I have ordered a new F150 that will be built and hope for it to arrive in mid-May. Is it ok to apply wax immediately (would be less than a month after the truck was painted) or should I wait a while for the paint to fully cure?

 

You can wax right away. The paint has already cured before it leaves the factory. I believe they bake them before any plastics are added.

 

I would wash it, claybar it, polish it, and wax it.

 

I have done a full detail on every new vehicle I have ever purchased off the dealer lot or special ordered -- no problem whatsoever!

One tip I might pass along to you regarding an ordered vehicle -- I always insist on NO DEALER PREP other than what is absolutely required for state safety inspections, etc. That means I want to take possession of the vehicle with no dealer wash and with the vinyl "cling wrap" still intact on the vehicle paint. The only thing the dealer hacks will do is introduce a ton of swirls into your paint that you will have to remove at a later date!

When I ordered my '08 Mustang with that request, my salesman just looked at me like I was from Mars. The night I picked the 'Stang up at the lot, I was standing there with the salesman and off to our side some sixteen-year-old kid was furiously running a long-handled scrub brush across the paint of a brand new black King Ranch F-150. I pointed this out and said to the salesman, "THAT'S why I take possession of my vehicles with no dealer prep!"

The scary thing is, the salesman still had no idea what I was talking about.....

 

Like others have said, the paint is baked on at the factory. Call the dealership and make it clear that you don't want the "complimentary detail" upon arrival.

When you get the vehicle, use a high-quality non-abrasive pre-wax polish followed by a good paint sealant and/or carnauba wax.

 

Thanks folks for all the great input.

 

I recently spent 30+ hours doing a brand new Black Camaro. I made the customer speak to the manager at the dealership and tell them DO NOT DETAIL MY CAR. I told him when the car arrives from the factory bring it directly to me.

He just spent over 45k on it and it had less than 50 miles on it when I got it. It looked like a colony of spiders weaved webs over the entire car. Washed, clayed, polished, cleaned and three coats of sealant later it looked WOW!

Short Answer: Yes, it's OK

 

Merlin, I am an amateur but I wash,clay,(Detailer Pro) Poli-coat paint sealant then NXT 2.0.
Should I be doing the paint sealant as the final step and not just after clay bar?? Thnx

 

Oddly, I have never used any DP products as many times as folks have ask me.
Not for any reason except I just never got "A Round 'Tuit'"

I like Clay Magic and it comes in a medium and a fine or the Zaino Z-18
I'm not a big fan of doing clay "unless it needs it" by testing via baggie test.
Most of the time I need to polish after clay to remove any micro-marring.

DP Poli-Coat is probably good and has good longevity and durability. I have not tried it.
NXT 2.0 would probably be a good Poli-Coat topper. It has a bright shine but no longevity.

I like a couple of other products for durability and longevity. I'm not real big on bright shine.
Well, unless it's white or a color that really needs that "bright look" to make it stand out.

Different products look good on different colors. Have you tried Zaino Z-2 or Blackfire Wet Diamond sealant?

 

No. Have heard of the Blackfire but not tried it, so I will have to put that on my shopping list along wit SScully's recommends on another thread. Thanks Merlin now... back to the OPs thread topic...........

 

Longevity on NXT 2.0 isn't bad - it's better than most carnaubas.

 

I wax at least 3-4 times a year from spring to winter readiness. NXT has been good for me at least. And once in a while when I am lazy or time doesn't permit.... a shot of QD works till I can

 

I have been testing out Duragloss Aquawax, used like a QD on clean paint as an extender.

Jury is still out on if it works in that usage case, but it does put a nice slick coating on it. I think it makes the color a tad deeper, still trying to figure out if that is really the case.

I have Colinite 845 on the front fenders and hood with Aquawax on it, the driver's door is just CG blacklight and the rear door is straight 845.

I have been using 15:1 pre spray ONR to clean the areas ( mostly dust ) with a std ONR 2 gal bucket mix.
Don't want to introduce anything else like PB SnW or SnG ( that would change things for sure ) to hue the testing.

 

test away SSCULLY! I'll wait for the final verdict and try whatever the master detailers recommend (as long as the budget agrees, LOL). I now have 2 'recommends' on my list to try out/work with

 

Chemical Guys Lava...