Automotive detailing and paint protection services can be tricky to fully understand given all the different methods and products available. However, picking the right paint protection for your new or used car can be one of the best decisions you make when it comes to caring for your vehicle.
This post aims to answer some of your questions on automotive paint protection and simplify your car care experience:
- What is automotive paint protection & why is it important?
- What types of paint defects can your car acquire?
- What paint protection options exist?
- How to decide which paint protection coverage is best for me
What is Automotive Paint Protection?
Put simply, automotive paint protection aims to preserve your car’s paintwork by preventing elemental & physical damage.
If your car’s paint has been mistreated, our car detailing services will be able to restore a great shine. However, some paint damage and defects can be costly or difficult to fix.
Why is it important?
Whether you daily drive a compact sedan or enjoy a luxury sports car, your car is constantly exposed to extremely harsh road and weather conditions. These harsh conditions will result in dull paintwork caused by road salt, UV fading, chemical etchings, swirl marks, rock chips, and more.
Properly protecting your car’s paintwork ensures that it holds a stunning exterior appearance for many years.
When Should You Protect Your Car?
Your car’s paint is at risk of wear and tear the moment you drive it off the lot. For that reason, we always recommend protecting your car as early as you can.
Protecting your car early will save you the time and cost of repairing damage, which may be necessary depending on your selected paint protection options.
UnderStanding Paint Defects
Dull car paint is caused by a variety of paint defects, and understanding these paint defects can help you determine which paint protection is best for your car!
New Car Paint Defects
Your new car was likely delivered with imperfections in the paintwork that you weren’t aware of;
- Sanding marks caused by the manufacturer after the paint leveling process
- Embedded contaminants picked up during transportation
- Swirl marks caused by poor dealership car washing
- Buffing holograms caused by dealerships’ poor car detailing services
Rather than correcting these defects and applying proper paint protection, dealers will typically hide these defects with a filler wax. Your car may look stunning on delivery day, but the true condition will appear in a few weeks once the filler wax wears off.
Elemental & Physical Damage
Montreal’s harsh weather and poor road conditions contribute towards quickly dulling your paint;
- Dead bugs & bird droppings cause deep etching
- UV rays cause fading, oxidation, and clear coat failure
- Road salt contributes to accelerated corrosion and rusting
- Rocks, road salt, hail, and loose ice can result in chips, pitting, and scrapes
- Paint burns and etchings caused by harsh chemicals in tunnel washes
- Swirl marks & scratches caused by low quality hand car washing
View our exterior detail packages!
Paint Protection Options
Wax, Sealants, & Ceramic Coatings
Waxes, sealants, and ceramic coatings all aim to protect your paint from elemental damage, such as hard water spots, etchings, chemical stains, and UV fading. However, there are some key differences between these 3.
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Waxes
- Minimal UV & chemical resistance
- Minimal hydrophobic properties
- Weak durability (1-3 months)
-
Paint Sealants
- Moderate UV & chemical resistance
- Moderate hydrophobic properties
- Great durability (6-8 months)
Due to their weak durability, we’ve ditched waxes and made paint sealants the standard in our car detailing packages!
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Ceramic Coatings
- Highest possible protection from elemental damage
- Extreme UV & chemical resistance
- Extreme hydrophobic & self-cleaning properties
- Self-healing technology heals minor swirl marks under heat
- Extreme durability (2-7 years)
If you don’t want to worry about constantly applying a sealant every few seasons, our self-healing ceramic coating packages are your best bet for hassle-free paint protection.
Paint Protection Film
Paint protection film or “PPF” is a clear plastic film that is wrapped over your car’s panels. This plastic is precisely cut using a plotter and pattern software to ensure an exact fit on your car.
All of our paint protection film packages come with Suntek Ultra PPF, which is a top of the line film with the following characteristics:
- Self-healing technology heals film damage when exposed to heat
- Anti-yellowing
- Highly durable & resistant to physical damage
- 10 Year CarFax Warranty
You can read more about why we think PPF is the best paint protection available, but it comes down to the simple fact that no other paint protection option besides PPF will prevent lost paint caused by physical damage.
Request a quote today!
