Congratulations on the new Mustang!
Few data points on Ford paint. PTG readings come in at 3.5 to 6 mils. Secondly, the clear coat on newer S550’s is rock solid. Thirdly the hind quarters (above the tires, the part that sticks out the most) is the most susceptible to sand and fine particles beating and pitting the paint. Metallic paint will hide this, non metallic paint won’t.
I highly inspected my new GT/CA prior to purchasing. After 1500 miles of desert and canyon driving is, small pitting in the hind haunches that wasn’t there when I bought the car.
I re-detailed the entire car (3 step with coating... again) prior to my surgery in June and observed: , that when a DA is taken to them appear to change the shape to appear to be small fractures. In other words polishing seems to level the clearcoat and cause a weird anomaly. Again OCD stuff here.
Of course all of this is under LED lighting, and magnifying lenses to look at the abnormalities and the most susceptible areas of the vehicle…
When these spots were examined under a 3X scope, I noticed they were actually small little tiny pits, indicating that the are some form of sand putting, from a distance look like little tick marks when the light hits them, yet up close almost look like little water spots. You really have to be OCD to see them.
Thinking I had some weird anomaly in my paint, I then turned to my 15-year-old garage queen mustang, I noticed the same anomaly that I’d never noticed in all the years I’ve owned it. And red hides the defects better than white. Brand new white paint seems to reflect everything! Likewise I noticed the same thing in my wife’s seven-year-old red Honda Fit.
So after learning all this, what does this mean?
Put some clear bra in the front of the car to protect it from the obvious big crater rock chips that will actually remove paint from the vehicle…, Polish out any obvious swirls and scratches, put a good level of protection on the car from the elements, then drive the hell out of it and enjoy it. Patina and all.
But take my information at the top as pure data points when it comes to polishing and or compounding the car, my observations have been on the new S550’s you’re not working with a lot of paint, and the clearcoat is very hard. Metallic paint will hide everything, Clear enamel paint will show everything regardless of how much your compound and polish.
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