First 90 days advice?
 

I don't know what, if any wax or protection comes with the paint. I've had a 2015 Gun Metal Touring Coupe for a week and, given pollen and dust, the car is already getting dirty.

What initial cleaning/care regimin would you recommend for:

+ paint
+ other exterior features
+ interior?

Do I need to wax it now? It would seem that it came with SOMETHING from the factory?

BTW, mine is factory-new order where I tookl delivery with 7 miles on the ODO.

Any beginning advise?

I used to have a Focus SVT that I took care of, in terms of regular hand-washing and other care, but my recent daily driver, a Civic, is something I did machine washes and dealer details on. I'd like to do better with this Z.

I see many care tutorials, but I am looking for what folks would recommend in the the first 90 days.

Thanks.

There is no protection on the paint from the factory. Personally, on a brand new car, I would wash with 2 bucket technique, polish to remove any swirls from the porter/dealer (they are there, trust me), apply a sealant, and wax. Watch the Junkman videos of you want to DIY. As for your interior, it should be good to go. Some people Scotch Guard the fabric. Just don't apply ArmorAll. That stuff is crap. The Alcantera is easy maintenance. Brush/vacuum it to keep it looking fresh, clean with wet rag (water) as needed for spots.

You beat me RN SHRRK!! As I was reading this I was thinking the whole time for the OP to watch the Junkman2000 videos on Youtube.

OP, these videos are really great and very informative. Watch them on a computer so you can see the annotations because sometimes he adds annotations to help you understand things he might have missed while filming these videos or while he is in the action of using loud equipment. Do not watch the videos on your phone you will miss too much important information. He also will suggest a few products and hardware for each process of cleaning your paint. Until you watch these videos DON'T, I repeat do not touch the paint, you may cause more harm than good and cause more work and time in the end. The clear coat and paint on our cars is quite thin and sensitive to tree sap/bird crap etc. and it also gets swirls easy if not washed correctly.

Once you've watch the Junkman videos and have a good understanding and then apply what he says to when you are washing/drying/claying/polishing/buffing/waxing/sealing etc., then I highly suggest getting a clear-bra protection on as much of the front car as you can afford. It will help prevent the inevitable rock chips. I would suggest installing the clear bra at the minimum on your whole front bumper and 18'' of the hood. If you don't like the slight line on the hood that it creates then do the whole hood. I have several rock chips on the hood and countless little nicks on the bumper. I bought my car used and unfortunately it already had most of these imperfections and I wish I had new paint like you!

Please do not half A$$ while cleaning your car or skip steps or you will just make things worse in the end. It looks like you really care for this car so you just need to watch these videos! It will take some time but it is absolutely worth every minute so you don't mess up your car's clear coat or paint.

Here is a link to Junkman2000's YouTube page

Oh yeah, forgot clay.

I majorly second a good clay job. My pearl white was 50 different shades from where there was/ wasnt plastic. The gas door alone had an obvious line down it.

Throw a brick at the front end and get the first dings out of the way. Nissan uses a water based...I mean "environmentaly friendly" paint on it's cars that saves tons of money for the Company and aligns with its goals.

Woah now, 300 miles in I had Xpel Ultimate installed. 6k now, frequently drive MD to NY, no chips

Thanks for all the replies, so why did the dealer say "there's stuff on the car that should take care of it for the first year." Sales manager gave me the impression that there is a sealant on there from the factory.

Also, I have an appointment to get a clear bra put on the front of the car on Thursday. Should I wait, and do all of this paint prep now?

I wasn't sure that a factory-fresh car needed all of this. It is because I can expect paint damage from transit?

I am concerned now that I'll be placing the clear bra over defects. My thought was to clear bra that early (this is only 1 week and 1 day of ownership/driving as I write this).

On the Junkman vids, I watched them ALL while waiting for this car to ship. But it didn't seem like everything he had to say applied to a brand new car.

Thanks for advise - would love to hear more about the clear bra thing.

IMO I refer to this article here, brand new. Getting clear bra installed

I have an appointment for clear bra on Thursday - I am going 24" up the hood - I am willing to pay to go all the way.

HOWEVER, are you telling me to do the whole junkman process and THEN clear bra?

I asked the shop that is going to do the work and they said that they'd clean those areas before application. However, it sounds like I should do the entire 5-step process to a new paint job? I've been daily driving this since last Tuesday (1 week) now, and given the spring time in Texas, there is dust and bugs on it already.

I am confused then. The dealer recommended a clear bra too and I shopped around and found a good shop, but I am concerned that it seems I should do the entire Junkman routine prior to clear bra?

How messed up could this paint be so early in ownership?

Replies appreciated as I may have to cancel this clear bra appointment if they are going to clear-bra over factory-new paint that seems that it needs to be treated.

Please help, I am confused....

Thanks. I follow in that article that the shop doing the clear bra installation did all the paint prep on those areas for the owner. Would you then suggest that I get a clear indication of what they intend to do for prep?

Also, they are doing 24" on the hood, would it be just best to instruct them to do the whole hood?

All comes out to how much you wanna spend. I got whole hood. Whole bumper. Whole quarter panels. Leading edges on the mirrors and an 8inch strip on the leading edge of the roof.
If I were to do it again Id make sure my whole side view mirror was covered, caught a rock about an inch above where it ended

Thanks. Did the guys who did the work address delivery imperfections, like your article talks about, or did you have to? I have this vision that these guys are gonna put the film right over any problems that might exist from factory/transit/dealer.

Of course, I'm gonna call them in the morning and find out.

So my guy washed it and ran over it all with like spray detailer, looking back I think I wouldve rather go somewhere. Have them clay it. Get any swirls removed. Get it waxed, sealed then have the bra done.
Pre delivery cleaning in my experience was very poorly done and Im not exactly a professional detailer to trust my swirl removal.

Xpel
 

When I had my Xpel done the installer(s) did the 'Full Monty' beforehand on the entire car. No point in laying down film over top swirls and imperfections. On GM they'll be visible right through the film.
I went full hood. There are a number of folks on here that didn't go full hood and wished they had. Just saying.
I'm even thinking now of doing a strip on the first few inches of the roof and a patch where I pull the hatch closed.

104

thanks, I am thinking full hood too

I don't know if applying wax is something you want to be doing when you're putting down film. You wouldn't want anything that might interfere with the film adhering.
I don't know what film you're going with so application could vary I suppose, but when my Xpel was done I was told to not put any wax down beforehand.....they were just going to remove it anyway. Nothing went back down after they did their prep.

104

True maybe not wax, I know that article I liked to they topped with OptiCoat and that seems to be the going process on a few Ive seen

Cars are stressful.

here's what the shop said
 

"If there are any factory flaws or defects it would just be covered up. We don’t do anything to repair those if you find some that would be up to you to take care of before it gets the rock chip guard on it."

I've only had the car for 9 days, but it id a daily driver, should I wait? Or, should I have the clear bra put on now?

Every day on the highway is rock chip probability.

Don't worry about applying the junkman process now, just make sure the shop you are taking your car to already does something similar to that process normally before applying the clear bra. That link to the article earlier was great prep to remove any dirt, swirling, etc.
Also get as much of the car protected with clear bra you can afford. Once you got your car with clear bra then you can start doing the junkman cleaning/correcting routine.

Thanks all.

I dropped her off at the shop today and talked to the owner and the technician. They'll clay bar it first, so it seems that they'll do it right.

Not getting the full hood, it just seems too flat up near the top, so I'm going up to around where the first panel stops (around 2 feet).

Can't wash her for a week afterwards, so I won't be able to give her a wash until 3 weeks of ownership.

Also, I asked that the lights get the treatment, was that a mistake? I can call and cancel that part.

The good news is these guys use car templates, so they won't be putting a razor to her.

Personally, I don't do the clear bra. I figure the price of a front end re-spray and a clear bra are about equal. I've already had my front bumper and hood repainted when I bought mine used. As a bonus, now my bumper actually matches the rest of the car. Hahaha. I like to detail my cars, to get the most depth out of my paint, and I just don't think a car covered in plastic would do it for me.
People talk about "protecting the paint", but for what? For whom? If it is for you, I'd rather wash and polish paint than plastic. And I won't get crap/clay stuck to the edge of the wrap, making the line more obvious. If you wrap it for resale value, then wouldn't it make sense to remove the clear bra just before selling the car or trading it in? Yet no one does that. And after 5-10 years it will be so hard to remove, most likely etching the underlying paint in the process, that you'll have to get a re-spray anyway. Not to mention fading. My 1994 240SX had some clear bra on it that was cloudy, cracked from years on the car, was terrible to remove, and now that section of the paint looks worse than the rest of the car.
Anyway, it's all personal choice. Clear bra just isn't for me. I like real paint, the feel, and the finish I can get out of it.
P.S. I also replaced the windshield with an OEM Nissan one when I repainted my front end when I bought my car. Probably need another one as track days don't help.

Well, as the great William Joel once said:

"You may be right
I may be crazy
…
You may be wrong for all I know
But you may be right"

It's about getting rid of the swirls that the dealer puts in it by hiring some know-nothing teenager to take a dirty towel and put swirls in the paint. Check out the showroom GT-R paint next time you're in a Nissan dealer. I bet it has less than 100 miles and swirls to hell.

Clay bar does not do any paint correction, but it is the proper prep method for the clear bra. They better do that right seeing how it is the very first step.

I expect you will be disappointed you did not get the entire hood. Rocks bounce and hit the flat part of the hood all the time :twocents:

That is actually not good news at all. It is a sign that these guys are amateurs. As kenchan will gladly point out, the precut templates are for DIYers. A good shop will cut it off a roll so they can properly tuck all of the edges and corners. DIYers often don't have the patience or practice to do this properly, so the precut kits fit so you don't have to cut or tuck much.

Had the same questions, so thanks for the thread. I was going to do first wash on Saturday but all my older stuff was rather nasty so getting dirtier. Want to make that Pearl White gleam. Might have a detailer do the first cleaning, clay, and wax and then maintain it myself.

The amount of money you pay a good detailer could get you all or most of the supplies to be able to do it yourself and you'll know it's done right if you follow junkman's simple and effective methods.

Good idea. And helps you learn your car and appreciate the beautiful curves of the Z, as well. Is Meguiars stuff considered good? I'm combing the FAQ.

Meguiar's is not bad. It's where I started, but I have moved on to other more expensive products for various reasons. But it's not so much the products as it is the technique. See Junkman's videos - there are tons on his channel on YouTube as well as linked on this forum.

I'm interested in spending as long as the quality there. Probably start with meguiars and upgrade as I go. What would you recommend and/or what's the best for Pearl White?

I recommend you do some more research in the detailing section. Every question you have has been asked and answered many times over.

Junkman will tell you The Rag Company has the best prices on the best quality towels, so check out his comments on that. As for products, I decided that I like supporting our forum sponsors. But websites like autogeek and detailersdomain have a huge variety of products. Meguiar's is not a bad starting place. I mainly used them when I started out because I could find products on short notice in stock at local auto stores. But now I keep a decent enough detailing arsenal that I don't need stuff last minute. I still have a couple of Meguiar's products but that's mostly because I use them infrequently enough I have needed to replace the original bottles I bought.

Be sure to check with your local auto body supply store. They usually carry very good products on hand such as 3m and meg's professional line. It wont be the internets boutique flavor of the month product though, if that matters to you.
Pearl white is like all paint. proper prep and it will look great when all detailed.

First 90 days? I think thats a myth fella. The paint is already cured fully when it came out of the oven.

Only time I ever applied this, was after market paint work.

:iagree:

Generally pleased with the clear bra. I do have some minor pitting on the windshield though, so the "bounce up" theory has some merit. No scratches on the paint, but I've already had some very minor scratches and pitting on the windshield. Bummer.

I did a thorough clay bar/polish/wax ASAP after getting it home from the clear bra application.

Since I am new, and since I asked a question to learn, I reflected on this aspect of your input and did more research.

This video suggests that pre-cutting is the norm now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5vP...D52AF54166C886

the guy in the video doesn't seem like an amateur to me.