I just bought a 04 Black Xfire (never had a black car before) and after reading all these post I'm more worried about washing/waxing my car then ever before. Guess I wont go through that automatic car wash now at the gas station...lol.

 

foxe,

I definitely would not go through car washes, espeically with a black car. You'll see so many swirls and scratches it might make you cry

I'd strongly recommend getting a paint prtoection product like CrystalGuard. I'd get a Pro kit and maintaint it with the CG Quick chemical. You'll love the gloss and protection. Best of all, you won't have to wax your car anymore. This replaces wax so you save money in the end with detailing. :lol:

 

I can't seem to find the CrystalGuard anywhere around here. The stores have a Meguiar's Tech Wax, which sounds very similar, but haven't heard of Crystal Guard. I went ahead and bought the Meguiars cause I don't want to go too long without doing anything, but if someone knows where they sell the CG in MI, please let me know.

Thanks,
U

 

from www.crystalguard.com
Prestige Imports
2919 29th Street SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49512
phone: (616) 957-4661
contact: Lance Pugh, Detail Manager

 

Thanks.

 

I'm not sure if Prestige has any product to sell. They do service for the EX professional coating only. CG is not sold in retail stores yet, only through the distributing company.

 

I finally got off my wallet and bought some CGQ and put a coat on, waited a day, then put the 2nd coat on this morning. It seems shiny ok, and the water does bead pretty well, but it doesn't have that "slide off the car if you lean on it" quality that waxing does. Maybe it will in a few days?
And with a white car, it's hard to see if there's enough or too little sprayed on it. The car seems soo wet with the water beaded up on it and everything, it seems like it's maybe getting too diluted if I don't wipe some of the water off first. Any feedback?
My better half has a black Z06 and hasn't waxed it or anything yet. He's waiting to see how the CG turns out on my Xfire. I don't see any pictures of any cars on this thread comparing the wax vs. the CG. What's up?

 

CG wil not have the slick feel to it like wax. You can put wax over the sealant, but it's really not necessary. I'd compare it to putting vasoline on your sunglasses. It will make it slick, but won't last very long.

I'm trying to figure out which application you did, the Pro kit or CG Quick? My guess here is that if you try it on hte balck car you will see a much more noticeable diference. White is not the best "show" color.

 

Thanks Jim for that explanation. I'm using CG Quick. I thought that might be the case with the white color, so I'm taking your word on the Black one and am going to use it on his Vette. It's the 1st black car we've ever had and want to keep the finish looking fine for a long time!
I had the Crossfire out for a drive and it's been a few hours since I put the 2nd coat on. It seems to have less friction already. Maybe it just needs to "settle" a little. It IS looking very shiny!

 

how does the cars look these days with the CG?

 

Id love to try it!!

 

You do realize that this thread is 11 years old, right ?

 

LOL
However it would be nice to see how that Crystal Guard was standing up after eleven years.
Especially if it had been sitting in a wreckers yard through summers and winters.
Could be an idea for a TV commercial here.

 

Is this perhaps a record on this Forum?

 

Is there no one scrubbing old posts?

 

Lol!! Those old posts Are a rich source of information.

 

Most of the answers we get these days are to be found in the old posts at least once and often many times over.
So scrubbing old posts would be like electroshock therapy on Einstein, erasing knowledge and leaving you with an old man with his hair sticking out all over. Oh! I guess that's the case anyway. LOL

 

180. What's your "professional" opinion on this Crystal Guard?...Thanks Carl

 

I was surprised to see this thread is as old as it is, given the topic of discussion.

In the past couple of years there has been a growing demand for a new crop of "semi-permanent paint coatings" (semi-permanent, how's that for any oxymoron!) that claim 2 to 5 years of durability, high scratch resistance, and extreme protection from acid rain. This is actually a very mature product segment in Asia as acid rain conditions there are beyond horrible. China and India especially have air quality ratings that make the bad old days in Los Angeles look crystal clear - and it wreaks havoc on paint finishes.

I don't buy into the claims about high scratch resistance because I've seen too many of these coatings get torn up by a single pass through a bad automatic car wash. I know a lot of professional detailers who install this stuff (yeah, it's referred to as an "installation", not an "application" - go figure) and they charge a major premium for it. Some of the coating suppliers only sell to trained installers and then dictate the cost of installation - usually $300 to $500 above and beyond the cost of the initial detailing/paint correction/defect removal process.

Some of these coatings are really tricky to apply while others are a bit easier. Some provide fairly decent gloss, a few offer really high gloss. You still need to use caution when washing and drying the car, but many of these do indeed last several years, have a really slick feel to them, create very tight water beads with a high contact angle (almost to the point of creating little spheres of water instead of flatter little puddles). There is certainly a time and place for these coatings, but they aren't a complete deterrent to environmental attacks on your car's paint and you still need to be diligent with appearance care.

 

Great info
Thank you