New Car Paint Needs To Cure?

[Walter]

I heard a thing yesterday, but is true?
A mate said that on new cars the paint needs to cure for 6 months or so, and that you should only wash your car but not apply sealant or wax. His theory was that new cars are baked at the factory, but the paint is still curing and getting tougher for up to 6 moths, and applying sealant affects this process. Does anybody know if there is any truth in this?

 

[Fast,not furious]

...erm...that's what my dad used to tell me...and wash with cold water to help it harden!

Many owners of new cars have the paint corrected and detailed straight away,so i guess it's an old wives tale??...but i'm no expert!

 

[Walter]

Yeah, it seems daft, but the kid was being serious so I wanted to check before spoiling something that cost a ton of dough.

 

[Matthew]

if it wasnt properly cuerd they wouldnt plaster the cars with stickers and the likes for delivery as when they pulled it off half the paint would also come off.

 

[WX51TXR]

Completely untrue; new shells leave the oven on the production line 95% cured, and by the time the car ends up in the dealership several weeks or months later, the paint will be 98-99% cured and can be protected straight away with any good quality wax or sealant. In fact, not adding protection right from the off is foolish, as one bad bird bomb can cause a lot of etching damage as all too many people have found out to their cost. It's also worth noting that most respray work these days is also fully cured by bodyshops prior to handover, meaning again that protection should be applied straight away. Back in the good old days the curing issue was more important, but it has no relevance today whatsoever - get your paint protected! :icon_thumright: