Months of agony about which car and color I wanted are over...Months of anticipation are just beginning!

Today I put a deposit down on a Black G35 Coupe (see attached). Due to limited allocation and availability on the 6MT's it is entirely possible that the car I end up with could even be a 2004 model year! At least I will get the mid year updates (Center console deeper/armrest addition).

There is a chance I could get it in April/May but the good money is August or so.

I went to the other dealer today (in Dayton) to buy the Coupe they had (the one I test drove but then passed on last week) but the wimps were closed due to snow (we got about a foot or so last night plus freezing rain).

That really ticked me off. The fact that they are 50 miles away and some other issues about them lead me to just go ahead and work with my local dealer that has always been so cool throughout this whole epic. The other dealer, although closed, STILL had the car I wanted on the lot but I think it might already have been sold as my local dealer said they had sent a customer wanting to purchase immediately up there last night to get it. Not sure if he did it or not. I suppose technically I could call them Monday Morning and if it was still for sale I could cancel my order and buy it from them but I think I will stick with this course of action.

Yes the waiting will suck, but I decided to give my business to the dealership that was coolest to me, let me take multiple test drives without a problem and made me comfortable with my decision. Professionalism is a rare commodity these days and I reward it when I encounter it.

So, thanks for all the advice during this extrodinarily stressful sequence of events.

Now, I know NOTHING about how to keep a black car clean. Who wants to help me with the DO's and DON'Ts and WATCHOUTS for a black car?


Matt
G35 Sports Coupe
Obsidian Black/Graphite 6MT (On order)

p.s. a little birdie at Infinity told me a secret... GT-R, coming in 2004...think Viper Killer...72k though.

 

Good choice on black! It and DG are the colors to go with!

My black G has been just as easy to keep clean as any other car I have had, of course I have always been **** about my car's appearance, so maybe I'm used to the extra work.

The main tips I would give would be:

1. Hand wash whenever possible, if you must use a car wash, find a quality no touch place.

2. Use quality car wash soap. I use Zip Wax by Turtle Wax. Its cheap, and has done me right for years. But, you can find soaps by almost any manufacturer you like such as Mothers, Zymoil, Meguairs, Zaino, Blackfire, etc. NEVER use Dawn or other household detergents. These will strip the wax off your car and are too abrasive. Unless you are getting ready to use Zaino or another product the reccomends this, don't use them.

3. Clean your wheels first, rinse and clean wash bucket completely, and then wash the car one section at a time from the top down. Wash early in morning or evening unless you have access to a covered wash area. Water spots are bad on any car, but on black they are your worst enemy. Why wheels first? Well, that is the dirtiest part of the car. Nothing worse that having your just washed paint get covered by all that brake dust and road grime when you spray off your wheels.

4. Get an Absorber or other type of Chamois. I actually prefer the Absorber. Its does a great job, and because its rubber, it doesn't have all the hangups associated with chamois. But. bottomline is you have to dry the car to keep those spots away.

5. For the complete job, find a good quick detailer spray. Then use it to remove any spots that might have formed. Plus, this will really make the shine pop.

6. At the risk of starting a huge flame war over wax products, techniques, etc. Obviously you need to wax / seal the paint anywhere from 2 to 3-4 times a year. How often depends on you and where you live and the product your prefer. Until now, I have used Mother's California Gold Carnuba with great results. However, I have heard that black cars can generate enough heat in sunlight to break down the carnuba waxes quickly. I think I will now try Blackfire, which is a sythetic polish/sealent that is supposed to work magic on black cars. One nice benefit is that water sheets off instead of beading like on carnuba finishes. This might help with the water spots. Search this forum and you will find endless discussions on wax and polish products.

 

lease or Financial ?

whatever man.

 

Oh man! I told you to get the bright Silver! ..lol
anyways congrats, hopefully you will enjoy your coupe =D

 

Congrats! I'm considering a G35 Coupe 6/MT too in another month or two to replace my aging daily driver.

As for black care, the advice above is great. A suggestion on the wax though is to use Zaino if you really want the best results. Downside to Zaino is its expensive, takes some time and effort to prepare and apply correctly to get the best results, and it can waterspot easily. But its worth it to me - the results are just jaw dropping, especially on black or dark colors. I use it on my Z06 and I love the results.

http://24.191.226.238:88/vettes/Z06-fr-nlp2.jpg

2002 Corvette Z06, Electron Blue/Black
1996 Contour SE, Black/Opal Grey, V-6 5spd, 125k miles

 

If you want a really glossy and surfacy, i.e. fake shine, go with Zaino. It does protect well though, so if you only want to apply something like this once every 6 months, you can't get better than a polymer sealant.

Now.. If you want a deep pool of black, I would recommend Pinnacle Souveran and the other Pinnacle products. It's a lot like Zymol, but even easier to use IMO and less expensive.

Some have reported good results with a combination of products. Use a good quality cleaner and then use a polymer based product like Zaino (I like Blackfire better) and then follow it up with a pure Carnuba wax like Pinnacle's Souveran.

Sal