Wax/seal the paint on brand new car?

L

Luna7897

New member
I am buying a brand new 2012 Honda SUV (silver), and I have been doing an extensive amount of research about whether or not I should wax or seal the paint as soon as I pick it up. The dealer is washing it, but not applying any wax or sealant.

Does anyone have any good advice, considering the type of paint Honda uses today, about whether I should do this right away - and what exactly I should use? If you have some favorite products you use professionally that would provide long-lasting protection (at least for this initial application), that would be really helpful.

I am aware that some people don't believe in waxing a new car right away, but it appears that a lot of the opinions on this have changed with the new paint formulas in use today.

Thanks!
 
99 times out of 100 your brand new car's paint(which is factory baked thus eliminating the "wait" myths) is bare and needs protection ASAP.



The 1 stray time might be something cheap a dealership puts on it - but I doubt this if they aren't being paid for it.



Collinite 845 is easy on/easy off that can be found OTC in most areas. It's a great start and you may stick with it for years.
 
Your paint has been baked on at the factory and by the time you get the car is weeks old. From a "do it yourselfers" perspective and to keep it simple: DON'T, DO NOT let the dealer wash it or wax it. Drive it home, wash it using good washing technique (do some reading on this and other detailing websites), clay it (again do some reading for proper technique) and give it a coat of a good sealant that will last for a few months. There are allot of good sealants out there Zaino, Poxy etc, but to keep it simple you can use Duragloss 105 and all their products which are resonably priced and high quality. You can order everything at their website Duragloss Car Care Products and only pay $4.95 in shipping for your entire order or go to your local NAPA, tell them what you want and they will have it for you in 24 hours.
 
I think if you can have the dealer not wash your car, it would be preferable. You will get this comment a lot here :).



It seems the concesus is that new cars are clay and wax seal safe right from the start. So I would go ahead asap and clay and wax/seal.



Long lasting protection could come from sealants (FK1000p, Collies etc.) or even longer from permanent coatings (Opticoat etc.).
 
pwaug said:
Your paint has been baked on at the factory and by the time you get the car is weeks old. From a "do it yourselfers" perspective and to keep it simple: DON'T, DO NOT let the dealer wash it or wax it. Drive it home, wash it using good washing technique (do some reading on this and other detailing websites), clay it (again do some reading for proper technique) and give it a coat of a good sealant that will last for a few months. There are allot of good sealants out there Zaino, Poxy etc, but to keep it simple you can use Duragloss 105 and all their products which are resonably priced and high quality. You can order everything at their website Duragloss Car Care Products and only pay $4.95 in shipping for your entire order or go to your local NAPA, tell them what you want and they will have it for you in 24 hours.
Click to expand...





I always overlook this even though I am regular user of DG. I would order direct from them as the Carquest and NAPA stores sometimes have been sitttttttting and sitting for quite some time. Great line of products.
 
YUP!

Am still amazed by a couple of things.

1. People confuse OEM paint cure and "bodyshop" refinish cure.

2. If they are worried about how "old" the paint finish is, all they have to do is look in the driver's side door jam at the sticker.

It gives the month and year the vehicle left the plant! Most are at least 30 days or longer since production when the dealer finally sells it.

Grumpy
 
Definitely no dealer prep or wash if any kind. I've once even personally removed the white plastic Rapgard off the car rather than have the dealer do that. Lots of marring or even worse damage avoided :)
 
Yes, insist the dealer stays away from the paint. Remove the plastic yourself as they will try to use a solvent afterwards. Most cars can use a claying as well even if they haven't sat for long.
 
My last two cars have been driven off the lot with the plastic still on the car. Its not worth taking the chance. Then wash, clay and seal it yourself.
 
Since you haven't done a lot of this stuff in the past, here's a bit of a primer:

A carnauba wax is a natural product.

A sealant is an artificial, man made product.

Both offer protection to the surface of the car but sealants offer longer protection than carnauba waxes.



For looks, a good rule might be 'sealants for lighter colours, carnauba waxes for darker colours'.



Finally, I second the idea of not letting the dealer even wash your car - do it yourself and you'll know it's done right.
 
detailfanatic said:
My last two cars have been driven off the lot with the plastic still on the car. Its not worth taking the chance. Then wash, clay and seal it yourself.
Click to expand...



A few people have driven off with the plastic on the car and then discovered defects in the paint. I'd rather discover those on the lot before I took off as things might get ugly afterwards.



JohnZ3MC said:
A carnauba wax is a natural product.

A sealant is an artificial, man made product.

Both offer protection to the surface of the car but sealants offer longer protection than carnauba waxes.
Click to expand...



While that may be a good generalization, carnaubas in general offer better protection against bird bombs, and various other etchings.
 
Some dealers may give you a hard time regarding keeping the plastic intact. They say they want to inspect the body for damage before it leaves the lot so if they agree that you do the removal, should still be okay.
 
As others mentioned, don't let the dealer wash the car. There's a really high chance of getting the dealer-installed-swirl-option for free. With that said, I am in favor of the dealer removing the plastic transport film/tape BUT that is it. Most will leave a sticky adhesive but I opt to remove this on my own.



On a different but related note, I have been shopping for a new vehicle and I am appalled at the high percentage of lot cars that already have the "lifetime sealant" option applied. I know the dealership does this because of the high margin/profit that this option bring in as most people would probably give in. It just sucks that this is one more thing that I will have to negotiate out off paying...
 
MCA said:
On a different but related note, I have been shopping for a new vehicle and I am appalled at the high percentage of lot cars that already have the "lifetime sealant" option applied. I know the dealership does this because of the high margin/profit that this option bring in as most people would probably give in. It just sucks that this is one more thing that I will have to negotiate out off paying...
Click to expand...

This is why I always buy new cars using the internet. Decide what you want and send an email to the "Internet Rep" at as many dealers you can find within a radius you are willing to travel. State in the email these are the ONLY options you want and you are requesting a bottom line "out the door" price. This has worked for me extremely well in the last 3 cars I bought for myself and a few I helped relatives and friends purchase. In all cases we got the cars we wanted at invoice or below. The only drawback could be they might have to order the car you want which can take some time.
 
Most of the dealers I have been to SAY the car already has the miracle goo smeared on the car, but in fact it doesn't, they do that when they prep the car.
 
I just ordered a new car yesterday. I will be giving specific instructions to them regarding NOT performing any paint "prep" before handing it over to me. I'm more than capable of cleaning and protecting the paint - moreso if they don't do anything to it first.
 
Tell them to do their required mechanical PDI - but to not wash, clean, wipe down anything else in any manner.



If you are also doing the plastic removal(pretty easy really) you can tell them to leave the bumper pads and plastics on - if they say well we cant, tell them thats not true because there are cars all over out for test drives and employee drives that have them on it :).





Keep in mind you may have to basically "demand" this and depending on the dealership threaten the sale/delivery completion contingent on this - I have had customers have to do this.
 
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