Team-BHP - Tips for Maintainence of a black coloured car

Black is good looking on most cars. I had two reasons that I considered for not buying black. One is that the car is not visible in the dark. I use the car for my office commute and return back home late in the night. I use roads that are highways with truck traffic. So I was concerned about safety. The second reason is that our country being a tropical climate tends to heatup our cars real fast. Thats why I prefer light colors that are reflective in nature over dark colors which are absorptive.

Does anyone know of any high quality fluffy car duster, apart from those typically available at traffic junctions ?

Something like this

Amazon.com: The Original California Car Duster with Standard 15" Cleaning Head: Automotive

It seems that there is one available at ebay India..

eBay India: Car Duster. (item 280275777928 end time 17-Oct-2008 19:35:56 IST)

Quote:

Originally Posted by wanderernomad (Post 1012788)

Black for one looks "butch" but yes dust and minor scratches are a hassle. I have a black Scorpio but belive you me my morale hits a low by the time am through washing the rear door panels.
A long highway trip and the beast looks good with all the dust but next day its a pain. SUVs/MUVs and other big stanced vehicles look good with a little smatterring of dust on black. Not so sure about a Black dezire but hey go ahead mate, a little extra effort in cleaning will ensure more time with your beauty.

I would agree with you wanderernomad, SUVs do look nicer when bathed in mud/ slush . This gives them a menacing stance and black would only enhance the overall attitude, it is black for me for sure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shakensoul (Post 1013816)

3M India has a very high end lint free cloth for cleaning your car plus a host of other car detailing products. I think Spencer's retails that range.

Black is the best in colour and worst to maintain
me and my brother fought with my dad to buy a black fiesta
only after few days i realized it's tough to maintain.

Tips

1.never ever wash your car in direct sun light.it will leave water marks on the car.

2.if it's dirty and muddy never use a cloth first,clean it while water running in the body and use your hand to wipe the dirt.

3. use microfibre cloth it is very usefull in cleaning and dusting but bit costly.

4.when the car is dirty never use the car cover it will rub against the body and make more scratches.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sudipto-S-Team (Post 1013831)

3M India has a very high end lint free cloth for cleaning your car plus a host of other car detailing products. I think Spencer's retails that range.

Yes spencer in bangalore also keeps.
You can try using Amway silicon glaze for black color paint. It gives superb finish and thin coating which helps in removing dust particles easily even you dust the surface. Check this at
Amway India : Silicon Glaze
I use it for my black Getz :).

Avoid polishing daily or weekly. Everytime you polish you take off a little of the top coat. Polish and prepare the surface, and then use a paint sealant like Rejex for final step. Avoid traditional wax. Apply more Rejex as and when required to keep the paint sealed. (Usually a fortnight is good idea in Indian conditions).

Black is the most difficult color to maintain, and gets bloody hot too. But a nicely detailed black car is beautiful indeed. Shame that as soon as you hit the road it gets dirty again. :-(

shenbag63 is right get a छोकरा, tutor him how to detail. It would be a daily job.

We are planning to take our black car's delivery early next month. The plan I've to keep it clean and shiny is:

Quote:

Daily cleaning
Ask the neighbourhood cleaning guy to clean using jopasu duster with a light hand. Only dry cleaning, no water. Exclusive MF cloth for interiors.

Weekly/ bi-weekly wash
2/3 bucket method, or local shop with the following instructions -
1. Wash with water, from top to bottom
2. Two buckets, one with clean shampoo and the other to clean the cloth
3. Separate cloth for interior, exterior, lower body & tyres. B&W paper for glass.
4. Dry in shade using a light hand and a fresh cloth.

Wax & Polish
Every 3-5 months using a professional detailer.

Is this a good plan? Any steps that I need to add/ tinker around?

Also, is there any sort of paint protection coating required on a new car?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torque123 (Post 715296)

Hi Guys,

I am asking for tips on maintainig a black coloured car because i had a Silver coloured Swift VXI with ABS before which was always clean from outside. I bought a brand new black colour Ford Fiesta 1.6 SXI 2 weeks back. I dont like any car being or getting dirty. As mine is a black coloured car i am finding it difficult to keep her clean (from outside) everytime. I am also scared of just dusting her myself.

I need some suggestions or tips as to how to wash, clean and maintain a black coloured car. Thanks in advance.

Hi. I have a black Polo 1.6 myself and I can tell you from my experience of 05 years so far that it is tough to maintain. But this really depends on the usage of your car, the city you live in, whether you have a closed/open parking etc. Frankly, these points apply to the maintenance of any colored car, but the problem is that any damage to paint caused by the lack of any of these points is most prominent on a black colored car.

I live in Mumbai and I have just got a recoat of paint done on my 2011 Black Polo. Now mind you, I am not saying that you would require to recoat a black car after 05-06 years, I am saying that I did it because my car had a few paint chip offs and scratches which could not be removed through a detail service. The paint wasn't that bad either and many in my place wouldn't do a re-coat. But I did it for my own satisfaction.

I would suggest the following:
- Have a covered/basement parking if possible
- Never wipe off dust with a dry cloth. Always use a wet micro fiber.
- Detail regularly, once in 6 months should be good from a professional.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Epic (Post 4165311)

The paint wasn't that bad either and many in my place wouldn't do a re-coat. But I did it for my own satisfaction.

I would suggest the following:
- Have a covered/basement parking if possible
- Never wipe off dust with a dry cloth. Always use a wet micro fiber.
- Detail regularly, once in 6 months should be good from a professional.

Thank you, I understand what you're trying to say. Out of curiosity, how much did the full repaint cost you?

I've a covered parking at home, but for my workplace, I'll have to arrive early to grab the basement parking. Yes, I do plan to come early on regular basis now :D

When you say wet MF cloth, is Jopasu duster better than this? I'm not sure if even a wet MF cloth will be non-abrasive.

Yes, I plan to do some basic waxing on my weekly wash and a semi-annual professional detailing.

Black is Beautiful, Period. It has to be treated with utmost care to have it looking that way. Cleaning the car every day has to be done meticulously and it should not be hurried upon. If you are running short of time, it’s better to leave it not cleaned rather than cleaning it hurriedly, which eventually will give swirl marks all over.

I use a jopasu duster to wipe the dust off the car. Have to make sure not to press the duster hard on the panels, but to gently glide it over the surface to pick up all the dust. Once that is done, I wipe all the panels one by one with a moist microfiber cloth and immediately wipe the same with a dry microfiber cloth. I use a separate cloth to clean the alloys, inside of the doors (Door rubber beading areas) and inside the engine bay.

Every day it takes about 40 Min’s to clean my car and on a Sunday, I take about 3 to 4 hrs to clean the entire car as I clean all the inside of the doors (Door hinges area’s) engine bay, bonnet, tyre dressing, dashboard dressing, seats cleaning …

I wax the car once in 3 months (I use Meguiar’s NXT tech wax 2.0 paste) and get it detailed once in every 9 months.