Black cars are the bane of most first car owners. Often they will find scratches and web like microscopic patterns overwhelming the finish of their cars. To most owners’ frustration this can happen as early as a couple of months from getting the car brand new.

It is the intent of this article to help owners of black cars minimize the damage done to their car’s finish. A new car owner and an older black car owner will benefit from these three simple tips.

Tip 1: No Pressure on Wash Mitts

Most people will “clean” their car with as much intensity as cleaning their toilet bowl. Washing dishes may be often the inspiration for scrubbing at sponging black cars. But this can wreak havoc on a black car’s finish.

More often than not, darker colored cars need less pressure on their wash mitts. Pressing your wash mitt, no matter how high quality it is, will result in microscopic streaks that hardened particles will leave as they scrape through the car.

If you have an extremely dirty car it is best to wash it down once with barely enough pressure on your wash mitt. It may not remove all dirt but you can always wash it again the next day. Not only will you save time but also a lot of grief in the long run when you find irritating micro scratches on your shiny black car when it is exposed to incidental light.

Tip 2: Less contact, better.

Anything that glides at the surface of your paint will damage it to a certain degree. Even 50 dollar wash clothes made from the finest materials will drag particles as you swipe with your mitt.

Ironically, show car fanatics make as little contact with their black car’s paint as possible. Constantly washing your car will dramatically increase the risk of cob webbing especially if you don’t thoroughly wash your mitts (come on, whoever washes their mitts?).

So what happens when you have a filthy car? The answer for the most diehard enthusiast is: DONT. You simply have to make sure your car’s finish is kept from as little dirt as possible. If you need to park on the other side of the road to keep it from a source of contaminants such as on-construction debris, or heavy asphalt streaks or even as simple as a small pool of water then do it.

Again it may seem over the top but if you want your car’s paint spotless after a decade then little things like this will help. The less you touch your car’s paint the less you’ll have to go through your clear coat.

Tip 3: Wash It and Garage It

Closely related to tip 2 is to garage your car. Whether it is in the office, mall or home make sure your car is away from the sun’s biting rays. And no, no wax is even going to bounce the sun’s UV rays 100%.

Even if you don’t have the sun shining try to keep your car on basement levels or car parks at your local urbanized establishments. Rain, heat, and debris from passing vehicles dramatically damage the paint in the long term.

In fact these factors damage your car’s finish in many more ways you can imagine. A dirty car will need more contact with that wash mitt. And dirty cars take more time to clean. Trying to keep your freshly washed car from as little dirt as possible will directly contribute to its paint condition for years to come.

Hopefully this article will not scare you into buying black or dark colored cars. Summing it all up it’s just really about taking care of your car’s paint finish. As with everything else the little things will add up. And yes, it can be done, as many have, a darker colored car can have brand new paint condition for at least a decade.