Should I have paint protection on new car?

Goudy

At that price you were right to say no thanks, but it's not always a bad idea to get the paint protected but a lot depends on what they use and how they use it.

You can buy these products yourself but you can also get the same results with a few cheaper, over the counter products with a little elbow grease.

Polishes cut back the paint or more likely lacquered surface as all modern cars are lacquered these days, so they are pretty hard wearing.

You probably won't need to polish the surface for a good while as it's new. It just needs a good wash to remove the dirt and grit and waxing to give the surface a seal for a few years. (when I say a good wash, you need to read up how to do that)

To start with, you probably want to wash it down really well and seal it with a decent wax twice a year and then use a quick wax or detailer over it after washes in between. It takes moments to wipe it over like this.

Later as the car gets older, things like fallout (tiny particles sticking to the paint) need removing as does any tar spots. Swirls and tiny scratches in the lacquer probably need polishing out then as well after a year or two.

You can also return the lacquer to a glass like finish with a clay bar before waxing/sealing again, but you are years off this if you put some effort sealing the new paint now.

How much work depends on the colour. Cars at the red end of the colour spectrum tend to need a little more effort as the paint absorbs more energy from the sunlight, so I would generally up the wax seal to perhaps three or four times a year.

My other half bought a red car back in 2014 which the mother in law now has. She did pay for paint protection back then and I must admit, it has done okay needing little more than a wash and quick wax.

My current car has a tri-coat orange finish and it's lacquer seems to be really hard like glass. It takes little effort to keep on top of it, probably 4 or 5 hours a year.

Penelopa.Pitstop

I can see that prices went up a bit. Last "forced" paint protection by the dealer for Audi A8 was £495. I said no, as soon as I saw it on invoice, but he said it was free. Obviously it wasn't free, they just discounted the car and put it on top, so salesman can earn extra commission. Leasing company was paying the invoice, so I didn't care too much. But told dealer that I don't want it, so in the end, they said they will make sure to do a good job. It wasn't bad and car was easier to clean.

And in Mercedes, they added "free" protection on 2y old car. That was a joke. Car had a lot of tar and other contamination everywhere and they probably smeared polish on top of it. It took me whole weekend to clean it.

I plan to put ceramic coating on my new car and already checked the prices of products. I think, it will be below £100 including everything. Of course, have to do it myself.

sheslookinhot

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82012333#Comment_82012333

What “ceramic” product do you intend to use ?

None of the ceramic companies I spoke to, prior to getting my car ceramic coated, sell product unless the detailer had been trained and accredited by the manufacturer.

Penelopa.Pitstop

I checked number of videos to see which coatings have best reviews (how they looked after some time) and then checked prices online. Just checked and no issue with buying online.

Bandy2023

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6669650/should-i-have-paint-protection-on-new-car

No, it's often applied badly and it's a rubbish £40 kit anyway.

I have a theory that they apply paint protection to all their cars anyway, then just hope 90% of people pay, they let the 10% that don't pay go.

This is based on me seeing cars that clearly have a paint treatment, but I know for a fact the owner hasn't paid.

Bandy2023

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82012333#Comment_82012333

Applying a permanent ceramic protection is fine, if done properly.

But there are also plenty of easy to use ceramic snow foams you can use.

After I wash my car I just spray on the ceramic snow foam, then instantly wash it off before drying the car.

They last ages, I only really have to do it a couple of times a year.

Just a suggestion

Frozen_up_north

The dealer I have bought several cars from always adds paint protection for “free” to new cars. Not sure why, as it makes no difference to the trade-in price and after a few months it is hard to tell if there is any paintwork protection or not.

I wouldn’t pay for any paint protection…

fatbelly

I have some of this arriving Monday after seeing good reviews online. Will report back.