[aarwilli]

Hey Guys,

My mom just had body work done on her TSX and she's already wanting to stick it through a car wash (I know she shouldn't do it but she will never hand wash so it is what it is). I was just wondering if she should wait some number of weeks to let the paint cure up pretty well before she lets them start using their carwash to sand her new painted body work?

Thanks!

[MuttGrunt]

Originally Posted by aarwilli

Hey Guys,

My mom just had body work done on her TSX and she's already wanting to stick it through a car wash (I know she shouldn't do it but she will never hand wash so it is what it is). I was just wondering if she should wait some number of weeks to let the paint cure up pretty well before she lets them start using their carwash to sand her new painted body work?

Thanks!

Great question. Unfortunately not everyone will care for their cars like some of us crazy enthusiasts do. Regardless, they still deserve accurate and honest information.

Even in this case, you're good to go. The paint should be 90-95% cured by the time she got the car back. The last 5-10% takes an additional 30-45 days on average. In the time the paint isn't truly 100% cured, it shouldn't be waxed or sealed, but washing is fine. The only detrimental thing is that while not fully cured, the paint is a bit softer. In this case I doubt it matters as Honda uses some of the softest clear-coats on the market, so the aftermarket clear is without a doubt harder than the OEM stuff.

[aarwilli]

Thanks Marc! My dad wants me to come over this weekend and check out the overall paint condition. He feels like the body shop messed it up with the work they did but I have a feeling when I take a look it'll look mostly like stuff put into that soft clear coat by the automated car wash they insist on using. Might be a good excuse to get them to pay for a full detail though