How do People with Black Paint Jobs keep them looking so good?

Dive Bar Casanova

Dive Bar Casanova

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Our youngest bought some farm property and is moving out to be a farmer.
We gave him our 2500HD and river trailer.

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So the wife ordered a new GMC and they look sooo good in black. We can still change the orders color and probably go silver/grey because so hard to keep the black looking decent.
Last black vehicles I've owned I never got the knack to keep the paint finish looking good.
Never figured it out.

Walking out of the Doctors office yesterday and a guy was wiping down his Black Raptor while waiting on his wife in a doctors appt.
The trucks black paint looked like a million dollar paint job. Looked 3 inches deep. Just talked to ya.

"I clay bar it and use Acme polish. Takes hours of work each time, all the time" He told me. "Forget ceramic" he added.

I read you can only clay bar a paintjob a few times before it starts to diminish the appearance instead of enhance it.

Will I be doomed to polishing it in 4 hours sessions to keep it looking good?

Anyone into good looking black paint jobs? No lazy man way out?
 
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my 2018 sits in the AZ sun 24 hours a day. I have ran it through the local automatic carwash weekly to keep the dirt off of it. I NEVER waxed it since new and just a couple weeks ago i had a guy detail the interior, hand wash then wax it for. He told me it was a PITA to get all the carwash scuffs off and quit using the cash washes.

But at the end of the day his work looked as good as fresh out of the local carwash to me.

Im sure its not good for the paint but its good enough for me.
 
The key to keeping black paint nice, is HOW you wash and dry it... and NOT taking it through Car Wash setups.

Proper wash mitt, the Two bucket method, Foam guns and blow dryers (or high quality Microfiber drying towels) are your best friends in this battle.

I use Adams Wash Mitts and I spray the mitt out every time before I dunk in any wash bucket. This is an extended version of the Two bucket method, for me.

Spray foam the vehicle, then rinse that off. Spray foam again and use the wash mitt... working from the top, down. You should have already done the wheels, tires, fender wells and lower (rocker panel) sections of the car with a brush to get that heavy dirt off. Then, use a forced air drying method or a nice Microfiber Drying towel with a Drying Aid (Adam's Detail Spray is one way to go) to minimize scratching.

Polishing and Coatings are a whole other subject and can be done for a little or a lot of money, depends on what you want. I use a variety of "Coatings or Sealants" from true Ceramic to a basic Aerosol SiO2 that takes minutes to complete an entire vehicle.

As for Clay... it's a an abrasive and should ONLY be used before Machine Polishing. A real "Clay Bar" is now Old School and old tech... there are now synthetic Clay mitts or pads that do a much better job with less damage done. CLAY BARS DAMAGE PAINT, period.

I can talk about this for hours so PM me if anyone has any questions.
 
i just did my dads 2017 car. it was pretty bad. wash, clay, buff and polish with a machine and ceramic coating. im far from a professional not even sure i would say detailing is a hobby but i just enjoy doing it. my cars are white so much easier. i use all adams products. this was the first black car i have done, and it was 110 out that day took me about 5 hours 2 door coverable. now just to see how it holds up.
 

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A common misconception is: Black cars scratch easier.

They don't. All cars scratch the same (some manufacturers have harder paint than others) but overall... a scratch is a scratch and Black only makes them more visible. The way to win this war is a new Polishing Pad for every panel.

All of the Toyota's in my family are white and have no Clear Coat. While they appear to be less affected than a Black vehicle, that paint will be in far worse shape than the Black paint as Oxidation and scratches are taking it's toll, in comparison to the Clear Coated paint.
 
megadesertdiesel said:
my 2018 sits in the AZ sun 24 hours a day. I have ran it through the local automatic carwash weekly to keep the dirt off of it. I NEVER waxed it since new and just a couple weeks ago i had a guy detail the interior, hand wash then wax it for. He told me it was a PITA to get all the carwash scuffs off and quit using the cash washes.

But at the end of the day his work looked as good as fresh out of the local carwash to me.

Im sure its not good for the paint but its good enough for me.
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My 2016 is about the same here in AZ. Who'd you use for detail? Would you use them again/recommend them?
 
We'll stay with black on the order.
Seems more products are available to keep it looking nice since our last black vehicles, plus we can garage it.
Kid and dog hauler.
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One thing I haven't touched on yet is the next route I'm going to be heading...

Touchless Car Wash products.

Drive Lab
Chem-X
Optimum
Bilt Hamber

All of these companies are making really good products now that allow you to just use a Pressure Washer for basic Wash Maintenance. The vehicle may not be 100% perfect, but you'll save money and effort overall. A Pressure Washer and DI Water setup is required for the full effect, which is not much of an investment. I'm currently testing Chem-X (what got me started on this subject - mainly for quick Toy Hauler and RV washes).

If you just want to WASH a black vehicle and keep it CLEAN... that's honestly the best way to go.

 
If you dont already know this, factory gm paint is a joke. We were very disappointed in it on our last purchase. My wife's Tahoe and mother-in-laws escalade came with all sorts of blemishes. Some my detailer was able to get out and others he couldn't. I highly recommend a proper paint correction and a ceramic coat if you have the funds. Especially on a black vehicle. It's pricey but well worth it. Don't fall for the $400-$500 paint corrections/ceramic coating jobs. The job should be at least $1000 if being done correctly. But again well worth it if you are picky about the appearance of your vehicle.

Usually good detailers will offer you a lower rate on maintenance washes if you have them paint correct and ceramic coat due to how much easier it will be to wash it after the coating.

The unfortunate reality is, if you don't wash your vehicle properly (steps/products/DI Water use mentioned by previous posts) you will damage the paint. For me, I am picky about it and I wanted to keep the wife's tahoe looking nice for a long time. I also don't have the time to wash it myself or get really into the detailing world. The paint correction, ceramic coating and maintenance washes were worth it for me.
 
nzulmer said:
Don't fall for the $400-$500 paint corrections/ceramic coating jobs. The job should be at least $1000 if being done correctly. But again well worth it if you are picky about the appearance of your vehicle.
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I'd be careful with this advice.

The Ceramic Coating Honeymoon is over and the prices are coming down to realistic/non Instagram levels.

Additionally, I've never charged more than $600 to Ceramic Coat a vehicle unless it was a Suburban or Dually. Most vehicles coming in for this require light Decontam and polishing as prep and the application and knock down isn't that hard. $1,000 and up for RV's any day of the week, but not a sedan... no way.

If you want to be in the "Bob Moses" Instagram crowd, dish out the Benjamin's! By the way... there isn't really a guy named Bob running that show... 🤣
 
Toy Collector said:
I'd be careful with this advice.

The Ceramic Coating Honeymoon is over and the prices are coming down to realistic/non Instagram levels.

Additionally, I've never charged more than $600 to Ceramic Coat a vehicle unless it was a Suburban or Dually. Most vehicles coming in for this require light Decontam and polishing as prep and the application and knock down isn't that hard. $1,000 and up for RV's any day of the week, but not a sedan... no way.

If you want to be in the "Bob Moses" Instagram crowd, dish out the Benjamin's! By the way... there isn't really a guy named Bob running that show... 🤣
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This right here, I watched a friend drop off a brand new truck for ceramic coat. 3 hours later I took him to pick it up and they charged him $1,100! I am all for people getting paid well for there skills but it just looked like highway robbery.
 
Have a good professional company do a paint correction then ceramic coat as soon as you take delivery, don't pay for the dealer (joke) to ceramic coat it.
Not sure why anyone would tell you not to ceramic coat it but I'm sure more on here will say to do it versus not to.
After that, wash it weekly. If you use a car wash make sure you go with a touchless car wash, then drive it home and use a good auto detail spray wash to finalize the wash. Adams makes all kinds of good stuff for this.
 
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