Matte Paint Care & Marmite Discussions
As car detailers based near Hook and Basingstoke, we’ve seen plenty of cars with matte paint finishes. These types of paint finishes can create much ‘Marmite’ discussion on automotive forums and blogs. But love them or hate them, there’s no disguising the fact that matte paint care takes time and effort. Many people wrongly assume that matte paint will be easy to care for and repair. It isn’t! So, in this article, we thought we’d share some nuggets of information to help you care for your matte paint finish.
Matte Paint Care Tips from Car Detailers:
The popularity of matte finishes definitely ebbs and flows. For a while, it was all the rage to have a satin or matte vinyl wrap on a car. Then manufacturers started to produce their own factory paint finishes. Most commonly, we see these used on BMW and Mercedes.
BMW call their finish ‘Frozen’, while Mercedes call theirs ‘Magno’. That said, you can also order a Ferrari with matte paint, and there is even a Peugeot with a strange two-tone finish where the colour was gloss, and half the car was matte black. It looks even worse than it sounds!
Picking your Products:
It’s important to carefully select any product you choose for your matte paint care. Shampoo, quick detailers, or any other cleaners should not include gloss enhancers, or anything oil-based. They must be solvent-based to avoid altering the matte paint finish.
Find the Perfect Paint Sprayer:
A major downside to matte paint is the practicality of repairing it if the need arises. Unlike regular gloss finishes, it’s impossible to blend matte paint. So even a minor repair on a panel will mean a repaint of the entire panel. A respray can also potentially include adjacent panels to the damaged one. With a gloss paint, it is possible to keep a repair much more localised.
The finish relies on the paint sprayer being properly on top of their game, as the finish out of the spray gun is what you have to live with. With normal paint, any unwanted texture (orange peel), or minor imperfections can be sanded out, before being polished to a perfect finish. This isn’t possible with matte paint.
Talk to us about finding the right paint sprayer. We’ve been in the business for a long time and have a little black book full of trusted contacts. Some based around Hook, Basingstoke and North Hampshire. But also others nationally.
Handle with Care:
When it comes to matte paint care, it’s important to remember that anything oily or greasy can leave marks in matte paint. Because it’s an unusual finish, the first thing people do when they see it is to place their hand on the surface to see what it feels like. Oils from your hands can then be left on the paint, which will soak in and mark it. As car detailers, we frequently see perfect sets of fingerprints left on matt paint. Convertibles are even worse because occupants are more likely to be wearing sun cream, so have oily hands when they open and close doors.
Want a Matte Finish that’s also durable? We can help.
So, matte paint care can be a bit of a pain… But we can help. We’re not just car detailers. We’re also factory-trained installers for Xpel PPF (Paint Protection Film), carrying out full installations at our detailing studios near Hook and close to Basingstoke.
Xpel Stealth is a matte paint protection film, and we can apply it to both gloss and matte paint. The finish closely mimics the factory matte paint finishes. But it also offers great protection for your car.
Because Stealth is a self-healing PPF, it is extremely durable. It will stop the same chips, scratches and impacts as regular gloss PPF, and doesn’t suffer the same porosity problems as matte paint.
We have used Stealth PPF to transform various cars that have gloss paint, to give them a totally different look. The original paint underneath will be maintained and protected, and you can have the benefit of your car getting an exciting new look, without the massive cost and drawbacks of matte paint. If and when you want to remove it, it comes off with no detriment to the original paint. In our experience, cars with matte paint have a much more limited appeal to buyers and can have a very negative impact on their value because people either don’t want the hassle or don’t understand/like it. This way, using the Stealth film as a conversion, you get the best of both worlds.
The Xpel pattern database is superb and has beautifully designed templates for a vast range of cars. Installing this way is efficient and totally safe. For cars that don’t have patterns available, it may be possible to complete a bespoke, custom installation.
Talk to us about an Xpel Stealth installation for a matte paint look without the hassle! We’re based in the beautiful village of Rotherwick, near Hook and Basingstoke. Contact us HERE.