Baadnewsburr

iTrader: (3)

I was thinking powdercoating those hats would be cool and worth the effort till I saw 4DRZ's pic of how much actually shows up behind the wheel...between silver/black/gunmetal it doesnt seem worth it...on the other hand if you paint them something that really pops (maybe that S2000 pearl yellow) you will just see a little bit of them at certain angles if at all so it won't look too flashy but what you do see will really pop when you can see it.

4DRZ

iTrader: (7)

I just meant it seemed like an odd color choice. I was not sure if you were trying to color match something else on your car.

ToXIc

iTrader: (2)

Great idea. I may need to do this same lol.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Last month, someone posted a pic of their car in the "show off your sedans" thread. I commented about the shine, and they were talking about a synthetic liquid wax product called "Gloss Sauce".

https://www.myg37.com/forums/g37-sed...ml#post4255325

I did some research on Litium Products: http://lithiumautocare.com/

...and it's been stuck in my head for a while. Finally broke down and bought a bottle of their Sealant, called "Seal and Squeal". It's expensive, at $40 for a 16 oz bottle.



So today I played with it for the first time, using my duckfeet as guinea pigs. The car is 8 years old, and the first 3 years I ran these Sport 18" wheels year round. Then 5 years ago they got relegated to Winter Wheel status. They would each get cleaned, claybar'd and waxed every Fall, around this time of year. All in all, they've held up pretty good. Not perfect, but you'd have to look for flaws (like the 1" area where the finish wore off on the wheel to the right. Don't know how that happened.)

Anyway, here are the two rear wheel. They were both cleaned, and claybar'd. Then the wheel on the left got a layer of Seal and Squeal. The wheel on the right doesn't have any sealant or wax. Notice how the light reflections on the left are precise, with shadows. Whereas the reflections in the wheel on the right is diffuse. Both tires are equidistant from ceiling lights, which you can see in the shadows between them.

So I'm going to keep going with this sealant, and try it out on my wife's Subaru next.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

I'm using the Seal & Squeal on the G, having clayed and sealed the hood and trunk this morning. I wanted to try it on the wife's Subaru, but she's got her car all weekend. So I'm using the G.

So-o-o much easier to apply and remove than the Meguiar's UPW, with a really great shine, and definitely a more slick surface. Is it superior to the Mequiar's? How will it hold up to time and weather? One thing I'm feeling is how easy it would be to go through the whole bottle, and that observation butts right up to the premium cost. At this point, I think 16oz is enough for two cars.

But I've got this bottle, and need to prep the cars for winter, so I'm taking this on a few body panels at a time.

Here's a tip: if your applicator is such that you're getting the stuff on your fingers, then just put on a rubber glove first. Because your finger tips will take on a blue-ish hue that could last a few days.

So... that happened.

2GoRNot2G

iTrader: (5)

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Right. Well, that's easier said that done. It's difficult to capture things like shine and reflection in a picture.

But anyway, here's my wife's 2018 Forester. She took the girls and went on a roa dtrip with a friend and her friend's car, so I've been cleaning it all weekend. Claybar and sealant (and everything else).Still working on it now, but taking a break. FWIW, here are a few pictures. 35,000 miles and two Western NY winters.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

I am so done cleaning these two cars. Long weekend. Both are tucked away in the garage, and here's a couple pics trying to demonstrate the shine after being claybarred and sealed.

The first is the Subaru, and you can see the Vossens on the G in the reflection.



The second is the G, and you can see the Subby's 18" wheels in the reflection:

4DRZ

iTrader: (7)

I agree that it is really difficult to capture that shine in a regular picture. I noticed the same thing on my car once I put on the new ceramic Auto Armor this year. The paint just pops out at you like never before. It is hard to explain, but it looks amazing now. The other thing I noticed with this ceramic coating is that I have not had to clay bar the car this year- and that even includes doing a few track days with lots of super hot brake dust. I always dreaded having to spend 2-3 hours with liquid wax and a clay bar after a track day. So far so good.

I also noticed with the ceramic coating that the car is a lot easier to keep clean in general. Bugs come off much quicker. We have had a lot of rain this year and I have hardly had to wash my car at all. In fact, I think it has been a few months since I have washed the car. I honestly don't remember. The first time I washed the car I was in a hurry and did not get a chance to dry it. I was on the highway for less than two miles. When I got home I got out and grabbed a towel to dry my car off, but it was already dry without any water spots. I am really digging this ceramic Auto Armor.

2GoRNot2G

iTrader: (5)

Yeah, I agree, it's definitely very hard to capture the depth of shine and overall color in photos. That said, both cars turned our great. What never ceases to amaze me is how good the factory paint is on our cars, especially when compared to other makes. The pictures you just posted really show this perfectly.... I notice how much more orange peal the paint on the Subby is when compared side-by-side with your G37. Out of the 5 cars that my wife and I currently own, the OEM paint on my G is better than all the rest, just slightly edging out the paint on my Porsche (which is almost 30 years old).

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

That's true about the Subaru's paint... noticeable orange peel, right from the factory.

BTW, I was mistaken about the yield from 16 oz. of product. I still have approximately half left in the bottle.

That was the Seal & Sqeal. What did you think of the Gloss Sauce that you ordered? Use it yet?

4DRZ

iTrader: (7)

I was reading an article the other day about Infiniti's "self-healing paint or scratch shield." I remember reading about this a while ago. The clear coat is a bit flexible and manages to repair fine scratches with the elasticity of the clear coat. I think our cars have this, but I could be wrong.

2GoRNot2G

iTrader: (5)

That's good to know. Sounds like you can probably expect 4 full applications out of a 16 oz bottle. Which seems pretty reasonable to me, specially if you only have to use it once or twice a year.

I have not had chance to try the Gloss Sauce yet. Wanting to try it out on my Porsche first, since that car is in some dire need of detailing. That car is also black, so that should provide a nice little challenge for the new product.

When I first bought my G the dealer really touted the "self-healing" paint thing, but for obvious reasons I was skeptical about it. However, several years after I bought the car it was hit by a shopping cart while parked at the grocery store. The damage was isolated to the lower portion of the right rear door and thankfully there was only minor paint damage. At first I thought I was going to be able to buff away all of the scuff marks, but I quickly realized that there were some very fine scratches that actually went all the way down to the base coat and couldn't be buffed out. So I did some research regarding the elf-healing paint and discovered that heating the area is supposed to help speed up the process. So, I decided to try hitting the area with a heat gun to see if that would help and the results were almost immediate. I ever brought my wife out to watch so she could make sure I wasn't loosing my mind. The scratches virtually disappeared and the only time you can tell they were every there is if you shine the light off that are at just the right angle and the paint looks slightly wavy where the scratches were. Pretty amazing.

Incidentally I also have the xPel self healing PPF (paint protection film) on the front end of my car and it works in much the same way... Just apply heat and minor scratches/scuffs virtually disappear. Keep in mind that this doesn't work for larger/wider scratches that I've gotten in the xPel film that is installed on the lower portion of my front lip over the years.

4DRZ

iTrader: (7)

That is awesome! I will be sure to pull out the heat gun and give it a whirl the next time I get a fine scratch.

2GoRNot2G

iTrader: (5)

Just make sure to use one of the lower settings on your heat gun, because most heat guns can reach temperatures of 1000°F and above at their full or high setting, which would more than likely damage your paint. I use a Makita heat gun, which has 9 or 10 different settings from around 120°F up to over 1000°F. I typically use setting 3 or 4, which is probably around 350°F or 400°F.