Brette

10 minutes ago, Rizwanm2 said:

dont worry you can park the second car next year.. 😁

Not taking a chance. What if they don't extend the scheme. 🤣

Yeah, 150k in fines is crazy. Under this scheme, park the car which accumulated the fines at home for a year, buy a second hand car for 5k and use it for a year while the fines on the said car get waived...

Oh and don't accumulate 150k on the 2nd car in the meantime.😅

The only fine I had so far is gone today😊

As per gulf news, the scheme is extended for another year.

Congrats @Colin Jordan

Congrats @Mostafa Taha

Congrats @bunty_and_pops

Congrats Marjan. Well deserved.👍

Congrats Richard. Well deserved.👍

I renewed mine in December, got about 8 quotes but RSA ended up being the best and heard they are very fast with claims as well.

The lady I spoke to was also very helpful. Details below if you want to try calling her directly 

Maimuna Fayaz
 Insurance Advisor

Royal& Sun Alliance Insurance (Middle East)

B.S.C.(c)

Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Tel # 042743821

congrats @Frederic. Well done. 

Congrats @Tbone

Posting images in the gallery but this line-up deserves to be on the drive thread too. Amazing turnout and wonderful drive.  @Wrangeld  your trip reports are awesome and like Rahim Bhai said, they paint the perfect picture for those who missed the drive. 

Congrats @Jeepie

Congrats @adildbx. 

Congrats @tjsingh. Well deserved. 

5 hours ago, Gaurav said:

I totally agree with @Brette.

I have done 3M Paint protection for my Pajero and it lasted max 6 months instead of 2 year warranty before minor swirls started to appear.

 

Yes, silicon coating only has a 6 month life. They have to be stupid to tell you it will last for 2 years. 

Average time frames with various products if maintained.

Wax - 2 -3 months max

Silicon- 6-8 months max

Ceramic coating - 1.5  - 2 years max.

None of these are scratch proof. Ceramic coatings add about 8 to 10 microns thickness to the clear coat and when completely cured bonds like a very fine layer of quartz to the surface so it resists swirls to an extent but not completely. 

5 hours ago, Shamil said:

ok so this is very valuable feedback @Brette. I had no idea that the swirl marks would come on the coat after desert drives. So for the waxing option as you mentioned, which brand did you use and did you apply it yourself?

I tend to lean towards Turtle Wax.  It's pretty good, not expensive and available at Carrefour. 

Yes, I do it myself. Afte to you wash the car, dry it and use the sponge pad that u get with the wax and apply a thin coat even coat in circular motions. Leave it to dry for about 30 minutes in the shade and then buff it of with a micro fiber cloth. Do it once in 2 months. It will take max 90 mins.  

A little elbow grease goes without saying...

Just now, Shamil said:

thank you so much for your feedback @Brette. Actually one of the main reasons why i was looking into ceramic coating is because of the black color which starts showing dust on the surface just hours after a car wash. TBH, I didnt factor in the desert drives to this decision because i thought it wouldnt make a difference. I assume the soft desert sand would easily slip off the ceramic. Please do share more info as you said, and yes i think ill stay away from DIYing this.

My GC is ceramic coated and did not have a swirl on it for the first year but after just 2 drives I started noticing the swirls and then gave up. 

Desert sand will blow of any car coated or not. Yes, I agree with the dust showing up in 30 seconds on a black car but that is something you can't avoid. It will happen even if you coat your car but will not look as bad when a car is coated or polished due to the reflections on a shiny black surface. 

To ceremaic coat a car you first wash, then have to decontaminate the paint to remove bonded brake dust and anything else stuck to the surface that you can not even see, clay the entire body and then polish atleast twice to remove all swirls and scrates that have not gone through the clear coat. Once all of the above is done, you have to wipe down with a non oily alcohol to remove any oils left from the polish and only then apply the ceramic coating. 

When you apply the coating, it can take anywhere between 60 seconds to 5 minutes to flash depending on the weather and has to be buffed immediately. If not buffed of at the right time, it will dry and then you will have to wet sand to remove it. 

A good ceramic job will cost at least 3k and last for about 2 years if you put in the effort to maintain it. Spend 200 every 6 month for a good waxing for the body and you will be good. 

One thing I always tell people when they ask about detailing is " Do it if you have the time to maintain/wash it yourself. The car wash places and the mall car wash guys will mess it up in a month" 

Congrats @Wrangeld. Well done to both of you. 

@Xafcongrats and well done. 

13 hours ago, Xaf said:

Thank you everybody. @RahimdadLets throw some sand!! 😆

If you want to throw sand, drive behind me. 😅

@Shamil 

I have done my fair share of ceramic coatings for my car's and for paying customers too. 

Would not suggest you do a ceramic coating on your xterra or on any car being used for desert drives. 

The difference between the coating and a wax is that the coating stays put for around 18-24 months if applied the correct way and maintained. A wax on the other hand will last for about 3 months and is a lot more easy to apply. 

With ceramic coatings many dealers will give you a whole load of cr*p but don't fall for that. Yes, there are benefits and I would suggest it if the car is not being used in the desert and being maintained by someone passionate about always having their car spotless and swirl free.

If a car is ceramic coated correctly, you invest in a good quality car duster and dust the car everyday and you can do this for about 2 weeks before you have to wash the car. However, if your car is parked outside and is dusty and there is dew overnight it does not make a difference if coated or not, you will have to wash the car to get it clean as once wet the dust will stick to ceramic too. 

Can give you more info on these coating if you want because they have a lot of advantages too but not for a car that gets a sand blasting every weekend. 

And yeah, don't try doing it at home because it's unforgiving if you mess up and will require wet sanding the car to remove it. 

Congrats @Frederic. Well deserved and I second whatever Rahim Bhai said. 

Have fun. Gonna miss the drives for the next 4 weeks. 

Happy Birthday Emmanuel. Have a super year. Cheers. 

58 minutes ago, MisterPoet said:

Thanks @Frederic & @Brette. I shall ensure to get 3000 grit paper for the next job. 

@MisterPoet just sharing this if you want to order it online and have it delivered in a few days. The offer has some higher grit paper as well that will help with getting it nice and glossy.