1ton

Dingo,

I hope you are right about the clear-coat issue. I would prefer it have a clear-coat. I just tried to call the lexus support number but they said they wanted my VIN number to be sure of what they tell me. I don't have my car right now...it is in the shop because of the darn door rattling! When I get the VIN and call I will let you know what they say. Like I said, I wish it were so, then I don't have to order different Zaino products.

At this point, I don't even know if Lexus knows if it is clear-coated or not. I called the service guy before and he told me it wasn't clear-coated.

dingo

Just don't get rid of your Zano yet - I think you'll be pleasantly surprised and more than a little pi$$ed at the person that told that black wasn't clear coated.

I sure hope the guy on the Lexus hotline doesn't go and make something up.

dingo

Idea: How about sending an email to Sal at Zaino. He should surely know don't you think?

Guitarman

Ok fellas, here's the dilly...after sending him an email , and him replying that I should call him...

I just spoke on the phone to Sal Zaino about this whole convoluted issue. We had a decently long conversation about the Lexus cars and paints and his products. He was emphatic that the info that we get from the dealerships can NOT be taken as fact. You may recall from my posts and others in Car Care that the BEST way to determine single stage vs clearcoat is to use some cleaner wax (Turtle wax/ Meguiar's) or a fine polish such as a swirl remover, and rub a bit on your paint with a white cotton towel. If you see the color of your paint on the towel after rubbing, you have SINGLE STAGE. If just some dirt is on the towel, you have Clearcoat.

As for his products;

Z3 CAN be used on either single stage paint or clearcoat paint, not problem whatsoever. Some of the Corvette guys have been using Z3 on their cars for a while now FWIW. This I knew...

Z5 was engineereed for BOTH types. This is from the man that owns the company. This I didn't know.

If you have Z2 and want to use it on single stage, it won't hurt it, BUT, it also won't work as well as it would on clearcoat, because Z3 has ingredients in it (emuslifiers etc.) that will not benefit clearcoat.

So...Z2= Use on clearcoat cars for best results.

Z3=Use on single stage for best results, but also can be used on clearcoated cars with no problems. Sal said your eye won't tell a difference.

Z5 Can be used on either.

I hope this helps.

dingo

I'm sorta surpised that Sal just didn't say flat out if its clear coat or not.. or did he?

From my studies most if not all modern car manufacturers clear coat.

d

Guitarman

Sal didn't know about the model, but he was aware of ( in his words here) "one of the small Lexus models" as having single stage black paint. He couldn't say whether it was the IS or SC430, so he really didn't have any new info there. He mentioned it because someone at his business had one at one time or another.

One thing you guys may want to do is this;

Get together here (or I can start it in Car Care if you like) and find someone with each year SC430 in black (and red if you like) up to present and have them do the cleaner wax "test" (if they don't already know what they have). We can then compile a database of the results and do it with each model in the Lexus lineup (the black and red cars specifically) and hopefully have this settled for future reference.

You can at least take his product info and how it applies to single stage and clearcoat, to the bank.


Yes, I'd say 99% of all cars are cleared, so Lexus sure 'threw a stone' into the machine when they decided not to clearcoat those black (and red?) cars that they did. It's rare.

dseag2

If it helps at all, I just used Zymol cleaner wax on the hood of my 3-month old GS300 w/ Black Onyx paint and absolutely no color came off. I believe the Lexus paint is pretty consistent across models, although I could very well be mistaken.

dingo

I can tell you that the Red SC430 IS clearcoated - no res using 3m Swirl Mark Remover.

I'd be STUNNED if any car in the Lex lineup (Toyota too) is not clear coated!

And I AM STUNNED that Sal would say that were some...

d

Guitarman

Well guys, this all stems from some others that have frequented the Automotive Care & Detailing forum and stated their black onyx vehicles ( not just SC430's) DID NOT have clearcoat. So the main goal here is to document which years there was a changeover, since it *appears* as though the 2001+ cars and trucks WERE cleared. I have actually no personal experience since my GS400 is white, but I'd like to put this together for everyone's sake. Thanks for the input.

Please see the new thread on this topic, in the Automotive Care & Detailing forum ; https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...hreadid=106615


When I first bought my GS and came to this site, I was as surprised as much as you are that some black Lexus vehicles weren't clearcoated. Odd.

aznxguy714

well according to 2 service managers that responded to my question about the 03 gs black onyx is clear coated or not this is wat one had wrote back In response to your question about about your car the answer is yes. As one
of the last
processes at the factory your car was clearcoated. Thanks for contacting
Lexus of Westminster. and the other one just wrote yes that it is

jfelbab

This is not rocket sience guys. You can tell for yourself if your finish is clear-coated. Simply use a deep cut cleaner on a white cotton towel and rub it on the paint in a spot that doesn't show, like under your rocker panel. If after rubbing briskly you see your paint color on the towel you don't have a clearcoat. Simple.

RalAegidius

Bumping this thread a bit, I was at my local body shop yesterday for some rust repair and a repaint on my Lex, and I asked about the "Black Lexus don't have a clear coat" thing.

Their paint expert informed me that "all cars today have at least two-stage paint that includes a clear coat. Black Lexus cars have a clear coat. There's no conceivable reason why Lexus would clear coat all their cars except the black ones."

My diamond pearl car, however, has a three-stage paint, as do most of the pearls.

Ral

lexusk8

Ral,

Guitarman added an excellent thread related to this sometimes puzzling clearcoat issue on all Lexus cars.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...hreadid=106615

FYI, I have a 2001 ES300 (Black Onyx), and after a couple tests, I've come to the conclusion that it came originally clearcoated from the factory, but the entire pass. side had been repainted and not clearcoated. So my car in a sense has mixed clearcoat media. How's that for confusing the issue?

lkirchner

Stop getting your knickers in a twist. As the above post reads do exactly this, if you see black then it is not clear coated. If you don't then it is not. Not very complicated. While Lexus makes great cars they do not have Brain Surgeons working as service or parts managers. Use a little elbow grease and try it yourself. Trust me you won't hurt the car or yourself.