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Thanks a lot for your insight, guys. It helps a lot!
I'm getting a reasonable quote from a detailer for the front bumper and full hood. However, he's busy for the next month and can only do it around the second week of May.
Is it okay to drive around the car till that date?
Or should I be conservative in my use of it?
Keep as far back as possible from other cars and avoid highway driving, especially next to trucks at all costs.
That should minimize how much chips you get but can't guarantee anything 100%.
If you're really crazy about it, cover the front end with 3M painters tape and drive around like that until your guy can do it.
Waxes, sealants, and paint coatings all serve the same purpose..... to protect the paint from the elements, however they all have different properties that can make them more or less desireable to the vehicle owner.
Perma Plate (and other dealership add ons) is basically an insurance policy... opti-coat is a true nano coating that is applied by approved detailers/installers.
Regardless of which type of protection you chose, proper and frequent maintenance is absolutely critical.
I had done the Ceramic Pro Packages (silver) for my 2017 RX350 BLACK... However, after the car wash, I see so many swirls... I gently washed the car with wash mitt as instructed and did not wipe the car with towels... Do you think the ceramic coat was not applied correctly?
Highly recommend the invisible bra for the front bumper, mirrors and part of the front of the hood that slopes downward. Had it on my cars now for 12 years and does what it is suppose to do and it last. As far as the paint, I would go with Chemical Guys Jet Seal for one year protection and multiple coats of Zaino Z2 for shine. Every year wash it with Dawn detergent to strip everything away, than clay bar, Jet Seal and Z2 again.
I second that, but I did the entire hood, bumper, headlights, foglights, partial front fenders and mirrors.
The top of the rear bumper right beneath the trunk is another area I would recommend.
Car still looks brand new. Be prepared for the cost though, mine ran about $1600.
I had done the Ceramic Pro Packages (silver) for my 2017 RX350 BLACK... However, after the car wash, I see so many swirls... I gently washed the car with wash mitt as instructed and did not wipe the car with towels... Do you think the ceramic coat was not applied correctly?
Thank you in advance!!
Did the installer to paint correction before applying the coating? Just remember the ceramic coating is just another layer of clear coat on top of your clear coat and can still swirl if not properly taken care of.
On the subject of PPF, I have Clearguard Nano which IMO is a much better film than XPEL due to having less orange peel effect.
Yes, the detailer did paint correction before applying the ceramic coating. I used Chemical Guys Citrus Wash & Gloss soap and wash mitt. Then, I just drove off to the highway and came back and used the blower to dry off the rest. I didn't even wipe the car. The detailer said the soap that I used had high PH level..... this might have caused the swirls while washing the vehicle with mitt.... what do you guys think? I also asked the detailer if the product failed and maybe defective?
pH balance has NOTHING to do with swirl marks. Honestly, if your detailer suggested this, it makes me question their knowledge and abilities right off the bat. I don't want to make any allegations towards your guy, but Ceramic Pro is known in the detailing world for having some issues with their installers as they do not throughly verify the abilities / knowledge of people before certifying them in many cases.
Swirls are created by mechanical abrasion between your paint and another surface (wash mitt, towel, etc.).
The marks shown in that picture are pretty bad. Did you thoroughly inspect your vehicle in that same type of lighting after your detailer was finished with his work? Basically, do you have proof that the paint correction work was done properly? A good detailer would have at least done some basic documentation of the process and results to verify the work they did to the customer.
I have seen a lot of bad paint in my day, and I have washed a lot of jet black vehicles, and you would have to be doing something majorly wrong to inflict that amount of damage in one hand car wash.
Your detailer is full of it. PH does not cause scratches and swirls especially like that, he may be trying to say there are a lot of minerals in your water but that won't cause swirls like that either, it can cause water etchings/spots from leaving drops on the car in the sun. Those swirls are pretty bad, typically not something that happens from a gentle wash but something that happens when you wipe hard and fast with a dirty rag to try to get something stubborn off. It needs to be re polished and resealed.
I stopped by the detailer shop and told him that PH should not cause any scratches and this is what he said.
9H coating was fine..it's the top layer of light that has been effected. The top layer isn't as durable and acts as the gloss enhancing and hydrophobic layer.
Therefore, he will remove both and redo the work for the entire car. How do I make sure that he does right at 2nd time...so this doesn't happen again? Any ideas?
Learn to wash your car and accept the fact that you have a black Lexus soft paint. No coating is going to prevent this 100%.
Your car should not get that swirled from one wash but you need to check your expectations if you think a ceramic coating will make it swirl proof.
Yes, your detailer sounds a bit sketchy with what they said about the soap, but swirls are just a part of life with a black car. Get a full vehicle PPF install if you're that bothered by it or buy a silver car.
Yes, the detailer did paint correction before applying the ceramic coating. I used Chemical Guys Citrus Wash & Gloss soap and wash mitt. Then, I just drove off to the highway and came back and used the blower to dry off the rest. I didn't even wipe the car. The detailer said the soap that I used had high PH level..... this might have caused the swirls while washing the vehicle with mitt.... what do you guys think? I also asked the detailer if the product failed and maybe defective?
Learn to wash your car and accept the fact that you have a black Lexus soft paint. No coating is going to prevent this 100%.
Your car should not get that swirled from one wash but you need to check your expectations if you think a ceramic coating will make it swirl proof.
Yes, your detailer sounds a bit sketchy with what they said about the soap, but swirls are just a part of life with a black car. Get a full vehicle PPF install if you're that bothered by it or buy a silver car.
I've done the whole front XPEL PPF... I had a choice btw Atomic Silver/Black interior... but wifey wanted Black with Parchment Leather W/Matte bamboo trim.
04-09-17, 05:21 PM
