and still get great results, well done!

I did indeed use FK1119, maybe I did better prep than I expected! Sure did work well on the water spots. But the big test will be how long this stuff lasts. My other DD is wearing M37 was well and is parked outdoors too, but it is about 6 months ahead of this one, we`ll see which lasts longer.

[Accumulator]

Dan- Ah, you *did* use the FK Be really, *REALLY* careful with the Step#2/acidic stuff (forget the pn#) as it can eat plastics..like the ones they use for lenses. Ron Ketcham (who sure oughta know!) convinced me to steer clear of it, and that doesn`t happen often.

Heh heh, I *BET* there was no oxidation, since you washed it with FK1119. That stuff turned the `93 Audi from Light Gray to Dark Blue like magic!

[Dan]

Dan- Ah, you *did* use the FK Be really, *REALLY* careful with the Step#2/acidic stuff (forget the pn#) as it can eat plastics..like the ones they use for lenses. Ron Ketcham (who sure oughta know!) convinced me to steer clear of it, and that doesn`t happen often.

Heh heh, I *BET* there was no oxidation, since you washed it with FK1119. That stuff turned the `93 Audi from Light Gray to Dark Blue like magic!

I`ve had pretty good luck with the system. I usually apply the product to a foam sponge and keep it away from anything that isn`t painted. I think I have enough for 2 more cars or so, after that I`ll probably roll my own A-B-C system.

[Accumulator]

Dan- I`ll be interested to hear how it goes when you switch over to something else. I`m saving my FK1119 for another of those jobs I hope I never get stuck with (famous last words..).

[Dan]

Well I was waiting for the M37 to die before I posted but with car values being so high I ended up selling the car before the coating wore off earlier this spring. The hood and roof were getting tired but not dead. Sides were still super strong. A few high spots I missed were still clearly visible. Not bad for no prep and a car parked outside 24x7.

[Lonnie]

Dan:
Two Captain Obvious questions:
1a) What year, make, and model vehicle did you sell that was white and how many mile were on it?
1b) What did you buy to replace it, if anything?
2) What is your "own"A-B-C decontamination system, i.e., what specific chemical/car-care products and steps/processes/methodologies are involved??
(Geeze, Captain Obvious, it seems as of late you are dividing questions in #a,#b,#c...sub-questions, so isn`t that really THREE questions above??... Just sayin`...)

[Dan]

Dan:
Two Captain Obvious questions:
1a) What year, make, and model vehicle did you sell that was white and how many mile were on it?
1b) What did you buy to replace it, if anything?
2) What is your "own"A-B-C decontamination system, i.e., what specific chemical/car-care products and steps/processes/methodologies are involved??
(Geeze, Captain Obvious, it seems as of late you are dividing questions in #a,#b,#c...sub-questions, so isn`t that really THREE questions above??... Just sayin`...)

Hey Lonnie, it was a 2016 Nissan Leaf. Just under 25k on it when we sold it. Paid $14k after incentives and rebates back in 2017! Sold for $13k in 2022!!! Not bad for five years. It was a goofy looking car but we really liked it. Not a single issue. The tires were starting to crack and it was going to need a few other things so we just got a new one, again with the incentives but not nearly as cheap this time. But it does have about 50% more driving range due to a larger battery. Also went up a trim level this time around and got some good stuff like aluminum wheels, nav, smart cruise, etc. The new one also looks a little less goofy.

I don’t have my own ABC yes, still finishing my FK but will probably do a acidic wheel cleaner followed by a high PH wash and then a good neutralizing wash. I know it won’t be a true ABC but I don’t find myself needing that much chemical muscle.