When to wax after car accident repair?

[RandyD]

My wife's car was hit from behind with minimal damage to the rear bumper. They fixed a few small dents and painted the bumper today. I told my wife to ask when can I wax the car and he said immediately. I thought you had to wait 60-90 days. Has anything changed? Do certain kinds of paint cure that quickly or is he mistaken?

[WaxMaster1]

I would wait at least 30 days. Most likely the body shop will bake the job which helps speed up the process. In the meantime you can but a glaze or something that's "body shop safe" aka no silicone/wax.

[TTQ B4U]

My wife's car was hit from behind with minimal damage to the rear bumper. They fixed a few small dents and painted the bumper today. I told my wife to ask when can I wax the car and he said immediately. I thought you had to wait 60-90 days. Has anything changed? Do certain kinds of paint cure that quickly or is he mistaken?

You can compound and polish after the car is returned to you from the body shop. Use products that do not have silicon in them and you'll be fine. 3D's 505 is an excellent AIO that worked well as the final polish when I did my Audi.

[tofuproductions]

You can compound and polish after the car is returned to you from the body shop. Use products that do not have silicon in them and you'll be fine. 3D's 505 is an excellent AIO that worked well as the final polish when I did my Audi.

This is okay to do even with the general rule of thumb of waiting thirty days? I’ve always been curious.


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[RandyD]

Would Carpro Reload be ok to use?

[The Guz]

Optimum Car Wax and Meguiar's M305 are two other good options.

I would probably hold off on reload.

[TTQ B4U]

This is okay to do even with the general rule of thumb of waiting thirty days? I’ve always been curious.


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LS 460 “Burnt Toast”
S2000 “Banana Boat”
600RR “Orange Chicken”

Generally yes. Check with the body shop on the brand of paint they use to be certain

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[BadgerRivFan]

Optimum Car Wax and Meguiar's M305 are two other good options.

I would probably hold off on reload.

I agree with Mike on this one...

I had my front and rear bumper covers repainted about 6 weeks ago, and waited to do anything to them for 30 days. If you MUST touch them, OCW is said to be o.k. to use. I would wait 30 days just to be on the safe side though...

[2black1s]

I'm an old painter. My take on this is the longer you wait, the better. Even 60-90 days is not unreasonable. Anything that seals the paint, i.e., waxing or equivalent, will prolong the curing process. It's best to allow the paint to fully cure before doing so.

The same goes for compounding and polishing even though compounding/polishing does not "seal" the paint and does not affect the overall cure time. What does happen though, is that as the new paint cures and hardens, it will shrink some and change in texture. It will also lose some gloss during this cure period. Because of this I feel that it is always best to wait at least two months before sanding/compounding/polishing. You can do it immediately (within days of painting) but be prepared to repeat the process after a few months once the paint is fully cured if you expect the ultimate finish.

[TTQ B4U]

Again I polished my Audi week after it returned to my possession. Here's a Shot 2 months later of the same door.

I just sold the car in Decembernever having to repolish it again and it still looked fabulous






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