New Car Paint Correcting Question

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TJKII

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Hi, I just bought a 2020 Nissan Sentra in December. It has a little more orange peel from the factory than I am used to. I have not waxed or coated it as yet. The dealer applied some kind of coating before putting the car in stock. It beads well. But I feel it doesn't shine to it's potential since it has the orange peel. I don't know how much clear coat I would have to sacrifice to correct this. What are your thoughts. I would appreciate any input you could give me.

Thanks,
Tom Koehler
 
I would not wet sand factory paint with the goals of removing orange peel. The clear coat is very thin and you might end up with a flat paint but also barely any clear coat to protect it. If you were to wrap the entire car in PPF, then maybe it's something to consider but to just remove that much clear to flatten the paint is too risky IMO.

You can buy a paint depth gauge to try and find out how much you have to work with but chances are, it's pretty thin.
 
I was thinking orange pad and 3D one or is that just as much risk to the clearcoat? I don't have the knowledge or nerve to wet just yet. I appreciate the input.
 
Unless you wet sand, you can’t get rid of orange peel, especially with a random orbital And wet sanding except for seasoned professionals With a paint gauge, is too dangerous.
 
Orange pad and 3D One will be fine. It won't help with orange peel though. You need a lot more cut to flatten orange peel. Usually wet sand or a denim pad with aggressive compound.
 
Thanks for the reply. I was going to use my Flex 3401. I thought that might be enough. It's not worth the risk to be any more aggressive than that. Maybe a couple of coats of Black Fire Hybrid Sealant will help with the reflection. Maybe a graphene topper.
 
TJKII said:
Thanks for the reply. I was going to use my Flex 3401. I thought that might be enough. It's not worth the risk to be any more aggressive than that. Maybe a couple of coats of Black Fire Hybrid Sealant will help with the reflection. Maybe a graphene topper.
Click to expand...
To get max reflection, it's all in the polishing. Getting rid of swirls and marring will give you the maximum gloss. IMO live with the orange peel.
 
Rsurfer said:
To get max reflection, it's all in the polishing. Getting rid of swirls and marring will give you the maximum gloss. IMO live with the orange peel.
Click to expand...

The paint is like new. The reflection is somewhat blurred due to the orange peel. My 2016 Ford I owned had much flatter paint surprisingly.
 
TJKII said:
The paint is like new. The reflection is somewhat blurred due to the orange peel. My 2016 Ford I owned had much flatter paint surprisingly.
Click to expand...

Unless you want to sand down the orange peel and repaint it, you're kinda stuck with what you have.

Most production cars are painted by robots today. I work for a Ford dealer, and I have seen some vehicles with very little OP, some with moderate OP, and some that are so bad that it is noticeable 10 feet away. (in the right light).

And I am not just picking on Ford. I own a Ram and a Jeep Wrangler. Same story.
 
That sucks to hear about your car. There is a new Nissan commercial for the Juke or similar compact SUV and there is a close up of the rear door at the beginning of the commercial and the orange peel jumps out. I said, wow, they’re advertising how bad their paint quality is.
 
A little off topic here and to no disrespect to OP.... I find the "want" to eliminate orange peel amusing. The only time I would flatten a factory paint is for a "garage queen" or someone's "toy" vehicle. You are just asking for it to do that on a DD. Most factory clear is already thin and getting thinner year by year, I been seeing some really thin paint on Japanese brands lately (somewhere around 2.5mil to 2.8 mil) from the factory. The margin of error is simply too great.

On the flip side... I worked on a classic 1980's era Porsche 911 once and the owner was very adamant that I dont flatten the paint. He said all original paint from that era has orange peel and he wanted keep the vehicle looking like that. The first thing he did after I was done was to inspect the orange peel. LOL
 
TJKII said:
It has a little more orange peel from the factory than I am used to.

I don't know how much clear coat I would have to sacrifice to correct this. What are your thoughts. I would appreciate any input you could give me.

Thanks,
Tom Koehler
Click to expand...


I explain in-depth the issues surrounding the topic of wetsanding FACTORY paint here,

Wetsanding - Fresh Paint vs Factory Paint


Then read this,

Clearcoats are thin by Mike Phillips



Then read this,

Wetsanding removes paint - Compounding removes paint - Polishing removes a little paint



Then if you really want a different perspective - BEFORE you do any sanding - take your car to a couple of reputable body shops and ask them how much it will cost to repaint JUST the hood. Let that sink in.


The factory paint is thin to start with - even if you, or myself or someone else really skilled at machine sanding were able to wetsand and remove the orange peel, compound and polish and NEVER go through the clear layer of topcoat pain - you would now have an incredibly thin layer of clearcoat over the car to protect it over the mechanical service life of the car and this escalates the risk for clearcoat failure down the road.


If it were me and my new car?

I would,

  1. Wash and dry
  2. Clay
  3. Machine polish
  4. Use a panel wipe
  5. Install a coating


Stick a fork in it and call it done. Enjoy the car knowing you did what was best.



:)
 
Mike Phillips said:
I explain in-depth the issues surrounding the topic of wetsanding FACTORY paint here,

Wetsanding - Fresh Paint vs Factory Paint


Then read this,

Clearcoats are thin by Mike Phillips



Then read this,

Wetsanding removes paint - Compounding removes paint - Polishing removes a little paint



Then if you really want a different perspective - BEFORE you do any sanding - take your car to a couple of reputable body shops and ask them how much it will cost to repaint JUST the hood. Let that sink in.


The factory paint is thin to start with - even if you, or myself or someone else really skilled at machine sanding were able to wetsand and remove the orange peel, compound and polish and NEVER go through the clear layer of topcoat pain - you would now have an incredibly thin layer of clearcoat over the car to protect it over the mechanical service life of the car and this escalates the risk for clearcoat failure down the road.


If it were me and my new car?

I would,

  1. Wash and dry
  2. Clay
  3. Machine polish
  4. Use a panel wipe
  5. Install a coating


Stick a fork in it and call it done. Enjoy the car knowing you did what was best.
Click to expand...



Thanks for you input. I really appreciate it.


:dblthumb2:
 
What would you recommend for the polish step? I was considering HD one and an orange pad. Would that be too aggressive?
 
TJKII said:
Hi, I just bought a 2020 Nissan Sentra in December. It has a little more orange peel from the factory than I am used to. I have not waxed or coated it as yet. The dealer applied some kind of coating before putting the car in stock.
Click to expand...

TJKII said:
What would you recommend for the polish step?

I was considering HD one and an orange pad. Would that be too aggressive?
Click to expand...


No. 3D One is a great Compound/Polish but it's definitely NOT a super aggressive compound.

I do actually really like this product and in fact, used it on the last two cars I detailed. What I like is the super long buffing cycle. Zero dusting. Stays wet on the surface. Easy wipe off.


You mentioned an orange pad but not the tool?


I hate guessing but end up doing on this forum all the time. So I'm guessing the orange pad is something from Lake Country or Griot's? If so this will be fine on just about any tool except a rotary polishers.


:)
 
TJKII said:
Hi, I just bought a 2020 Nissan Sentra in December. It has a little more orange peel from the factory than I am used to. I have not waxed or coated it as yet. The dealer applied some kind of coating before putting the car in stock.
Click to expand...

TJKII said:
What would you recommend for the polish step?

I was considering HD one and an orange pad. Would that be too aggressive?
Click to expand...


No. 3D One is a great Compound/Polish but it's definitely NOT a super aggressive compound.

I do actually really like this product and in fact, used it on the last two cars I detailed. What I like is the super long buffing cycle. Zero dusting. Stays wet on the surface. Easy wipe off.


I'm guessing the orange pad is something from Lake Country?

If so this will be fine on just about any tool except a rotary polishers.


:)
 
I have a beast and a porter cable. The pad is lake country CCS. Sorry for the lack of info.
 
TJKII said:
I have a beast and a porter cable. The pad is lake country CCS. Sorry for the lack of info.
Click to expand...


No problemo - I'm a speed typist so it's easy for me to always be very exact and thorough.


The Lake Country Orange CCS pad will work find on both tools and also work fine with the 3D One.

If it were me? I would do a Test Spot first, for example on the hood or trunk lid - then inspect closely and make sure the paint looks like you hope and dream about before buffing out the entire car.



:)
 
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