Detailing new Tacoma

I agree that there is no better way to inspect a vehicle than to wash it and dry it. One step better might be to wax it too.

It's amazing what you miss during a visual inspection but find when you wash it. I think it's because washing and drying it forces you to look at every area of every panel.

Yes, if I could wash my new vehicle before signing for it, that would be ideal...

 

My truck is the black sand pearl and he said it has several more coats of clear coat on it than the other colors, and for some reason because of that he said don't wax it for a year.

 

Thanks.
Just ordered the infamous 'Wookie Mitt' and some Dodo supplies as well as a "Cookie Monster" buffing towel. Got to love the names of this stuff.

 

Sounds suspicious to me. Paint is applied with robots and the amount they use is tightly controlled from a cost and environmental perspective.

I have a paint gauge and I just might take a trip to my local Toyota dealer to debunk his story!

 

How many mils thick is the average paint job supposed to be?

 

My Tacoma is about 3 to 4 mils. It varies by location, based on the overlap from the robots that paint the vehicle.

I have checked other vehicles from other manufacturers and this seems to be typical. I'm sure there are exceptions, however.

Just to clarify, 3 to 4 mils is 0.003" to 0.004". As a reference, a typical business card is 10 mils or 0.010". So a business card is about three times thicker than your paint is.

In that 3 to 4 mils is the primer, sealer, basecoat and clearcoat. My GUESS is that the clearcoat is about 1 mil thick, but let me stress again that this is my guess.

A repaint is typically thicker, because it's hard to compete with the efficiency of a robot. So, measuring paint thickness is an excellent way to tell if repair works has been done. 5-10 mils usually means a repaint, but this does vary my manufacturer so you need to take multiple readings to figure out the situation. When you get significantly over 10 mils you are talking Bondo (a filler) and that can be a problem if the work was not done well and it is really thick.

Before you get too excited about getting one of these, realize that they are VERY expensive. Mine was $700 and it was hard to justify the expense even in the business I am in. But it is a fun toy and there is no substitute for it.

 

clay bar and 3 step clean/wax/polish it

 

My suggestion would be to tell the dealer to leave the protective film on and you will remove it after you take delivery of the truck. You shouldn't have any bonded contaminants on a new truck, after you've washed and dried you can run your hand over the paint to feel any crud bonded to the surface. I would guess it will be smooth, so you wouldn't need to clay it.

So wash with automotive car wash with the 2 bucket method with grit guards using microfiber mitt or lambs wool. Dry it with some sort of soft microfiber towel or towels. Then inspect with your hand feeling for bonded trash in the paint. If it feels nice and smooth the next step would be to polish it. I use Meguiars but there are many brands out there. After it is polished move on to waxing. Generally two thinly applied coats of wax will do. Hope this helps.

 

you wouldnt expect that, but check the 2nd page of this thread

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1s...bar-cleaner-wax-polish-painted-fenders-2.html

 

A new truck sitting on the lot for a month or two could very well have crap bonded to the paint but if the OP has ordered the truck and asked that the protective film not be removed he should be in good shape. Either way he will be able to tell just by feeling the paint.

 

I had a couple hard water marks that I couldn't get off. Vinegar and water fixed that up real nice. Then I washed it with dish soap then I laid on some Mothers wax.

Cheers.

 

a clay bar is going to remove any wax like residue from paint anyway, right?

so, why wash with anything to "strip wax" if you are going to clay anyways?

 

+1, but wash first.......

 

This is what I did when I first received my Tacoma. The finish still looks good after 8K miles and most of the winter finished.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/52123-detailed-taco-weekend.html

Take your time and do a great job. I already knew Zaino would last a long time but the Fuzion topper has really impressed me.

I have a minor scratch on the passengers door and on the passenger side rear quarter panel. Cannot wait for spring to get here and detail the Tacoma for the summer.

 

Nice job 95. I almost ordered my new Taco this past week but issue at dealer where the Mrs in finance called me at work to cancel our appt to sign papers and order the truck because she had to go get her nails done. I kid you not, that's what she said. I am now waiting on other dealers for a price.

 

Makes you really question if you want to purchase at that dealership.

I had a similar type incident when I bought my Tacoma back in August. I did go to another dealer.

 

I'm not sure this is really about the dealer. Some employees are just lame.

I bet if the GM of the dealership knew what was going on she wouldn't be getting her nails done while blowing off a customer.

 

Hopefully you are correct.

I am a pretty no nonsense kind of a guy. I believe that if the GM let an important finance employee act like this then the rest of the dealership follows suit.

That is just me.

 

I don't think he knows that it happened yet. The salesman was best kind and you couldn't ask for better. Right now I cannot picture myself going back on that lot without a new Tacoma bought at another dealer just for a look.

 

GM wasn't too happy and apologized several times. Got a nice deal and should have my truck by the end of the month.
b.

This time of year I may just run it through the brushless wash untill I can properly detail it.