[96SNAKE]

Like some may know, I own a 96 Mystic cobra. I know that the rear bumper, spoiler and roof have been repainted. The hood had just a little bit of oxidation on it but I had it professionally buffed out. So my question is this, how long is mystic paint good for it someone were to wax it at least once every 3-4 months and keeps it outside with a car cover on it most of the time? With my car being a daily driver I'm starting to get more and more concerned about the paint. I know that it's almost 14 years old, but the body and paint on the entire car look really good. But yet, there are some places on the car that is somewhat fading out due to the clearcoat. So should I be somewhat worried about me car and how long will this paint last for until I need to paint the whole car over again? I know this paint isn't like normal paint colors on other solid color mustangs from the factory.. But what is the life on this type of paint? Thanks for the answers.

[Lefty]

If the paint is fine right now like you said then 20 years from now down the road it should be fine as long as it's taken care of.

[96SNAKE]

Hey thanks, Lefty. I just didn't know how long the paint lasts with this type of paint on it.

[88TempoGLS]

DON'T wax it too often. probably no more than twice a year. If you want to clean it up, use a quick detailer. Every time you wax, it removes a little bit of the clear coat, so be careful.

[Ryan Paymaster]

Originally Posted by 88TempoGLS DON'T wax it too often. probably no more than twice a year. If you want to clean it up, use a quick detailer. Every time you wax, it removes a little bit of the clear coat, so be careful.

You have this messed up. Wax away - it's not going to do anything at all. You can do it daily if you would like.

What you don't want to do is polish the car. Depending on the what you put the car through (especially winters) then you shouldn't polish more than once a year. Polish has the abrasive compounds in it, carnauba or synthetic wax can only help protect your car further. Being a daily driver is going to damage the paint eventually but you can only hope for pristine paint for so long. Good news is car paint has come a long way and with proper care can last a very long time.

[zinc02GT]

:facepalm

Ok... You ONLY remove clearcoat if you use a rotary buffer, This type of buffer levels the paint to the same level as the scratches you are correcting. A DA buffer rounds off the edges of swirls to keep light from catching them, thus causing no more swirls.

Rotary buffers are more effective, but MUCH more dangerous because, as said above, it removes clear (given the polish/compound you are using is strong enough) and can strip the paint clean off when not careful. DA's are the only safe way of professionally polishing your car with good results. Rotary buffers yield the best results when done correctly and can also work much like a DA in swirl removal (in the right hands).

Compounds are the only real damaging 'polish' for a paint as these contain the most aggressive abrasives.

There is NO WAY on God's green earth that waxing will remove clearcoat. Whoever told you that needs to be shot. A car should be waxed AT LEAST once every 1 1/2 months if not sooner. You use quick detailer in between washes (at least once a week) to keep the 'just waxed' look plus add a little more strength to the existing wax.

[Zatrekaz]

If you take care of paint... it can last for decades.

Really there is not a set "experation date" for paint. Granted, it will fade over the years no matter how well to care for it. Everything degrades over time. Its just a matter of how fast.

To clarify some of the comments made here:

1. Your normal Carnuba Paste Wax last an avg of 3-4 Months in ideal conditions. Therefore it is a safe bet to re-clay and wax your car every 2 months at most. A Synthetic Wax can last around 6 Months in ideal conditions. Therefore if using a sythetic, you guessed it, re-clay and wax around twice a year. Granted, this all depeneds on your location. If you live in NY it will obviously not last that long due to the industrial enviroment and winters. If you live in South Flordia the heat will bake the wax quicker.
2. Polishing is something you only want to do if you have to. Polishes have abrasives in them that "cut" the paint to remove imperfections. If I had to guess, I would say a once a year polish would be good as long as you maintain the paint in between very well.
3. For much more infomation on detailing and paint care you can look at the stickys up above. You can also PM Weems, zinc02gt, Myself, plus im sure theres alot more people around that know a good bit as well. You could also contact the people who wrote said stickys at the top of this page.

Here is a link that can help you out as well:

Auto Detailing Facts, auto detailing Tips, How to detailing Guides, how to polish, how to wax, DIY detailing, do it yourself guides

That site has all kinds of infomation about detailing. I have learned a TON of stuff from there and I am still learning. It even has a niffty diagram there to show the process of evaluating your paint and deciding on a course of action to make it glow.

[zinc02GT]

^ Good post guy

Weems and that place have taught me pretty much all that I know about detailing. Autopia.org as well. Autopia is a bit more well rounded as the AG Mods seem a little, uhmmm confident We'll just leave it at that.

[Zatrekaz]

I have you to thank for that good post. I think i have like 40 PMs total between you and me lately?

Check your PM fool, just sent you one you will want to read.

[zinc02GT]

You're welcome man. When you get the PC, you have my number. PM replied.

[JiMi_DRiX]

95% of the time, I wax or polish my cars every time I wash them, which is on average every two weeks. I use a Porter Cable D/A Polisher, its the best, easiest, and quickest way to shine up your car!
I see this mystic colored 96 Cobra at the dealership every so often, and the paint is shot. It's so sad to see since its a rare car. I wonder if its possible to have your car re-cleared, and cleared with multiple coats? That would just about bullet proof your paint as long as you take care of it. I'm not sure what extra effort Ford put into the Mystic paint jobs, but the paint those years isnt near as good as the cars of the last few years. Even my GT has some spots where im WTF'ing about. and prior to me, it was garaged.

[zinc02GT]

I'd have to look into it, but it could be because you guys might have 1 stage paint.

[Zatrekaz]

Hmmm, polishing and waxing or just waxing every two weeks sounds like a bit much. I mean, I don't think your hurting anything... just makin yourself work to hard IMO Lol.

[Lefty]

Zinc and Z don't know shit.

[Zatrekaz]

Originally Posted by Lefty Zinc and Z don't know shit.

I told you only on weekends Lefty...

Ah what the heck!

[Lefty]

I sorry

[NastyFX4]

If you're having to wax your car every two weeks than you're not washing it right.. I only do a full detail every 6-12 months. I usually go 3-6 months on wax depending on what I'm using at the time, too..

[Zatrekaz]

Originally Posted by NastyStang113 If you're having to wax your car every two weeks than you're not washing it right.. I only do a full detail every 6-12 months. I usually go 3-6 months on wax depending on what I'm using at the time, too..

I don't think its a matter of him HAVING to wax every two weeks as much as it is him just wanting to wax every two weeks.

Still not a good method tho regardless.

[NastyFX4]

Originally Posted by Zatrekaz I don't think its a matter of him HAVING to wax every two weeks as much as it is him just wanting to wax every two weeks.

Maybe, Maybe not.

[Beerdog80]

Originally Posted by 96SNAKE But yet, there are some places on the car that is somewhat fading out due to the clearcoat.

If your already getting clear coat fade, but the PAINT is still in good shape, then you could get by on a 'small scale' paint job and just re-clear the car. By that, I mean prep the car thoroughly and then re-shoot with some high quality clear to keep from having more severe problems in the future. This is obviously a short cut instead of re-shooting the entire car but it can be done if the base is still in good shape. If the fading is the paint itself and the clear is totally gone, then you might as well shoot the whole car.

I've sprayed two Mystic Cobras (Code LF) with similar problems. BASF R-M (#688072) or Dupont Mystichrome are the closet factory match up.

The first Cobra just had some clear coat peel going on. At the owners request, I wetsanded the factory clear and sprayed Dupont ChromaClear and it came out looking better than new.

On the second Cobra, there was a previous (butchered) repair and the colors didn't match up right at all when you looked at it. Over a clear base, I shot Dupont's Mystichrome on top of the factory color since it had begun to fade so bad and it had a lot of bad spots in it from a tree it was parked under. Came out looking perfect.

For kicks, I sprayed HOK's Kameleon for a ghost flame effect on my 95 Cobra as seen here when I repainted the car.