Best products to maintain a black car

[trailblazer295]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

I was in Canadian Tire yesterday picking up a few items on sale, grabbed some interior detailing spray for the dash etc. They do have Ultimate polish, UW wax liquid and paste and GC wax liquid at my local store. Canadian tire and there auto specific parts source stores have 25% off meguiars products on a regular basis especially spring like you say. I'll have to take inventory of what else I have. Grabbed a pack of microfiber towels on sale. Not sure what my clay situation is at the moment.

[pcfxer]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

I had DoDo Juice Super Natural wax on my Abarth since the beginning of October with a wash (basic without wax) once every 2 or 3 weeks and wash (with wax every other wash for the same duration). Luckily the condo I live in has a car wash bay and is heated so the DDJ SN lasted for about 3-3.5 weeks with beading still strong on flat surfaces but those lower sides and the hatch...ouch. Canadian winters are BRUTAL that's for sure.

Last night, I used TR.IX, clay, Ultimate Polish and two coats of #16. As for longevity, #16 and Ultimate Wax are very very good waxes lasting longer than just about any wax on the market. It amazes me how there are so many detailing companies in California that claim product longevity based on Californian weather and not Canadian winters (or mid-north states' winters).

[trailblazer295]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

I can't wait to get my hands to detail the outside of it. I was told it would be detailed when it was picked up but I guess my idea of detailing is a bit different. The inside was spotless but the outside didn't look any different then when I saw it the first time. I'll be probably playing around with ultimate polish and Uw liquid, I'm happy that this truck is painted door handles, bumper and lower panels a lot less taping then my old explorer that had plastic which used a lot more tape and cleaning. I might not say this when road grit scratches the clear coat but for now it's less tape time and worrying about cleaning it off.

Side question I have stock aluminum rims, to me they look polished not coated as you can see gouges that are the same colour. Near the hub there is rough and maybe it is a coated aluminum. I'm confused on what rim cleaner is safe to use.

[trailblazer295]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

• First detail, when the weather is 7c(44f) what else are you going to do. Not my best work and all done by hand but not ideal conditions. I'll be look for a dual action polisher for the spring and summer. A LOT of scratches, swirls, chips, gouges etc. Will be quite the operation learning how to improve the close up look. I haven't stocked up with intended products for the summer as I'm waiting for spring sales to start so just using what I already had.
  
  Todays process was
  
  wash with dawn to strip whatever is on it
  clay the hood (minimal clean clay and windy)
  #6 cleaner wax
  nxt 2.0
  
  
  
  
  
  

[ffboy]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Looks real nice!

[trailblazer295]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Looks real nice!

Thanks, at a distance it looks really clean but up close OMG swirls, scratches from minor to deep, gouges, paint peeling off the plastic bumpers etc. Probably spent a lot of time in the swirl maker which I guess is why it isn't rusting away but a lot of paint correction needed. When I have more disposable income I'll inquire at a body shop about cost to fix the major stuff.

[Nick Winn]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Hey trailblazer295, I can't get over how nice this explorer you picked up looks! Especially black on black it looks extra clean! I saw you are looking to pick up one of our newer waxes, and you have received a lot of information which is great. Whichever you choose, I don't think you can go wrong. I just wanted to remind you that if you are looking to get the absolute best results, a big part of achieving these results is from what you do before waxing. Which I have noticed you are looking to do in the future when it warms up. Just a friendly reminder. Removal of any below surface defects will make a big difference.

Side question I have stock aluminum rims, to me they look polished not coated as you can see gouges that are the same colour. Near the hub there is rough and maybe it is a coated aluminum. I'm confused on what rim cleaner is safe to use.

In regards to the wheels, I would imagine they are coated. Typically OEM wheels are not going to be a un-coated polished aluminum. They are likely an aluminum alloy based metal, which is then painted & clear-coated, likely. Given the age of the wheels & the fact that you have said they have some wear & tear, I would recommend using a mild wheel cleaner like our Hot Rims Aluminum Wheel Cleaner.

- Nick

[trailblazer295]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Hey trailblazer295, I can't get over how nice this explorer you picked up looks! Especially black on black it looks extra clean! I saw you are looking to pick up one of our newer waxes, and you have received a lot of information which is great. Whichever you choose, I don't think you can go wrong. I just wanted to remind you that if you are looking to get the absolute best results, a big part of achieving these results is from what you do before waxing. Which I have noticed you are looking to do in the future when it warms up. Just a friendly reminder. Removal of any below surface defects will make a big difference.


In regards to the wheels, I would imagine they are coated. Typically OEM wheels are not going to be a un-coated polished aluminum. They are likely an aluminum alloy based metal, which is then painted & clear-coated, likely. Given the age of the wheels & the fact that you have said they have some wear & tear, I would recommend using a mild wheel cleaner like our Hot Rims Aluminum Wheel Cleaner.

- Nick

Thanks, I'll be painting the frame gloss black and adding some stainless steel step bars later. Detailing wise my plan of attack once I have all the materials and better weather is as follows

Wash car x2
clay car
UC (using MT300c and I believe the burgundy pad)
Ultimate Polish (forget the pad)
Ultimate Wax Liquid (MT300 w/ black?)
Wheel/tire (undecided on products, haven't researched enough yet. Just some soap and water gave them the above shine)

Yes they are clear coated, 8 years of Canadian weather has started it's attack near the hub but can't be helped. I'll be cleaning and applying some wax to try and prevent further deterioration.

[Nick Winn]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Thanks, I'll be painting the frame gloss black and adding some stainless steel step bars later. Detailing wise my plan of attack once I have all the materials and better weather is as follows

Wash car x2
clay car
UC (using MT300c and I believe the burgundy pad)
Ultimate Polish (forget the pad)
Ultimate Wax Liquid (MT300 w/ black?)
Wheel/tire (undecided on products, haven't researched enough yet. Just some soap and water gave them the above shine)

Yes they are clear coated, 8 years of Canadian weather has started it's attack near the hub but can't be helped. I'll be cleaning and applying some wax to try and prevent further deterioration.

Sounds like a good plan. Our Ultimate "Trio" is one of our most common "go to" combinations. In our Saturday Detailing 101 Classes we typically apply Ultimate Compound with DFC5 Soft Buff Red Foam Cutting Disc, Ultimate Polish with DFP5 Soft Buff Yellow Foam Polishing Disc, and Ultimate Liquid Wax with DFF5 Soft Buff Black Foam Finishing Disc.

You can check out pictures from our Saturday Detailing 101 Classes here if you have not already.

Keep in touch and let us know how it goes!

- Nick

[ffboy]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Thanks, at a distance it looks really clean but up close OMG swirls, scratches from minor to deep, gouges, paint peeling off the plastic bumpers etc. Probably spent a lot of time in the swirl maker which I guess is why it isn't rusting away but a lot of paint correction needed. When I have more disposable income I'll inquire at a body shop about cost to fix the major stuff.

Isn't it always the case (well, for some of us)? We had a black SUV in the past, and still have a dark colored car, and I think I can relate. We do what we can to make the vehicle look real shiny, and being the ones who knows the car top to bottom, we see all these tiny micro-scratches, the tiny paint chip, little dings and dents from years of use, thank goodness we're still able to make the car look shiny (as in the case of your Explorer). We end up with shiny cars, but being the owners, I guess we'll never be as satisfied as we could be, thanks to those annoying paint imperfections.

I still say your SUV looks real good, considering all the imperfections you mentioned, it still looks real shiny. Just imagine how shiny your SUV would be if the paint was corrected. And yes, Ultimate Wax is a good choice, a bit more depth than NXT 2.0 and better durability, but the difference in shine vs. NXT 2.0 might not be as noticeable.

[trailblazer295]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

Isn't it always the case (well, for some of us)? We had a black SUV in the past, and still have a dark colored car, and I think I can relate. We do what we can to make the vehicle look real shiny, and being the ones who knows the car top to bottom, we see all these tiny micro-scratches, the tiny paint chip, little dings and dents from years of use, thank goodness we're still able to make the car look shiny (as in the case of your Explorer). We end up with shiny cars, but being the owners, I guess we'll never be as satisfied as we could be, thanks to those annoying paint imperfections.

I still say your SUV looks real good, considering all the imperfections you mentioned, it still looks real shiny. Just imagine how shiny your SUV would be if the paint was corrected. And yes, Ultimate Wax is a good choice, a bit more depth than NXT 2.0 and better durability, but the difference in shine vs. NXT 2.0 might not be as noticeable.

This is my first black car. My previous one was a metallic red, the NXT made a noticeable improvement in the colour of it. It's about half empty, both of my parents cars are mettalic paint so I'll reserve it for theirs where the results are more noticeable.

At a distance it looks pretty good but when you're washing it you see EVERYTHING and it wasn't pretty lol. I'm also going to order mud guards as there are lot of marks caused by rocks and road salt being thrown up by the tires. It won't look like a show room vehicle but I'm sure once I get my hands on a DA and a nice spring day it will be much better. We'll see how much the black drives me insane lol it was a good price plus has a 4.6L 3v V8, AWD, every option you can think of.

[ffboy]

Re: Best products to maintain a black car

This is my first black car. My previous one was a metallic red, the NXT made a noticeable improvement in the colour of it. It's about half empty, both of my parents cars are mettalic paint so I'll reserve it for theirs where the results are more noticeable.

At a distance it looks pretty good but when you're washing it you see EVERYTHING and it wasn't pretty lol. I'm also going to order mud guards as there are lot of marks caused by rocks and road salt being thrown up by the tires. It won't look like a show room vehicle but I'm sure once I get my hands on a DA and a nice spring day it will be much better. We'll see how much the black drives me insane lol it was a good price plus has a 4.6L 3v V8, AWD, every option you can think of.

NXT 2.0 is still pretty awesome, even with the advent of the Ultimate Wax or the newer Meguiars Sealants, NXT gives a real good shine. If you get to compare both Ultimate Wax and NXT 2.0, you will notice that NXT 2.0 has a more candy coated look vs. Ultimate's glassier, more crisp gloss. On our red metallic car, I actually prefer NXT 2.0