detailing over expel

What I have done over Xpel is to either apply a sealant (Blackfire Wet Diamond) or a wax. I do this in order to maintain the "finish" of the Xpel. I have not yet done it, (but plan on it in the future) is to apply a coating (e.g. Gyeon or Kamikaze) over my Suntek film. The reason I am doing this is to maintain the look of the film for a longer period of time (this will be new film). Film deteriorates like paint if not properly maintained and I woudl say that film deteriorates faster than paint. If you do nothing to your film, you'll start to see a difference between it and your paint. For a daily driver a feel this is more important than a car that is garaged and only driven on nice days.

I'm not an expert with films but this is my thinking and it is only my opinion based on my vehicles. Hope this helps.

 

Films are designed to prevent chips and scratches, it still benefits from being cleaned and a sealant makes that easier to clean.

 

use a sealant regularly. From the xpel site...
Seal with XPEL Flawless Finish Paint Protection Film Sealant at least once every 3 months to preserve high gloss
You can use wax or synthetic according to the guys who installed my xpel film


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Synthetics or sealants seem to work the best over Xpel. I wouldn't use a cleaner wax or a Carnauba personally.

 

I would definitely recommend topping Xpel with some type of wax, sealant, or coating. While Xpel is a great product and is warrantied against yellowing, a film is no different than clear coat on your car. It needs to be cared for in order to get the full lifespan out of it. UV exposure, bird droppings, and chemical exposure will degrade the film over time if left unprotected. Although you install Xpel to protect the paint, for the amount money you spend on the film, protect that investment as well. Even if you just wax the film, I highly recommend doing something.

 

Wolfgang Deep Gloss or Pinnacle Black Label sealants are excellent products, both offer great depth and gloss while being easily applied and removed. Plus they have UV protection for vehicles that see more sun.

 

It depends on what your looking for. Ease of application or best durability? For a sealant that checks both of those boxes relatively well, I would recommend Gtechniq C2V3. You can simply spray it on a microfiber, spread it over the surface, then buff it off after 30 seconds or so. For how easy it is to use and maintain, you can expect about 6 months durability and pretty good gloss and slickness with each application.

 

No, cleaning is cleaning; the removal of dirt and sediment if you prefer.

That's why there are other words like claying, compounding, correcting, polishing, buffing, and sealing.

The clear bra just like paint benefits from being hydrophobic and a sealant does exactly this. The use of a ceramic coating will provide lasting durability or you can periodically apply a non-ceramic sealant as you would to the clearcoat.

Good films like Xpel or Suntek only require basking in the sun for accumulated microscratches disappear. Deeper scratches that are permanent can be buffed out from the clear bra.

Care Instructions - XPEL

Removing Scratches

Most scratches in the film can be removed using a rotary or dual-action buffer. For best results, it is recommended to use 3M Perfect-It Machine Polish (part number 06064) used with their color coded buffing pad (Part number 05738). If needed, this product can be followed by 3M Perfect-It Ultrafine Machine Polish (part number 06068) used with the blue pad (part number 05733) to restore a deep, swirl free shine.

 

My detail guy up here who did the wrap on my old 348 said only use rubbing alcohol aside from normal detail products. Not sure I would use the bug and tar stuff but claying, waxing and deswirling should be ok. Just don't go any harder.

 

Putting a coating over your SunTek or other ppf really helps in the washing. It also makes waterspots easier to remove. Just like having your car shrink wrapped to protect it from stone chips and keying is a level of protection above normal care, so is coating it, the wheels and windshield (not the same product for each) a level above that. In the US, high end full wrap is $6k and the best coatings can add another $1.5-1.8k to that.

 

I assume you mean a 60/40 dilution of Isopropyl alcohol with distilled water? Be careful using a IPA wipe down prior to waxing with cheap painters tape. There have been instances where the IPA soaked underneath the tape and actually softened the paint underneath. I assume the alcohol dwelt underneath and reacted with the chemical make up of the tape and caused the paint/clear coat issues. If you tape off chrome/plastis, etc use a detailing grade masking tape to avoid any possible damage. And always wipe off the panel you apply a IPA to asap.

 

Right! Sheesh, I saw that on my old 348 with new paint.

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Quixx plastic polish works great on spider top windows. Getting near the edge is always hard.

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No need to tape off with IPA mix, just make sure it is thoroughly dry.

I've used 90% and let it dwell for a couple minutes and it caused zero damage to either the clear coat, Suntek clear bra, or ceramic treated area.

I've heard the same horror story with IPA trapped under the clear bra. The bottom line is whomever did this totally misused it.

 

The taping was for the compounding phase, where the IPA was misted afterward to remove any oily residue prior to wax. In this case the problem was the type of tape used rather than the technique. Personally I mist the IPA on a MF towel and wipe off the residue and dry with another MF.

 

a coating will be your best bet, modesta will be the beast you can have applied professionally. It looks amazing, protects amazingly.

The Gtechnique liquid crystal v3 is a great product, simple and effective for 3 to 6 months.

A sealant wax would be the next best thing, done every 3 months.

doing nothing is not an option.

For cleaning, grab some P21s total auto wash. Use it for spot cleaning of bugs and track marble/road tar. DO NOT USE IPA as it will cause the film to degrade and yellow. NO SOLVANTS on the film, no carnuba on the film. Synthetics or glass coatings only.

 

Would the amount of carnauba in a wash and wax be a problem? I just bought a new bottle and completely forgot about this thread.

 

I wouldn't use it. If you let it dwell and dry on the clear bra it can stain it, which is something you risk with any non-clean rinsing car wash. The no touch drive through washes with the rainbow sealant are especially evil at creating stains in a short period of time.

A clean rinsing wash like Chemical Guys or something specifically designed for a clean rinse is worth picking up and will not interfere with top-up of the ceramic coatings or synthetic polishes. If you are following it up with your favorite polish or sealant applied by DA or rotary, then that slight polishing action won't be an issue with the trace carnuba content of the wash.

I wouldn't use a wash and wax soap like this in a foam gun in case of build up.

 

Hmm OK, I guess I can keep it for the Miata which has no clear wrap on it at all and I just clay-ed and swirl-exed it. Needs another was and then wax.

 

It would be useful for the wheels but I don't know how durable it really is. I end up using spray wax and cloth wipe on the wheels.

 

PPF needs some type of sealant as most on here have said. We wash, clay, use sealants, polish and even use coatings on the cars we detail that have film. You have to treat PPF the same you would paint. Why spend 5-10K on film and then let it waste away? Don't be scared of it, just treat it the same way you would paint. The film still gets contaminated the same way paint does so yearly/bi yearly claying is recommended. When we are coating a car in Cquartz Finest we will perform a light polish on the film and coat it as well. After 3 years on some of my clients cars the film (and paint) look as they did the first day and water rolls off the film. Helps to keep it clean longer, easier to clean and maintain. I can't comment on Modesta since I don't use it, the only coatings I use are Cquartz and Cquartz Finest.