Coating - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

threpwood · 10-31-2005, 08:16 PM

Have any of you had your boxster coated? I am having the boxster coated including the wheels at a body shop. The coat is supposed to last up to 5 years and I am wondering if you have any experience about this. The coat is supposed to be good quality and cost about USD$800. I found a few very small chips on the front end because of gravels in highway, so I am hoping that the coat can protect the paint.

threpwood · 10-31-2005, 10:11 PM

Additional link to the stuff that the body shop uses (translated to English with google):

http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.otsuka-dm.co.jp%2Fgaiyou.html&langpair=ja%7Cen&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&prev=%2Flanguage_tools

Brucelee · 11-01-2005, 05:51 AM

I have never seen anyone rate these "coatings" as worth the money.

In fact, many dealers simply apply a coat of Klasse Sealant and charge hundreds of dollars.

This sounds like a scam to me.

$800 also seems outrageous to me.

Good luck.

Caveat Emptor!

11-01-2005, 05:53 AM

For $800 bucks you can buy a lot of good quaility car care products, and keep your car looking great, and enjoy the experience on a nice day.

threpwood · 11-01-2005, 06:17 AM

I called different places today and got explanation that there are "grades" with the coatings based on the material (whatever that is) and thickness. The cheapest one starts from $250, then goes up from there.

The coating business is actually quite popular here, but I've never get any car coated or seen it very closely, so I'm going to just try it...if it is a scam then I'll have my lawyer contact them despite a hole in my pocket

On calming thought, the body shop has good rep and has been doing business for 10 years, so at least I know that my boxster is safe on their hands...

I'll post some detailed pics later.

11-01-2005, 06:42 AM

You may want to send a Private Message to SD987. He had his Boxster coated, and loves it!

AUDIOGUY · 11-01-2005, 04:22 PM

What kind of coat are you talking about? If you are referring to a 3M clear bra or the likes, this is worth the money. Any product that is a paint sealer or wax is definately a waste of money and certainly wont last long term. Only a 3M type coating will protect your paint from stone chips. Regardles of what type of chemical or wax you put on your car, none will protect from stone chips that I know of.

You should look in the the Clear Bra and give that a shot before spending money on a paint sealant or similar.

Best of luck,
Joe
01S
Triple Black

threpwood · 11-01-2005, 06:12 PM

This isn't the clear bra. They explained that the coating is a "gel" that goes above the paint (paint sealer?) and made from a mix of silica and fluorine polymers that when dried form a hard and clear gel (about 4-5 mm) above the paint. It is supposed to make the paint and wheels looking like a glass (reflective and shiny).

The work takes 3-4 days to complete.

The best grade can last up to 5 years and recommend a yearly maintenance to smoothen out the gel from chips etc (I think all they have to do is to buff it).

I looked at the clear bra and indeed it can be a good alternative. The only downside is that the shrinkwrapping film makes the paint less reflective, but of course it is a lot better than having to do a paint job later.

I'm planning to keep the Boxster for a while and the paint is the area that I am most worried about.

MNBoxster · 11-01-2005, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by threpwood

This isn't the clear bra. They explained that the coating is a "gel" that goes above the paint (paint sealer?) and made from a mix of silica and fluorine polymers that when dried form a hard and clear gel (about 4-5 mm) above the paint. It is supposed to make the paint and wheels looking like a glass (reflective and shiny).

The work takes 3-4 days to complete.

The best grade can last up to 5 years and recommend a yearly maintenance to smoothen out the gel from chips etc (I think all they have to do is to buff it).

I looked at the clear bra and indeed it can be a good alternative. The only downside is that the shrinkwrapping film makes the paint less reflective, but of course it is a lot better than having to do a paint job later.

I'm planning to keep the Boxster for a while and the paint is the area that I am most worried about.

Hi,

If you're planning on keeping it awhile, then accept that paintchips and a 5 year respray are part of the bargain. Forget the Coating and put the money toward the respray which will be necessary, to whatever degree, in 5 years. Hope this helps...

Happy Motoring!... Jim '99

threpwood · 11-01-2005, 11:46 PM

Thanks for the advice, but the car is already in the shop so I can't back down now (they probably have applied the first coat). It will be completed this Friday. Hopefully it turns out ok!

AUDIOGUY · 11-02-2005, 03:52 AM

Keep us posted with your results! It is an interesting concept.

Kindly,
Joe
01S
Triple Black

11-02-2005, 04:12 AM

Threpwood, when you pick-up your car, ask them if you can or should apply any wax/polish as part of your maintenance (once or twice per year). And if they recommend a wax/polish, which one.

How many other Boxsters do you see in your area?

threpwood · 11-02-2005, 05:45 AM

Will get back to you about the wax/polish this Friday.

I asked them before about car wash and they recommended to wash the car with water only (no soap), and use soap once in 3 times of washing. For example, if I wash the car 3 times a month, once must be washed with soap. And, if I wash the car 6 times a month, twice of them must be washed with soap, etc. So complicated just for washing a car

I have only seen one Carrera, and another boxster in my area. Boxsters can be spotted more often around Tokyo, and my area is about 4-6 hours from Tokyo (depending on traffic).

threpwood · 11-05-2005, 06:13 PM

Got the car back yesterday and took some pics.

The coating is very nice. The finish isn't as thick as what I expected, but it gets the job done. The scratches on the front end are practically gone.

The body shop told me to not use any kind of wax or polish.

MNBoxster · 11-05-2005, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by threpwood

Got the car back yesterday and took some pics.

The coating is very nice. The finish isn't as thick as what I expected, but it gets the job done. The scratches on the front end are practically gone.

The body shop told me to not use any kind of wax or polish.

Hi,

Your Car looks GREAT!! Good Luck with it! BTW, you might want to ask them how this coating is removed. As ALL finishes do age, there may come a time when you need to strip it and either reapply or go with something else if this turns out not to meet your expectations. Let us know what you come up with...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

threpwood · 11-05-2005, 09:23 PM

Thanks! They said they will need to buff it for a while to remove the old coating before applying new ones and will be difficult. They do not recommend the removal until at the last 1 - 2 years of the coat lifetime (5 years lifetime in this case), or at least until the coat starts to loose its glassy look.

11-06-2005, 01:03 AM

hi threpwood
tell me can you actually drive your boxster fast in japan, we always hear about road congestion in the main cities or do you track your car too?

threpwood · 11-06-2005, 06:22 AM

The road congestion only happens in bigger cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya etc. I live in a smaller city in a rural area quite far from Tokyo, so there is not much traffic here, although local street is quite small. I can still drive fast whenever I want to though, just have to make sure to watch out for rabbit, goat, skunks etc that might cross the street

Seriously, the boxster has an awesome handling and can do corner in AMAZING speed so it helps.