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New car dealership paint protection...

Chris Smith

Chris Smith

Well-Known Member
Anybody who has brought a car over the last 15 years or so from a dealership would have been sold paint protection such as scotch guard, diamond brite, guardx etc. ...

Normally from £250-£400.... and its meant to protect the bodywork, interior, glass etc... and tbh it does a good job to the average car... I sure those who detail cars hate the stuff and would slag off... rightfully so, much better products out there.. .

But here's the thing... I got a car yesterday from a friend who works at the dealership. ...she said don't bother paying for it... I will give you the kit for free... result I thought... worth a try ..

Truth is.. The kit cost them £30... and takes an hour to apply... how the f*ck do dealerships get away with charging so much for it..

It's all very simple... clean car, dry car, wipe on stage one, buff with stage 2 (no heavy polishing, all by hand), spray interior with an can... allow to dry for 20 mins...
Wipe glass with liquid that drys within a min... simples...

No hard work, decent shine, interior protected, paint left with a thick protection layer on top...

Happy days.. you can buy kits on ebay for £20-30....

Before
20150302_113109.webp
after
20150302_164841.webp
20150302_164818.webp 20150302_164822.webp

Not a bad result for 1 hours minimal work. ..
 
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I have to partly dispute your cost and time for application of these kits, Yes some basic kits start off at £40-£50+vat but the best quality kits start around £75-£80+vat, depending on size of vehicle getting the treatment.
If the application instruction are followed correctly it can take 2-3 hours as some of treatments give toxic fumes until they are dry & require some respect or pre prep like clay baring even on a new car, then there is drying time for some of the treatments. Even though this drying time is a non labour time it still has to be monitored just in case there is a reaction especially to some plastics/ chrome.
If you calculate the costs for a basic good quality kit and labour to apply it soon mounts up.
2 hrs @ £45ph= £90 + £75 =£165+20% Vat = £198
Another pointer that most people do not realise about these products especially the external treatment is that they need periodically reapplying to maintain their effectiveness & any bird lime needs to be remove ASAP.
 
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I can see your points and they are valid. Just annoys me when garages rip people off and yes your right they do need reappplying/topped up 6monthly/yearly basis and people don't bother.... so much easier to DIY.... even if you spent £100 on a top kit and half a day doing the car... you would save a fair chunk of money and would have a better understanding on how to keep your car's paintwork protected.. garages just want the cash of you and couldn't give a monkeys about your car....
 
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Chris Smith said:
I can see your points and they are valid. Just annoys me when garages rip people off and yes your right they do need reappplying/topped up 6monthly/yearly basis and people don't bother.... so much easier to DIY.... even if you spent £100 on a top kit and half a day doing the car... you would save a fair chunk of money and would have a better understanding on how to keep your car's paintwork protected.. garages just want the cash of you and couldn't give a monkeys about your car....
Click to expand...
I'd rather pay someone...I fecking HATE cleaning cars. Hatey hate hate.

If I was bothered enough to have it done anyway. Which i'm not lol
 
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Chris Smith said:
garages just want the cash of you and couldn't give a monkeys about your car....
Click to expand...
I certainly do care about customers cars and treat them as if I am paying the bill or brought the car my self & yes there are some places that are so money focused that they come to rely on it at all costs.
I can also tell stories of customer attiude to front desk from the moment they walk in but that for another day.

Now back on topic,
I hate cleaning cars also but I do get one of the valeters every 3 months or so to wash & polish my Megane & I wash' n hover it at least twice a month more in this sh t weather, but least it gets done.
 
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When Phildini worked at Honda he used to save all the 1/2 empty bottles. He gave me quite a few - Diamond Brite. Think Honda charged about £350. Wasn't bad, still have some :0). Took about 2 hours to do both treatments but was advised to leave several hours inbetween for best results.
 
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Looking at replacing the i30 this weekend... 1 months ownership is enough for me.

Anyway, the next car is only 8months old, but will need some sort of paint protection.... any recommendations on decent kits out there?
 
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Believe me steve I have a good reason... The i30 is dog Shite, even for a daily run around.

Slow as f*ck, crap clutch, whiney gearbox, strange noises on full lock.... For a car with just 7700 miles it should be a lot better....

I knew it would be slow, but wow, a electric scooter can out pace it up hill.
 
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Budget isn't to much of an issue... I don't have access to a machine polisher, but do have a clay bar, and some autoglym polish, wax etc. But want to give the paintwork a deep shine that will protect from bird poo etc for a good time ahead....

The car I am getting is candy red, so would be nice to have a good shine on that.
 
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Reckon I would wrap that a Lampost within a month :)

I am getting a Focus tdci zetec.

Nothing special, but hopefully reliable and better build quality compared to the hyundai. cheap and cheerful motoring, it's 9 months old, 5700 miles, Ford Direct car, only costing my the hundai and £1200 to swap over... so not to bad a deal, considering the Ford cost a lot more than the hyundai new.

Oh and it has auto park.... makes it easier for lucy to drive. :)
Screenshot_2015-03-31-09-42-07.webp
 
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Okay, if you'd like to do it your self and don't want to get into machine polishing I'd recommend Collinite 476s or Auto Finesse Tough Coat.
476s is a durable paste wax. Tough Coat is a good quality paint sealant. Both will offer 6 months of protection. They will both work very well over SRP too.
Long term sealants only bond to a perfectly clean surface so anything like SRP will prevent a good bond meaning the coating will fail after around a month.
If you're not too concerned about swirls, a long term sealant like Nanolex Paint Sealant is nice to use and last up to 18 months, but again this needs a clean surface to bond.
If you want a long term coating without the swirls, I'd recommend getting a detailer to prepare the paint and apply the coating. That way it will be swirl free and the surface will be perfect for the coating to bond.
 
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Wheels....
have got a lot more other stuff, want to fully protect the car, will hopefully get time next week to clean it all deeply.

All the wheels will be coming off to clean them...

Although will practice on lucys old focus with the polisher before working on my car :)
 
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