Porsche Paint -

Amigo's My 03 Targa will be picked up tomorrow - My brother informs me the Porsche Paint is a pain in the *** to maintain. Is this true ? Are there any do's and don't regarding paint maintenance ? I am a clean freak and always love to keep my cars clean, mind you this is the first time I will own a Black 996 - So with that said - I am looking a for a bit of knowledge

Any black car is going to be a PITA. That said, I've found that the paint on my C4S is excellent. It's very resistant to chips and has a nice smooth feel and depp shine even months after waxing.

Same as what Boston said

It's really not that bad. This is my second all black Porsche and I think I will do it again. Nothing compares to a clean deep looking black car.

I have a a 2002 black C2 and love it. IMO nothing looks better then a clean black car but there is definaty more maintance with a black car. I don't think this is specific to porsche paint. I find that their paint is excellent. With that said here are a couple basic things I would keep in the garage to keep you black car looking good. -California car duster (for light dusting, Never apply pressure) -Quick detail Spray (for finger prints, wather spots, etc) -Pinnacle Souvern Wax ( This stuff is amazing on Black and red cars particularly) I usually apply a coat of Klasse All in one which is a cleaner/polish/Wax and then top it off with the Pinnacle. Results are amazing.

Cableguy, Where in NJ are you - I Live in Randolph, Near Parsippany. I would love to schedule a Porsche Gathering once the weather is warmer. Thanks for your advise.. RJM

RJMDAD996. I'm just a bit north of you in Montvale. A porshce gathering would be great once the weather gets warmer. Good luck with the New Targa. As many on guys on the board say...."Drive her like you stole her"

Here is a high res picture of my 2001 Black C4 that I took last month - I've driven this car through every snow storm since Jan. 2001 when I picked it up. The car has 50,000 miles on it... I'd say the paint holds up real well! http://www.pbase.com/image/24489016/original

Listen to cableguy - Pinnacle Souveran is AMAZING on black and red cars! And you guys are right, black looks amazing when its clean. If only my car wasn't a daily driver, I'd consider getiing black again (had a black S4).

I used 3m hand glaze on my 89 C4 about twice a year followed by a good wax and the paint was beautiful. I have a related question, though. I just bought an '03 C2 and obviously the paint is perfect. Now I'm getting a little freaked out about stone chips, etc. Has anyone put on that product called "Road Block" or something like that which is a thin plastic film covering the front of the car to reduce stone chip damage? I'm tempted but you can see the seam of the plastic on the hood and I don't know if you can clean over it, etc. What is aanyone doing to protect the front of the car (or do i really need to worry about it?)

The other good thing about black paint which I think is the best colour is if you know that you are going to be staying in a dodgy area don't clean the car for a couple of weeks it really makes it alot less noticible ...if a porsche can be . DonnyJ

I use Zaino Brothers, it's the best stuff I've ever used. It works wonders especially on dark cars. http://www.zainostore.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc Rob

Your brother is wrong. Porsche Black paint is beautiful. I use Klasse on mine, just like the cableguy suggests. Use a California Duster on it in between washes.

98 make black 996. About 9 DE's. Each event almost faster than the other one. Finicky about paint protection. Black is a true pain in the ***. But pretty. I also think that Porsche's black paint might be "softer" than other makes' black paint. There is a black C230 at work, with over 60K highway miles. I'm talking highways with 18 wheelers kicking some serious sand and rock. His hood has practically no "craters" with heaped up edges. Mine does at 27K miles. Then again, he doesn't do DE's with his car........My first and last black car. My paint man tells me the best color paint is white. But it's sooooooooooooo boring.....unless it's a GT3

i also like white turbos i'm getting a bit bored with silver altho it is certainly the most practical color to keep clean. it's too bad polar silver is an extra $2k it's my favorite

great color choice porsche paint doesn't require anymore attention than the average car. i use comm'l cleaning products from a detailer's supply shop (pro-products/baf indust). fastrak is one of their wax products. you can hand-wax a 996 in less than an hour with this stuff and it's low-effort. i get more compliments with it.

Everyone is right on about Porsche paint. Black takes a little more work, but it pays off! Mark, the adhesive chip protectors (Road Block, etc) excellent! I wouldn't get a car without it now! Matt

My Black 1987 944S has original paint and it looks incredibly good for it's age. It shows the dirt more that a white or lighter color car but Porsche paint is extremely durable. I'll be looking to acquire a 928 in the near future and it will be black also. IMHO nothing else compares to a well detailed black finish.