Black Paint Help

Yesterday, I bought a 2002 pitch black Focus. It's the first time I've had a black vehicle in at least 6 years. With that being said, I just need some quick recommendations of products that are readily available in places like Wal-Mart, Advance Auto, etc. Tips on washing/waxing are also welcome. The paint is in pretty good shape with minimal swirls and nearly no deep scratches or chips. I don't have any fancy polishers or anything, so this will all be done by hand. I've seen black cars that look like they're wet all the time. How can I get that look?

I usually use the following detailing method... not sure how it'll do on black though.

Wash with Dawn
Rinse
Mothers Claybar
Rinse
Wash with Meguiars Gold Class or the purple Meguiars... can't recall the name
Rinse
Meguiars Cleaner Wax
Meguiars NXT 2.0 Synthetic Wax

In the past, I've also applied a coat of Turtle Wax Ice between the cleaner wax and the NXT, but I'm not sure I want to do that anymore. The Ice feels like it leaves a greasy residue behind... not sure the NXT adheres properly when Ice is used.

Here she is:

 

[ericautopart]

That thing is SICK. Looks like a SVT Euro pack sedan..I'd stick w/ 3 step meguires and go from there. I've never clay bard myself although I'm sure it couldn't hurt. It's an 02 so I'm sure it could use it..

 

[MONMIX]

Black is a __tch. Period.
That said when black is on NOTHING looks better.

Nothing.

Your process sounds dead on. Plus the car looks great.

Here are a few tips any way.
Use clean water each time.
Some people use two different sponges one for the dawn ( strip process) and another for the wash process.
Some people use two buckets. One with soapy water and one with clean water. Rinsing the sponge in the clean bucket prior to putting it in the soapy bucket.
Always clay, wash and dry in one direction and always the same direction.

Other than never driving it and keeping it in a climate controled well sealed garage 24-7 the key is just staying on top of things. Frequent, quality washes. Keep up to date on the protectant (wax)


If you are that hip on flawless results let me reccomend Zaino.

www.zainostore.com

 

[Shen2187]

My truck is an example of when you DO NOT take care of black paint lol..

@Stringer - It looks nice so far, just remember that black shows almost everything so don't work it too hard..
@MONMIX - All I can say is... HOLY CRAP! That is super glassy!

 

[X6StringerX]

Thanks for the input everyone.

Eric, thanks for the compliment. The car is even meaner under the hood. It has Ford Racing stage 2 cams, Fidanza adjustable cam gears, Ford Racing underdrive pullies, a BBK 65mm throttle body, an AEM short ram intake with a K&N filter, a JBA shorty header, a Random Tech hi-flow cat, a Bosal flex pipe, a Focus Sport Stealth Exhaust, Focus Sport spark plug wires, and a custom SCT 93 octane performance tune.


Back to detailing:

Monmix, those are incredible results. I can only dream about having black paint that looks like that.

I completed the Dawn wash, rinse, claybar, rinse, Meguiars wash, and rinse cycles, but dew started to fall before I had time to apply any polishes or waxes. I shall continue tomorrow.

I used an older microfiber mitt for the Dawn wash and while I was out today, I picked up a lamb mitt for the Meguiars wash. Instead of the two bucket method, I simply hosed the mitt before dunking it back in the water. I also picked up some Meguiars SwirlX, Meguiars Ultimate Compound, a 6" random orbital and some application pads. It's nothing compared to a Porter Cable, but hopefully it'll make the application process a little easier. I'll still remove by hand.

Before I actually get going with the polishing and waxing, could I get some tips on which order to apply the products? At my disposal right now, I have the following:

Meguiars Cleaner Wax (Liquid)
Meguiars SwirlX (Liquid)
Meguiars Ultimate Compound (Liquid)
Meguiars NXT 2.0 Synthetic Wax (Paste)
Turtle Wax Ice (Liquid)

I was thinking something along the lines of the order they are listed, but without the Turtle Wax Ice. The only good use I can find for the Ice is to use on textured trim because it immediately removes white wax residue. Will it make the much of a difference to use all of those products or would it be better to use a particular combination?

 

[X6StringerX]

I woke up this morning and knew I had rain coming my way. I went over the car with the SwirlX via the 6" random orbital, wiped it down with a microfiber, and then hit it with a coat of NXT 2.0 and followed through with another microfiber. That's all it took and the car looks great. It's starting to sprinkle outside right now, but if it holds off, I'll snap some pics. I'm amazed that it only took me about an hour to get rid of 7 years worth of automatic car wash swirls. I think that's pretty good.

On a side note, don't waste your money on the 6" Rockford random orbital from Walmart. The foam pad disintegrated, lol. I'll be returning it today along with the Ultimate Compound that I didn't even open... there was no need for it. The shine is deep the way it is.

 

[X6StringerX]

I snapped a couple pics this evening. It was so humid outside that as soon as I turned my camera on and the lense popped out, it fogged up, lol. I didn't realize it until after I put the pics on the computer. Most of them weren't clear enough to keep.

It's not the best job, but I'm fairly pleased. I'm not sure what those lines are in the second pic. There aren't any swirls on the door. I guess it's just a combination of the fog and the flash. I'll use natural sunlight next time.

 

[SaleenJOE]

looks pretty good. Black cars are a pain but worht it in the end

 

[MONMIX]

fanatastic results.

 

[X6StringerX]

I just wanted to followup with some new shots. It rained pretty much right after I finished waxing the car and a lot of the surrounding areas were flooded for a few days. The sun came back today and the 10-day forcasts is showing sun everyday. I thought I'd wash the car again and see how it looks after taking a beating all week. I think it came out pretty good.

 

[X6StringerX]

The car received a fresh coat of wax yesterday. Despite being cloudy, I think the pics came out pretty good.

 

[xplorer03]

tint the taillights.

 

[X6StringerX]

Cops are too strict where I live.

 

[Stic-o]

I have yet to wax our black car...I have stuff for it, but just never did it. I think it's because I know I'm the only one who will appricaite it. The wife's view: It a car! But I still like to try to keep it looking good and clean

 

[Shen2187]

Yeah the vehicle restrictions in WV are very restrictive from what I've heard..

 

[X6StringerX]

Overall, I wouldn't say WV is strict on vehicle regulations. Enforcement in most parts of the state seems to be nonexistant. However, I have to pass through a little one-horse town 5 days a week and the cops there seem to have something to prove. The town is probably less than 2 miles long and they have 6 vehicles: a Dodge Durango, a Dodge Charger, 3 Crown Victorias, and a Jeep Cherokee. All of the vehicles but the Jeep are probably no more than 3-years-old. How do they pay for all of this? So, you're doing 26mph in a 25mph zone; you get a ticket. You forget to signal soon enough; you get a ticket. Your music is too loud; you get a ticket. A couple of years ago, a trucker was pulled over by a town cop before he even reached the "city" limits. This was made out to be a huge deal and he took it to court and won. Every now and then, I still see them radaring out of their jurisdiction. Oh well, I cross my T's and dot my I's when I go through the town and in the 7 years or so that I've been travelling through the town, I've never once been pulled over for anything. I hope I didn't just jinx myself, lol.

 

[Shen2187]

Sounds like a town here... they will pull you over for just about anything they want, it's like they have a quota to fill or they're just bored..