Advice for keeping a black truck clean

The worst enemy of your black paint - CATS Damn cats!!! They love black cars and trucks. Regular occurrence on my Miata.

 

Just paint it white

 

Good news for KBB (kelly Blue Book) They say black is the third most popular color for a light pickup.

"...Light Trucks, which make up 50.9% of the new vehicle market, are unique from all other categories in that white is the preferred color for these vehicles. This has been the case for more than 10 years. Silver and black round out the top three color choices:"

1. White - 19.3%
2. Silver - 18%
3. Black - 12.4%
4. Med. Dark Blue - 11.4%
5. Med. Dark Gray - 7.5%
6. Med. Red - 7.1%
7. Med. Dark Green - 6.7%
8. Light Brown - 5.1%
9. Bright Red - 4.5%
10. Gold - 1.8%

 

Sorry--- ha what I said was kinda confusing, I agree. When I said "if you must"... That was in reference to chamois use. What I meant was this: "If you must use a chamois, blot dry only."

Never swipe or wipe with a chamois. A chamois with small particles of dust/dirt underneath is like sandpaper. There's no place for the particles to go. With microfibers, there is a "plushness" to them into with the particles can migrate, so they don't end up being dragged across the surface.

So, "if you must" use a chamois, blot dry only. That's what I meant. With the microfibers, it's ok to wipe, as long as you have high quality towels.

As far as hard water goes, if You get it off before it dries on its own, I wouldn't worry too much about it. When it dries on its own and leaves deposits behind-- that's when you have to worry.

I like synthetic chamois. I'll never use a natural one again. The synthetics are cheap and you can just toss it when it's dirty. I like the absorbers. I maybe use three per year. Every couple of washes I wash them by hand in the sink with dish soap and rinse well.

On the horizontal surfaces (hood, roof), I just grab two corners of the absorber and sorta flip it like spreading a blanket on a bed- let it land on the surface, then pick it up and do another spot. You can do it a few times before wringing it out.

On the vertical portions of the vehicle, I grab by two corners and just let the towel hang and sorta press it up against the sides of the vehicle. No need to get all the nooks and crannies. You're just getting the bulk of the water off, not every last drop. It's really quick. 3-5 mins and you're done. Hit the Windows with it, too.

Then you go back with your large high quality microfiber and blot/wipe as necessary to get the remaining water. I do the Windows first before the towel is really wet. If you want, this would also be the time to spray on a drying aid (spray on after the absorber, before the microfiber- I don't use drying aid on the windshield though).

With the microfiber, work from the top to the bottom portion of the vehicle (Windows, hood, roof, tailgate, and upper two thirds of the sides). I then switch to a designated (older) towel for the bottom 1/3 of the vehicle (this is where most grime likes to stick).

Another tip-- there's a little lip under all the fenders. It's easy to miss this when washing and it's an easy place for your dangling drying towel to pick up sand/dirt particles as you're drying (swipe it with your finger- I bet its black under there). I like to go around with a damp wash cloth and wipe these areas off as my very first step when washing a vehicle. Then I'm sure that no particles from there will get stuck on my wash mitt or in my drying towel (and then abraded elsewhere on the vehicle). I also do this under the doors- there's about a 2" lip that holds a lot of grime (especially in the winter).

OCD, probably. It's not for everyone. But if you like to take care of your stuff and keep it looking as nice as you can- every little thing helps. And to be honest, it's not like it really adds any time. You just do it right.

 

Park it in the sun!

 

Sun? What's that??? I live in Washington.

 

I'll probably trade my black Tacoma off this winter. Just came back from hand washing it and the birds bombed it 2 days ago, looks like dried spit on my shiny black paint. I use Eagle One Wax As U-Dry after washing with Turtle Wax Ice Car Wash Soap. I wash my truck once a week. Guess I am going to have to get used to it until I can trade it in.

 

The spots are there permanently? If so, try a cleaner wax or polish.

 

I would say yes. I rubbed them pretty good with Wax As U-Dry after I dried my truck and you could still see them etched in the black paint. If I would of known Toyota didn't spray clear coat over there black paint I would of never bought it. What name brand cleaner wax you talking about? Or polish?

 

Trucks aren't supposed to be clean and shiny.

 

I've got a rocking ahine on my black Miata. Get complements all the time.

I use Meguiars Carnuba Wax. Apply exery 6 months

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?25310-The-MYTHS-of-Carnauba-waxClick here

 

Air tight sealed container on the bottom of the ocean or this will happen.

 

If it is a street princess like mine it is.

 

Bird shit etches paint regardless of how the clear is added to vehicle. The only way to fix is a machine polisher. It will easily correct etching. You need something better that Turtle Wax. I use a coating from Optimum. A bird bomb can sit there for days and wipe off with no etching. Your truck has clear mixed with the paint, so it's not like there is no clear there.

 

I had a huge bird shit on mine a week ago. Washed it off and it left what you describe- haha looked like dried spit. I was pissed. It wouldn't come off. A couple days later I went at it again with Wolfgang Uber Rinselss Wash solution mixed at the waterless wash dilution. I went at it with just one finger in a microfiber towel and scrubbed with a little force and it ended up completely removing that spot. And that product isn't abrasive at all. I think it just needed some concentrated pressure and the microfiber. So, maybe not all is lost for you. You could use any cleaner wax to try it. The meguires cleaner wax in the maroon bottle is cheap (it's a non abrasive chemical cleaner). You could even try Meguiars scratchX. Also cheap, and it's an abrasive product.