My wife and I got a 98 Nissan 200SX from a Nissan dealership last year. They said it came "treated with Automate's Protective Paint Sealant. This treatment effectively seals your vehicle's finish but must be reapplied every 6 months to prevent oxidation, fading and loss of shine."
We missed the first treatment and now her car looks like shit. Absolutely no shine at all and it's not even really dirty.

My questions:
1) should I keep getting this done?
2) Am I better off just buffing the thing (with a compound) and never going back?
3) does this shit actually CAUSE paint breakdown? My Talon never had anything like this done and even looks shiny when it's filthy!

I know it's a ripoff, but I need to know if this car's paint will be okay or if this crap they spray it with is the only thing keeping it on the car. Please help.

bump?

heres a secret: everything the dealer offers that is "special" is either a) redundant (sp?) or (b) useless. the good thing is that it is not typically harmfull. if you look in the new edition of the consumer reports car buying guide they have a GREAT writeup on this stuff. its in the "what to look for in a new car" section, i think. they also talk about why the 0 down, 0 payments, 0 interest is a rip off, among other things. excellent read.

anyways, i doubt it was the fault of the "treatment", it sounds like somthing they just wanted to use to rip you of. they wouldnt dare do anything that would harm the paint, that is just asking for a class-action lawsuit. im thinking that the product they used might have been helpfull in concealing the paints actual condition, although im not sure about that.

you are basically screwed. if you think about it logically, you are stuck. do you get sucked into thier scheme of the "bring it back every six months so we can rip you a new one", so you get it repainted proffesionally and take care of it yourself, or do yo confront the dealership about your concerns that thier "treatment" damaged the paint? in any case, you dont have the upper hand. i really dont know what to tell you to resolve this situation in your favor. all i can do is wish you the best of luck. :thumbsup

Well... does the car have a clearcoat? If its just the clearcoat that is dull you should be able to make it look decent again. Clearcoat polishing compound works wonders when used right. If it does not have a clear and its the paint that is fading then your pretty much SOL. Even if you confront the dealer about it, they could say you missed that one "treatment" and thats why the paint went to crap.

My advise would be to visit a bodyshop and just ask what needs to be done. It might be simpler than you think.

HEY ^^^ THAT'S A GOOD IDEA! :7
I'm sure the car came with a clear coat. Nissans have generally had decent paint for about as long as I can remember. If they had offered this "treatment" to me I would have told them hell no, but apparently they "treat" all their used cars this way. Go figure. I'm thinking I could just polish it up. It just looks dingy all the time. Thanks for your input guys, I'll check that magazine out. :thumbsup

the dealer I got my car at gave me a card for like 6 free paint sealants. Every 6 months. I have about 2 or 3 of the holes punched. I haven't been back in a long time. My car shines still. Maybe you should take it to them and ask what is going on with it.

Try a mother's clay bar. I got a kit at wally world on sale for $5. I guess nobody ever bought them here. They were with all the unwanted car stuff. It really works tho. My spoiler had some rough spots from acid rain. Came right out. :thumbsup