Armor All paint protectant ??

[pward76]

I just finished polishing out a 2003 Tahoe - dark metallic blue. The owner (a friend of mine) had a local shop apply Paint Protectant by Armor All - a product that they spray about 4 coats of - they mask everything that isn't paint, and spray this stuff on. It's supposed to protect the paint from everything, and if you get scratches you can bring the vehicle back in and get it buffed right out.



ANYWAY, the owner got lazy and started running the Tahoe through the automatic car wash - yes, the kind with brushes :shocked He asked me to polish it (I will post pics later)

Getting the scratches out was tough. It took 3M MCRC, worked until it was dry, followed by DACP.



I'm wondering if the "Paint Protectant" stuff would be harder than clearcoat and that's why it took such an aggressive polish to get the scratches out. Anybody heard of this stuff before?

 

[Fr0zen]

I heard of other stuff similar that It was also a spray on that was supposed to be really really strong. But not the armorall stuff.

 

[shaf]

I don't think any of the sealant packages or paint protectants applied by anyone would hold up to any type of polish no matter how mild. The solvents would probably *poof* it on contact.



The scratches were probably hard to get rid of because of the automatic carwash! My folks' van has ungodly deep scratches in the roof from this, which I still have to do something about....



Doesn't this Armor All stuff sound like the same spray you can buy at your local store?

http://www.armorall.com/prodcat/pages/spray_2.17.html

 

[CharlesW]

The owner (a friend of mine) had a local shop apply Paint Protectant by Armor All

Any chance this could have been Auto Armor? S&C in Urbandale does a lot of this for dealers. They at one time did most of the prep for the new car shows that a group of dealers sometimes have. A dealer did this for me on one new car I bought and they did a first class job. As far as how it stands up, I just went ahead and took care of the car the same way I always had. Kind of pricey for an individual, but the dealers get quite a break on new cars. Obviously they should have to do less prep work on the new vehicle. (Should being the key word) Part of my problem is that I don't want to not wax my car, I enjoy it.



Charles :nixweiss

 

[pward76]

Yes Charles, it is Auto Armor, my mistake. And as it happens, S&C were the people who put it on his Tahoe. He urged me to go get it on my new F150, but S&C was less than helpful when I asked about what it actually is, etc. All they gave me was a brochure from Auto Armor.

 

[DaGonz]

Yes Charles, it is Auto Armor, my mistake. And as it happens, S&C were the people who put it on his Tahoe. He urged me to go get it on my new F150, but S&C was less than helpful when I asked about what it actually is, etc. All they gave me was a brochure from Auto Armor.

Of course they were less than helpful...they didn't want you to know that you can do it yourself, using the product recommendations found on this forum for about a tenth of the price that they charge!

 

[CharlesW]

Of course they were less than helpful...they didn't want you to know that you can do it yourself, using the product recommendations found on this forum for about a tenth of the price that they charge!

Probably true, but these guys have turned out some nice work. It has not been a hack shop at all.

Also, I must have 10 times the cost of their treatment invested in cleaners, SMR, polish, PC, pads, waxes, sealants, so the cost didn't have much bearing on my choice. Like I said, I just enjoy doing it. Like most everyone else here.



Charles :wavey

 

[pward76]

I'm with Charles on this one - I prefer to do my own car care, oil changes, lawn care, etc.



but for people that don't want to do these things, there are lots of folks (like us) willing to do it for them - for a price....



The Auto Armor info that I could find on the web is all sales propaganda, targeted at the vast majority of people who know little or nothing about caring for their paint.



I bet I had 7 or 8 neighbors stop by as I was buffing the Tahoe in the garage, who wanted to know "what wax are you using?". Lots of them stated that they only used old bath towels (100% cotton, of course) to wash their cars. I just smile and show them their swirls. Their eyes get really big as I explain the care and use of microfiber... :shocked



I got other questions about my "buffer" (the PC), and was warned to be careful so I didn't burn the paint.



I have a feeling that I will be getting hit up to do other cars in the area fairly soon....