Black car finish
 

Just a baught a black 2001 Mustang GT and what I have found as the biggest challenge so far is maintaining the condition of the paint. Cleaning the car seems to result in "fine scratches" appearing. What to do?! Black is beatiful, yes; but it sure is a pain in the *** !

Help me out folks.

You are right. Black is beautiful when it's clean, but looks like @ss when it's dirty...and black seems to attract dust and dirt the worst. Black also shows the surface scratches the most.
I washed and waxed my Black 96GT every week it seemed like. I always carried a dusting cloth with me. That's why I got a white Cobra. I haven't had to wax it once, and the paint looks awesome, like new. I never thought I'd like a white car, but when I saw this one, I fell in love. I especially like it now, with a low maintenance color.

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T-Bones 1997 Cobra
Wht/blk, Pro 5.0,FRPP 4.10's, aluminum driveshaft, FRPP throttle body, C&L 80mm MAF, K&N, Steeda U/D pulleys, Steeda timing adjuster, Flowmasters, s/f connectors, FRPP pro springs, BBK caster/cambers.
http://web.ndak.net/~topel/TBone1.jpg

The look is worth all the pain and suffering http://www.mustangworks.com/interact...oard/smile.gif

My GT has a beautiful black paint job, and I would never repaint it a different color!

Buy a duster, get some quick detailer and you will be all set. I personally have no life, so I wax and clean my car top to bottom every week http://www.mustangworks.com/interact...oard/smile.gif

Wash your car, use the quick detailer, and drive away. The detailer will last until the next rainfall, then you do it all again.

For Christmas I just received a HUGE kit from Meguires(sp?) It will keep me polishing all day http://www.mustangworks.com/interact...oard/smile.gif

Do not regret getting a black car, they look awsome, it may be a little work, but it is well worth it!

Ian

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Ian Sim
webmaster@stangpower.com
STORED: 1988 Mustang GT "Canadian Cobra", stock, AOD, loaded
WANT XENON HEADLIGHTS AND WHITE FACE GAUGES? Visit my site:
http://www.stangpower.com

Nothing looks as good as black and nothing is harder to take care of. Black is for people that have nothing to do but clean their car. I guess that is why I own 2 of them. 3M Imperial Hand Glaze will take the scratches out of the clear coat. Apply it with a polisher and remove by hand. Be careful what type of cloth you use. Some actually scratch the finish. Use something like a California Duster to keep the dust off.......

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...1996 SALEEN s281 vert & 1998 Cobra vert

The method of keeping your black paint looking good is: Go buy an orbital polisher from your neighborhood dept. store. read the directions(they're really simple to operate), get a good cleaner/wax. You'll be really suprized of how well you can get your black paint looking awesome without taking it to a detail shop. I'm talking flawless. Now when you wash it, use a new mitt with plenty of suds. Don't press down on your car really hard, let the suds do all the work. Dry it with a chamois only. By using anything terry cloth on your car (expecially black) you're just asking for "cobwebs" to reappear. Some free advice from a detail shop owner specializing in customs! Any other questions please feel free to contact me. I've been in the detail business for 23 years.

Thanks for the advice regarding black finishes. A couple of questions, first: Using an orbital, I know if you dont know what your doing, you can seriously "swirl" your car. And black will exaggerate the problem. Last week, I hand waxed the vehicle by hand and produced a beautiful result. I applied side to side rather than round and round. This was advice from a friend.

What cleaner/wax do you recommend?

Faz

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2001 Mustang GT Blk/Blk
2Ch. 40 series Flowmaster Mufflers
K&N Air Filter

I got spoiled owning the white ASC. After buying the black GT I said I would never buy another black car again. They are hot in the summer and a pain in the @ss to keep clean. Just wait until the "fondlers' handprints show up! That being said, I have had great results using Eagle 1 Wet. I agree 100% that they look good, but I just don't have the time to keep it looking perfect all of the time.

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Robert
91GT; 88 ASC McLaren #709

Some more advice from a fellow Texan. Buy a quality car cover and do not be ashamed to cover it at work! The Tex sun will eat that glossy finish in a heartbeat.

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Robert
91GT; 88 ASC McLaren #709

covering a car when it's dirty! wont that scratch the finish?

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2001 Mustang GT Blk/Blk
2Ch. 40 series Flowmaster Mufflers
K&N Air Filter

I wouldn't use a car cover in the summer. Scratches WILL appear in the form of those pesky "cobweb" scratches. Oddly enough by using a polymer paint sealant or teflon based paint sealant, and keeping your car clean with the wash method I described earlier, you'll be suprized that not only your paint finish will look great all the time, but you won't see any oxidation building up later. Use the paint sealant which ever one you decide you use, about once a year and conventional wax the other times, your car will look great for years to come. Have fun!!

http://www.mustangworks.com/mustangs...1292-slot1.jpg

My car looks pretty good for the original 12 year old paint, but it was a ***** keeping it that way.

Black is beautiful, but it is a pain to keep clean. Like the others have said wash and wax it religiously. If you think it would be worth it to have a shiny black car, then put in the extra elbow grease.

[This message has been edited by 88GT5.013.02 (edited 01-08-2001).]

[This message has been edited by 88GT5.013.02 (edited 01-08-2001).]

Never cover the car unless it's completely clean. I only live about 5 miles from work, so I cover mine when I can...if I feel like it. Come to think of it, I haven't in a long time.

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Robert
91GT; 88 ASC McLaren #709

Anyone else hear that its better to use a polish than waxing a car. This mainly applied to someone who waxed the car very often, which is said to cause too much wax build up causing hazing.

I think Meguires has a polish out there. I'm gonna try it cause my repeated waxings just don't do it.

my neighbor has a black 97 GT. he has buffer that advertises that it does not leave swirl marks. he got it a auto zone($50). the car is daily driven, and looks better than it did when he first got it. no marks in the paint either.

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'86 GT.
Gears & Flows

[This message has been edited by EZRIDN (edited 01-08-2001).]

I'll bet the buffer your neighbor bought for $50.00 is an orbital buffer. On black paint, this style of buffer is almost a necessity if you want your paint to look flawless all the time. As for polishing opposed to waxing, wax your car twice a year mainly in the spring and before winter. You can polish your car anytime. If the paint is looking like it's losing it's "sparkle" wash it with dishwashing liquid real good to strip all the old wax off and start over with the process. You'll like what you see.

Here is the black beauty i was talking about.
http://wsphotofews.excite.com/009/xa/J2/Wp/Db26828.jpg
http://wsphotofews.excite.com/005/S8/Vc/uJ/BZ17926.jpg

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2001 Mustang GT Blk/Blk
2Ch. 40 series Flowmaster Mufflers
K&N Air Filter

I agree, black is beautiful. I really wanted a black Mustang but had to settle for what I could find. As far as products go, I really like Liquid Glass. I also use an orbital polisher with very good results.

I've owned my black 87 notch for 14 yrs. The original (non clear coated) paint is still in great shape, due to extreme levels of maintainance and cleaning, being garaged since new and never exposing it to the horrors of winter. Not being clear coated, I've found through a lot of experimentation that cleaning the car with the Wax shop's Safe Cut then following that with Mothers California Gold pure (no cleaners) carnuba wax worked the best, With black, your best friends are spray detailer a California car duster and lots of spare time.

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1965 K code coupe - numbers matching - restoration ongoing 1987 lx notch stock heads and intake, typical bolt on's 13.89@100.25