CLLOFF

After many years of waiting, I am a new vette owner.
My baby is black 2004 coupe.
I love the black color on this car, but I know black is hard to keep looking great. I have had black metallic before, but have been told the vette flat black is even more difficult, especially with swirl marks. My Zimol, that I really like, says not for flat paint. I am not sure how NXT or others work on flat clear coat paint.

Appreciate any recommendtions for best care of the black finish and which products may do better at preventing or removing swirl marks.

In checking out Pep Boys I did see some Swirl Remove from 3M and McGuires that looking interesting too.

This forum is really great. Thanks in advace for the help.

Humy

I recommend Meguire's new wax called "NXT". It's about $16 a bottle, but worth every penny. I waxed my car the other day with it and when I went to shut the door, my hand slid off the door, I lost my balance, and almost fell on my **** .

It got rained on yesterday for the first time since the wax and the water beaded right off when I drove it. It's as if it never got rained on (except for the windows).

BTW - welcome to the forum, and congrats on the new Vettey





[Modified by Humy, 12:05 PM 6/15/2004]

c5chris

I only had used Zaino and Meguire's NXT. NXT gets the edge on cost, ease and shine on a black car.

Vetteman Jack

Try the Mequires NXT wax - its new and supposed to be great on the car.

Buckmaster

Zaino.............best polish for a dark colored car and more durable and lasts longer IMO.

COOL Z06

Meguiar's.

repo

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zeroforum?id=10

Elite Engineering

and Congratulations on the new black vette. Welcome to the dark side!





[Modified by REBEL03, 11:17 AM 6/15/2004]

jrose7004

I go through clay bar, Maguires Show Glaze and then follow it up with Maguires #26 Tech Wax. Always use White 100% cotton towels etc!

Racer

Pick any of the above, they all work well.

charliesc5

nxt and microfiber

savewave

Welcome to the Corvette family and to Corvetteforum.com.

As the owner of a Black Corvette, you're going to be needing a "support group" for periodic counseling! And I can personally recommend the Black Sheep Squadron Corvettes group.

To your question: The product you select and use is going to have a lot to do with personal preference. I used Meguire's for years and really liked their products. I think I used No. 7 Show Car Glaze. Somebody suggested Zaino to me several years ago and I decided to give it a chance. It's pricey, but I like it.

Swirls are going to be more apparent on a Black car. To avoid them, I never use a high-speed buffer on my Black Corvette. If you know what you are doing and use a foam pad, rather than wool, maybe you can get away with using a buffer.

But I'd recommend using glaze or polish rather than wax. I've always heard that wax is what you use on bad paint to make it look better. It isn't very durable. Polish or glaze is what you use on good paint to keep it looking good. And it's more durable.

CAJUNY2KC5

At last a rational comment about car care rather than "Mine is best". Thanks

wit2pz

Here's the thing... The black Corvette is the BOMB when it comes to looking good. When it's shined up the right way, it's so sweet looking! My experience has been with a product that is RECOMMENDED BY THE CORVETTE CLUB OF AMERICA. My next door neighbor drives his 95 green C4 every day of the week and it has a mirror shine every time I see it. The wax is called IBIZ. It's got FOSSILIZED CARNUBA that gives the car a super smooth finish, not to mention a glassy glaze. He has told me it's rather pricy to order online, but he got his kit at Carlisle for a lot cheaper. I plan to go to Carlisle this year to get my first IBIZ kit so I can stop using his all the time, but I can tell you, IBIZ is the way to go for a great luster, deep gloss, and durable wax. His test of waxes is to take a clean cloth and toss it across the roof or hood. I did my car the first time, one half in Meguiars Gold Class, the other half in IBIZ. We did the cloth test, and it slid with little resistance on the Meguiars, but no resistance on the IBIZ side. I haven't tried NXT yet, but I'm definitely sold on IBIZ. Next point... as the owner of the sexiest color out there, you MUST take a special interest in MANUALLY, PAINSTAKINGLY, HAND CLEANING YOUR CAR. There's no question about it. I have made my car detailing and cleaning a necessary part of "ME TIME." You have to take your time and do it right... I mean with a collection of microfiber cloths designated for each phase of cleaning... the WASH cloth, the wax removal cloth, the buffing cloth, the shining cloth, the window cloth, the dusting cloth for interior, and the CALIFORNIA DUSTER for light dust removal between detailing. There must also be a DETAIL SPRAY for removing fingerprints, bird crap, and water marks from the car. I know it sounds like a lot, but you will be so happy with the results it'll be well worth it. I call cleaning my car an important part of my "therapy" because it feels so good when it's glossy! I'll post pics one of these days to show off the shine.

dallasvette

I agree with what everyone says so i'll just put in my 2 cents.

I used zaino for a while, it works great but pricey and hard to come by in a crunch. I then crubbled and tried the NXT. I can say on MY BLACK vette, I like it better than Zaino. Seems much richer and deeper, much glossier. I don't think its any easier to take off than zaino is, but its not hard. I have some swirl marks, its like taxes, just gotta live with it, no way to beat it, or get around em. A shiney black corvette IS without a doubt the sexiest beast on the road, it takes time to make such a machine look good. Make this "me time" others have said. My girlfriend has accepted the fact that every saturday or sunday I will spend a several hours detailing my vette. Black is a special color, it takes a special person to care for it.

I'm sure I repeated what others have already pointed out, i just wanted to post on this subject. its near and dear to my heart.

mrmclaughlin

cwhitpan

Well I will add my own version of confusion to this one.

Cleaning is definitly 10X harder with the black. That is for sure. I use the Mothers Phase 3 system and have good results. Now they don't last forever because while my vette is not a daily driver, I am garage deficient. A cover only goes so far too. The mother's is a carnuba was I lvoe to use and has a prewax cleaner that keeps any swirls or water marks at bay as well. They also have the showtime detailer I use to freshen up.

You guys might get me to try the meguires NXT when I run out (this summer), but I am happy with the Mother's stuff. But I will admit, it is not as long lasting, but done right, it puts off some of the best luster I have seen so far.

Best thing will be trial and error I am afraid! I would just recomend not using a power buffer and use a good quality chamois to dry her prior to polish/wax. And use micro fibre towels to polish too. Pretty inexpensive at a walmart.

Good luck! Welcome! And enjoy the sexiest vette alive!

Beer:30

WTF!!! You have swirl marks already?
Did some moron at the dealer "prep" it for you? :mad

Anyway, I use Zaino. Nothing lasts as long.
The results speak for themselves.
The amazing part here is that this shine is over 6 months old when I took the pic.

denali

I think you will find a different opinion from most everyone. First I would recomend the following http://www.thedetailingbible.com/ The DetailingDude can and will steer you in the right direction.

mike herhold

I just put NXT on my black 03 coupe, the paint looks a foot deep, very easy application.