rodblder44

pretty sure i'm gonna get a 2015 black f sport and have gotten mixed comments from owners of black vehicles. I've never had a black vehicle and REALLY like how the rx looks in black.
It will be garaged all day, I'm retired and won't put many miles on it.
Any special paint treatments folks have used that worked? does Lexus offer any such treatment? I currently have an 03 mdx i bought new many moons ago and they sucked me into a paint treatment and my paint seems to have held up well but again its always garaged......has 55000 miles on it. I'll never wear out the new RX!!

Bucky44

My 2nd car is black.It is beautiful when clean but very hard to keep it that way.I do my own waxing because on black you have to be very careful to make sure to not cause "swerals" in the paint..

MrAM

If you've got the time to look after it, black can be the best looking colour. If not, it looks dirty all of the time.

Mors

I have a 2015 RXh - first black car for me, too. Had it since June and don't drive it too much as I work from home. It goes out almost everyday for lunch though, and I have driven it on a 6-hour trip a few times. It has just over 3,000 miles on it, so I don't have too much experience with it, but I'll share my opinions.
I spent some money to have a full frontal clear bra put on, plus I had 22ple glass coating put on.
The clear bra can be pretty expensive, but the glass coating (opti-coat, cquartz, or 22ple) isn't all that expensive and I would suggest you at least get that done from a reputable 3rd party. The glass coating is like a wax that can last 2 years (so water just sheets off of it) and makes for easier washing.
Whatever you do: don't take it through the brush car washes as that will cause all kinds of scratches and swirl marks. If you can, use the 2-bucket or 3-bucket method and wash it yourself. Even those pay-to-do-it-yourself wash bay brushes will cause damage to your car. You want to care for it to not scratch it. Lexus paint is very soft, especially the obsidian black. The slightest scrape can cause scratches. The stargazer black is better, but I don't think that's available in the RXF.
Clear bra has its advantages for sure (rock chips), but since it can be expensive for a full frontal, the cost may be too high to warrant it. There are plenty of discussions on it in the auto detail forum (link below).

Keeping it washed every other week or so is the key to keeping it looking great. If it's not driven much, then you may be able to go longer without washing it. Any bird droppings or bugs show up, you want to remove those as soon as you see them. Any Quick Detailer and a microfiber towel does the trick. Since the weather's gone cold, I think it's almost been a month since I last washed mine so it's a bit dirty (rear of car seems to be the dirtiest, and behind the wheels of course where dirty water slings up), but still a beaut to look at overall. I don't have any regrets getting the black car (still early I know). After researching black cars and the trouble of keeping it looking sharp, I knew I wanted to do what I could to keep it looking its best for as long as possible (hence the clear bra). I will say that the clear bra I got seems to hold up nicely to bug splatters (seems to be easier to wipe off than without the bra, but that just may be all in my head).

Please see the Auto Detail/Care forum here: auto care link
It has great information and there are detailers there who know what they're doing and will answer any question. I've learned alot there (Zach is most informative).

Also, I've gone thru the whole black car research thing - you'll see a long discussion here: Obsidian question link

Here is a fairly nice post about how to wash (see zach's post about what to buy (link) - i bought most of the things he said to buy). I haven't used the tire gel yet, but probably will on my next wash. One thing to note about tire gels: many if not all of them will stain your wheels and cause permanent damage) so you must buy the right tire gel and follow the directions properly and wipe ALL excess off or it will sling on to your wheels. (see this link and this link about tire dressing causing permanent damage to your wheels).

1111GS

It really comes down to how detailed oriented you are. If you're so so, and like the OB, then you should be OK. I know people who send their black cars through autowash all the time and are still happy. If you're really detailed oriented like some of us here, consider an additional coating and lots of time spent to keep it swirl mark free. And no auto wash. This paint is so soft that it even scares professional detailers. It will create scratch, swirl/water marks regardless how you do it. I have an OB GS. After two years taking care of it, I definitely will not get another OB Lexus. I like to keep my car clean, shiny and swirl mark free as much as possible. The amount of work and time is just too much. SP is so much more forgiving. In our case, both my wife and I think RX looks better in white. So it was no brainer for us. Good luck with the decision.

RXSF

Don't get the standard black, get the metallic stargazer black, it will at least hide swirls better and dirt. I own three black cars and I can tell you Lexus paint is one of the hardest to keep looking like new. Its a very soft paint and easily scratched and swirled. Just make sure you don't go through any machine car washes, or bad hand car washes. Try to wash it yourself with good microfiber towels.

I am not sure if any paint protection that the dealer sells will be worth it. Just bring your car to a detailer if you don't do any of that stuff yourself, once a year to keep it swirl free.

rogerh00

I used to own a triple black Corvette. When it was freshly washed and waxed it was the best looking car in town. I kept it in a garage and didn't drive it every day. Every time I went to drive it, it was covered in dust. I had to brush it before I went anywhere, had one of those California dust mop thingys. Swirls stood out and required a special compound to buff out. Also. the climate I lived in wasn't good for black either. When it rained you had water spots all over that stood out like sore thumbs. Black requires a lot of work if you want it to look good. Some people like to put in the time and work to make it nice. The older I get the less time I want to baby and buff a car. With my silver lining RX I can go weeks without noticing it may need a wash. I would recommend against it unless you have nothing else to do.

recycled

I sold my black 2001 Porsche Boxster this summer and bought a 2011 RX which is grey and easier to keep clean. I noticed in California that cars don't get so dirty down there as much as here as we have the rain, snow and associated grunge.

We rented a black Toyota suv in Palm Springs and it stayed remarkably clean for the whole week however a black car gets hotter if left in the sun for any length of time.

As mentioned above if you have the time and inclination you may spend more time cleaning it than with most of any other colors. For me anything but black color because being retired I got better things to do than washing my car frequently.

Cheers, Guy.

RXSF

^^ One would think being retired gives you more time to wash your cars

krismorr8

I agree with the comments above - black is beautiful but so time-consuming to keep clean, so depends on how much time you want to spend!

DunWkg

We've sort of been speaking in generalities. Black cars/trucks are beautiful, but maintaining that beauty can be time consuming. In my limited experience, Lexus clear coat is very delicate, which can be a double edged sword. It marks easily (swirls) and it corrects easily. Once corrected maintenance of that pristine finish is both rewarding and time consuming.

Find a reputable detailer, have him/her properly detail your car and ask them to teach you proper maintenance techniques and products. Or find a detailing class and learn the basics yourself.

Finally you need to manage your expectations. If you wish to maintain your car is pristine condition 100% of the time, drive it only when the sun is shining, avoid insects, avoid freshly painted traffic lines and hand wash it often using proper techniques. If you drive it every day, rain or shine, drive into bugs, park it in retail parking lots and run it through tunnel car washes, you need to lower your expectations and realize no amount of work will keep your car looking 100% 100% of the time.

jst17

Let's be honest here. The only day your black car looks good will be the day you pick it up from the dealership...haha jk

Anyways, keeping a black car clean is definitely time consuming. For me, I hand wash it every 5 days in the summer, and go through touchless car washes in the winter once a week. A heavily soiled car is worse than touchless car washes IMO, plus it gets rid of the salt.

Park your black car indoor would be your best bet, even though it gets dusty about 5 seconds after your 1 hour handwash/dry. You have to be very close to see the dust. Usually the car will look clean for about 5 days if you stand 3 meters away.

My advice would be, if you really want a black car, go for it, but just remember you must be committed in order to keep it looking fresh. I'm used to waxing the car periodically with a synthetic and a natrual Carnauba wax for the shine. In my opinion, a clean black lexus looks really dope, at least I got a lot of compliments when my car is clean and waxed.

A poorly maintained black car looks quite bad compared to that of a white car.

corradoMR2

+1. I'm switching to an Obsidian NX soon and I know what I'm getting into having owned two prior black cars. Biggest pain to maintain the clean black look but biggest reward IMO. As an aside, I'm very impressed with Nebula Gray on the RX. My blue IS shows dirt the moment dust settles (within hours), whereas the RX barely shows dirt even after weeks of rain and snow as the color masks dirt really well. I wash my RX for the pleasure whereas it's a necessity on the IS and the Obsidian NX will be "as bad" (But disclaimer: I enjoy washing and detailing my car weekly )

jst17

Didn't know that USB shows dirt that easy. Obsidian is definitely a good call for the NX, since it makes it look even more sporty. On a sie note, it seems like there are a lot of detailing fanatics here in CL

hovbuild

Owned over 20 black pickup trucks and one of my hobby's was detailing. Went to a white and also a silver cars and never looked back.......I have a shelve full of pads and polishes, a DA and a rotary buffer and know how to used them.There is a layer of dust covering most items on that shelve. After just 4 years of once a year clay barring a sealer and then wax every 3- 4 months the white car looks like it came off the showroom and I am sure the silver Lexus will look the same. I even use the dreaded car wash during the winter. No more black for me.....