Ming

[qadsan]

Re: Ming

But my friend saw the results and said they were the most amazing thing he had ever seen. How can i argue with that?

If you want to see amazing, then you need to go to one of the most prestigious car shows in the world that's judged by some of the most critical eyes in the world; the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance car show. The cheap tickets are a mere $175 each and the club tickets are $400 each just to attend the show as a guest / spectator. Many cars there are worth serious money and I guarantee that NONE of the class winning cars had a Ming job. But, 22 out of the 25 class winners used Meguiar's products!

Get the Ming job. If you don't know how to detail a car, or don't want to detail it or don't have the time to detail it, then this may be a good option for you. Many people are happy with a Ming job, but many people are happy with all kinds of paint care systems. There are many paint protection systems that claim to offer years of protection in addition to offering insured service agreements, written guarantees, never wax again, etc and many of them cost less than $50. There are plenty of people who swear by some of these companies, but I've been down these roads in the past and they keep leading me back to companies like Meguiar's when it comes to achieving and maintaing show car results on my classics.

I already had a Ming job done to one of my cars and will never do it again!

[sneek]

Re: Ming

why dont you sent him to MOL and get him to take a look at some extreme makeovers

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Ming

But my friend saw the results and said they were the most amazing thing he had ever seen. How can i argue with that?

What's his "control group", if you will? That is, has he ever seen what someone like Joe at Superior Shine, or Mike Phillips or Richard Lin (OctaneGuy), among others here at MOL have done to a cars finish using only Meguiar's products? Is he comparing Ming to the detailing centers at your typical automatic car wash places? From what I've read here if the Ming system makes use of a rotary buffer, decent pads and a halfway decent polish in the hands of a competent operator then I have no doubt that the finish will look pretty darn terrific. I have my doubts, serious doubts, that the finish will still look that good three years down the road if nothing else is done to it. If, on the other hand, you need to take the car back every six months to a year in order to freshen up the system, then I don't see how it's any different than having a decent detailing done using any good over the counter products in the same time frame.

Even though they aren't charging a totally crazy price for the Ming system (similar processes charge $800 to $1000) I just have a real problem with the wild claims surrounding the process. Unless and until I see a car that's been treated with this process, driven daily, and taken through an automatic wash for two to three years and still has a near flawless finish, they don't get my money.

[onnfire]

Re: Ming

Thanks for all the input. I will probably have him take a look at the extreme makeovers and all the beatiful cars yall have detailed.

[Murr1525]

Re: Ming

It sounds like this is really going to come down to how good the people are using it. It might not be the best product, but if the technicians can at least remove swirls, without leaving buffer trails everywhere, then I guess it is better than doing nothing at all, and for most people, that is enough. At least check the technicians work before hand to be sure it is quality work.

[tguil]

Re: Ming

A friend of mine owns a Ming franchise. He and his crew do very high quality work. His shop does paintless dent removal, windshield repair, bumper and paint blends and sprayless scratch repair. Soon he will be doing wheel repair and refinishing. He's a busy guy and like I said his shop does quality work, but he will never tell me the real secret behind Ming. He does admit that it's mostly process not product. He messes around some with Meguiars products as well as the Ming products. He also uses quite a bit of 3M stuff. Two of the folks that I work with have had their vehicles done by my local Ming. One vehicle is a 1996 red Ford F-150 that is outside 24/7. It was "Minged" when it was new and is still looking good. (It has been redone a couple of times.) Go figure.

Tom

[onnfire]

Re: Ming

One of yall said it was popular in the 80's, why is it not popular anymore? Mike, do you have anything to say on the subject?

[pcfxer]

Re: Ming

I believe Mike does....
http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums...ad.php?t=10939

[onnfire]

Re: Ming

Would you consider this a paint protection plan?

[pcfxer]

Re: Ming

Absolutely.

[xebola]

Re: Ming

On their site they claim:

"...the Ming process toughens and hardens the paint..."

They also state:

"Nor does it alter the flexibility of the paint surface in extreme temperatures."

I am certainly no expert on paint but to me it doesn't seem possible to
make something harder without reducing its flexibility.

These statements alone make me highly suspicious.