First 90 days advice?

ahuimanu

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.

RN SHARK

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.

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'14 SRT Grand Cherokee; '08 TL Type-S

cautupwitdm

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

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ahuimanu

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....

RN SHARK

Oh yeah, forgot clay.

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'09 6sp/Z1/PowerTrix/SPL/Swift/SRP/Whiteline/F.I.LTH&CBE/UpRev by Seb/CJM/Stillen/Ings+1/RJM/TrackSpec/Sparco/Motul/Wavetrac/Coolerworx/Verus/CraftSquare
'14 SRT Grand Cherokee; '08 TL Type-S

jshare1

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.

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falconfixer

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.

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Bitch ex wife's scumbag lawyer made sure this went away.

jshare1

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

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ahuimanu

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.

jshare1

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

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"only acceptable trades are turtles or beer"

RN SHARK

Cars are stressful.

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'09 6sp/Z1/PowerTrix/SPL/Swift/SRP/Whiteline/F.I.LTH&CBE/UpRev by Seb/CJM/Stillen/Ings+1/RJM/TrackSpec/Sparco/Motul/Wavetrac/Coolerworx/Verus/CraftSquare
'14 SRT Grand Cherokee; '08 TL Type-S

ahuimanu

"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.

cautupwitdm

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.

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ahuimanu

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.

JARblue

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

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.

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