[Gbingham93]

Hey everyone,

This week I purchased my first car ( I have owned 2 cheap beaters and 1 motorcycle but nothing worth taking great care of... minus the Harley haha ).

I purchased a 2016 *** Honda Civic Touring..... at the dealer i initially accepted the dealership sealant ( Simoniz Glass coat) but when i got home i did some math and research as would end up paying around 1,000 for the coating... so i quickly canceled the purchase as the car was still not delivered to the dealership and re-signed for no coating.

Now i really want to coat my car as after only 100 miles of driving, it has a small pencil tip sized chip in the pain on the front bumper on the driver side a few inches above the Honda Sensing pocket ( near the fog light)...... This is really bugging me as i can see the black plastic thats behind the paint... sure its only the size of a pepper flake but its only 100 miles old!

So this is where i stand.....

I have about $1,200 that Im able to spend this year on car maint. and since its new, the main reason to spend money would be visual upkeep such as washing and touch ups so i have been looking into xpel and Opticoat pro+ ... the other option would be weekly washing ( roughly 500-600$ a year) plus bi or tri monthly waxing with 2 deep detailings which would end up being around 700-800$
obviously cheaper if i wash at home but i may not have access to a hose so it may be my only option to go to automatic washes most of the time ( ALLWAYS touch-less)

So what would be your opinions on paint protection and top 3 tips for a new civic owner?

Thanks!

 

[Jesstzn]

Look into Optimum No Rinse for hoseless washing .. get yourself a good Sheepskin mitt and a couple Waffle Weave drying towels and do it yourself .. Touchless car washes are hard on the paint protection due to the harsh soaps used .. Wax it yourself .. use Meguiars #21 or Duragloss #105, both are excellent sealants and easy to use. .. get a bundle of M/F towels from Costco for wax removal.

 

[B20Vtec]

Opinions on paint protection, go and get the Xpel Ultimate experience done and live stress free lol. Definitely a good chunk of money considering the work they have to do prior to even installing the ppf. But worth the dollars. Once that's applied you're really good to go. You can go ahead and use the Xpel coating (like a wax) every three months, but it's not fully necessary. BUT it will save you time and money in the long run and last a darn long time.

 

[4Tires]

If you don't have access to a hose, there should be those $5 wash your own car places where you pay to use their hoses and water.

 

[Bandito]

Paint protection with today's automobile paints is nothing more than a sham. Simply wash your car on occasion and after you've had it for a few months (3-6) apply a good car wax a couple of times a year and you'll be good to go.

Paint protection, unless it is some sort of plastic wrap, will not prevent chips from road debris anyway, so it really does nothing but line the manufacturer's pockets and make you 'feel' better about your car's paint.

My top 3 tips for the Civic Touring are to drive it, enjoy it, and kick in the turbos once in a while just for the thrill of it.

 

[B20Vtec]

Paint protection with today's automobile paints is nothing more than a sham. Simply wash your car on occasion and after you've had it for a few months (3-6) apply a good car wax a couple of times a year and you'll be good to go.

Paint protection, unless it is some sort of plastic wrap, will not prevent chips from road debris anyway, so it really does nothing but line the manufacturer's pockets and make you 'feel' better about your car's paint.

My top 3 tips for the Civic Touring are to drive it, enjoy it, and kick in the turbos once in a while just for the thrill of it.

Why would you wait a few months to wax it ??

I agree that paint protection offered by the manufacturer is usually a "sham" but the right paint protection in general can be very beneficial. Obviously it won't stop paint chips, but they don't claim to do that either ?

 

[Smith]

What i'm starting to consider is the fact our paint might be really soft and if Honda was looking to cut back on an area that won't tarnish what they're mainly known for, then cheaping out on paint is not a bad idea after all. Hopefully that's not the case though, otherwise we'll need to be more proactive about it than owners of other cars.

 

[4Tires]

I guess it's really down to the owner, I know I'm the kind of person to not care about the exterior looks after a few paint chips. After a certain point, I just go with the damage and not worry too much unless it's a huge scratch.

Best protection is going to be a wrap but that's not really cheap, maybe just wrap the front where most of the debris hits?

 

[B20Vtec]

That's about it. Work within the means and you can always just do the front bumper, hood, and mirrors ?

 

[fear24]

kinda like 4tires...my hood looks absolutely horrible. black paint, primer they use is white...and all the road rash, chips, scratches from debris...hood is just plain crappy looking. now, the rest of the car....looks **** good still.

if i were to do it all over again, i'd invest in the vinyl or plastic protective wrap on hood, bumper and mirrors. that $$ is well spent if it keeps me from an entire hood repaint few years later.

 

[Smith]

Also educating yourself on proper washing techniques to remove that mess will help, even if you have vinyl on your car you still need to follow a procedure.

 

[Killmonr]

I drive alot and the bugs on front of are killer.