New Car. What should I do?

Hi guys,

I am getting a new car this week. The dealer is a friend and I can intervene in the preparation process. The detailers seem to have done a pretty good job at the cars in the showroom but then again... The car is a Lexus GX460 2010 Black.

Should I just ask them not to wash the vehicle? Should I go do the wash with them. Should I bring them CG CWG? I could do the clay-85rd (my guess it would be sufficient) sealant and wax myself right after...

Basically, I am juggling with the options and cannot make up my mind. They should prep he car on Wednesday or Thursday.

I would really appreciate some advice.

Thanks,

Nic.

 

DO NOT let them do anything to clean the car. Just get it, take it home and detail it yourself.

 

Thanks for the quick answer. Should they leave the white film on?

 

if possible. pm billyblooshoes. Im sure he can give you some tips on proper removal of the film.

I think there was a thread about it on here sometime last year.

 

Yeah don't let them wash it. They create more problems in the paint. Plus, great choice of car

 

nooooo take it home and leave the protective film on the car. I love your car btw I think thats what I want next

 

You guys are so anal about vehicle deliveries. It's supposed to be enjoyable, not something to worry about. Just let them remove the film and prep it normally, and then take it home and bring it to the level that you want.

 

it would be easyer if there was nothing to correct though and you could just put on some wax

 

I can understand where your coming from however that could mean the difference between a black pad an 85rd for two hours or p203s and a green pad followed by 85rd and black for 4 hours...personally (since i dislike polishing) id rather do the po85rd

 

That paint is SOFT. I wouldn't let the dealer touch it. A little pressure on an mf will marr the paint.

At least, the 07 GX470 in black I detailed was that way.

 

I had a buddy go through a similar thing last year with his brand new Mazdaspeed 3. He ended up being there when they took off the white vinyl stuff, and the dealer was very agreeable to allow their techs to look over the car for any faults, but not touch the paint. If I were in your shoes, that's what I'd do.

As to the post about relaxing and enjoying the experience of getting a new car - meh. I'd find it pretty enjoyable to know that my new Lexus has NEVER been touched by a minimum wage "detailer" who keeps dropping his mitt on the ground. :lol:

 

There's plenty good reason to be anal regarding vehicle delivery, especially on a black car with soft paint.

Take the car home as is. Don't let them touch it. If the car is already "stripped", meaning the seat covers have been removed as well as the plastic films on the exterior, then that means that chances are its already been "washed", dried with a waterblade and chamois, and swirled to hell. As stated before, you're looking at the difference between a half days worth of your own new car prep and a whole weekend of new car prep if you let them handle it. Just trust me on this. I've been detailing at dealerships for a while now. I've seen the horror stories.

 

Thanks a lot for the replies guys!

I have to say that before coming to this forum, I would have never thought to be VERY happy to get a dirty vehicle delivered to me .

The dealer listened to my instructions and only removed the film on the car. There was a little bit of glue left on the edges of the film. The paint was in perfect shape. No swirls at all and only very few very shallow scratches.

I washed the car several times with CG CWG. There was no trace of contaminants on the car. Plastic bag test was perfectly smooth. On one area on the hood, I could however see a little dot. I proceeded to clay that area of the hood with Ricardo Yellow. Damn! The clay is marring the paint like crazy! I am virtually not applying any pressure and it's creating a hologram like marring. I got scared about that and decided not to clay the rest of the car.

I cleaned the paint and removed the few scratches that I saw using Dodo Juice Lime Prime and Lime Prime lite on the whole car. Results were great. I then applied Colonite 476 on the roof (place where I don't want to touch up often) below bumpers and below foot rests. I applied Dodo Juice Supernatural to the rest of the car. Great results there again.

I then drove the car in the dust and have not washed it since .

One big concern/question I have is about paint hardness on the Lexus. I read it was soft but this soft??

The car has been very recently manufactured. Will the paint harden with time? If not, what do you guys suggest doing with it? Does it mean that whenever I clay the car I have to at least do a pass of 85RD or 106FA + 85RD? If this is the case and the paint is this soft, Will I go through the clear in a year?

Thanks again for the feedback and the great things I learned on this forum.

Nic.

 

you could try a clay like Sonus green or the Meguiar's white (OTC). Either of those should be mild enough on the paint.

 

The Lexus GX470 I detailed last fall was a couple years old, and the paint was EXTREMELY soft too. I don't think it's going to harden any more than it is now.

However, the maintenance swirl removing step (probably either polish you mentioned with a black pad) should be very easy. Without a PTG, it's hard to tell you how long the clear will last. But with only finer polishes, you "should" be okay with the once a year touchup polish. Of course, I can't say for sure because I do not know the thickness of clear on there now.

 

Flat Black is a full-time job. You can see anything and everything, and black typically scratches very easily. I used to have a flat black G35 Coupe and buffing off a kicked polish would instill new scratches. A good glaze will soon become your best friend. Any pictures for us??? The new GX looks like a great car.

 

New Vehicle Care

Congratulations on the purchase of your new (or new to you) vehicle.

The fresh smell of leather as you enter the car, the paintwork is gleaming and waxy smooth. You might even catch yourself stealing a glance at the reflection of your pride and joy as you drive it out your house. After you have purchased a new vehicle it's really important to protect it right from the start.

Protective Shipping Film (Rap Gard)

Remove the vinyl protective film by carefully pulling it at a 45 degree angle; remove any adhesive from the vehicle surfaces with Valugard New Car Prep is a safety solvent that is outstanding for the removal of tar, grease, adhesive, bugs, crayon and stubborn stains on paint, contains no harmful Xylene, Benzene or Toluene. Use for the removal of bugs, tar, grease, adhesive, crayon, upholstery stains and tree sap. Excellent for the removal of Rap Gard (shipping vinyl) adhesive residue, from painted surfaces.

Wash

Proper washing; pre-wash, using a foam gun followed by a two bucket wash system with a GritGuard or a Foam Cannon, and drying, water sheeting and air powered drying. These techniques are the best way to avoid the need for polishing. Using a chemical paint cleanser versus polishing on a clean finish to simply remove old wax/sealant is another. And always follow the rule of using the least abrasive polish and pad combination (working smarter not harder)

Clean the vehicle in this order - roof, front hood, front fenders, doors, rear fenders, doors, rear deck lid, rear fenders, and rear of vehicle, then clean wheel surfaces, tyres, wheel fenders and finally engine compartment. This is usually a progression from the least to the most soiled areas.

New Vehicles and Detailer’s Clay

Even new cars that have been sitting on a car dealerships lot for a few weeks can accumulate contamination that bonds to the paint surface; it shouldn't be assumed a vehicle that looks good is contamination free. Carry out the ‘Bag Test’ place some saran wrap or a zip lock bag over your hand and rub across the finish lightly. Every snag you feel is a surface contaminant that the clay bar can remove but you may not be able to see, especially on white or light colour vehicle surfaces.

An extract from “New Vehicle Care” one of a series of unbiased Detailing Technical Papers, a library of educational materials that has become the #1 reference for car care on the Internet

Chances are you'll learn something about detailing if you read any of these; although these articles will not improve your detailing skills, lead to a successful business or change your life. Applying what you learn from it, however, will. That's where your commitment comes in - you need to make a commitment to yourself right now that you will take action on what you learn.

© TOGWT ™ Ltd Copyright 2002-2010, all rights reserved​

 

Dark and / or Soft Paint Finishes - PO 85 RD 3.01 Super Intensive Polish (F) black or dark coloured paint surfaces, and 'soft' paint - 1200 RPM -White primary (softer less dense foam (70 PPI) with a light abrasive cutting action ) LC CCS foam pad followed by a secondary Blue finishing (very soft 100 PPI) LC CCS foam pad - 1100 RPM

 

Also try Power finish on green uber. That brought near 95% correction on that lexus I did. However, that was just a test section. I'll be doing the rest of it this spring, and that's my plan of attack.

 

If your paint is marring easy you might want to take a look at your wash mitts and your microfibers make sure they arent adding anything additional...my advice is to get your wash regimen down so your not adding alot of swirls on your own and get a good glaze to cover up anything you can and try to refrain from polishing it every weekend try to do it once a year.