# Kia paint hardness and quality



## Derek Mc (Jun 27, 2006)

I am considering a Kia Optima in the White pearl as my next company car. Can anyone advise on the paint system they use does it fare well compared to the anti scratch laquers used on BMW Mercedes etc?

Naturally I will be building a product regime for it and am keen to hear your experiences on it.


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## AllenF (Aug 20, 2012)

Its as any paint.
Done correctly then swirls can be kept right down to bare minimum.
Its certainly not as hard as the german concretes but certainly not butter soft like jap stuff.
I find it on a par with say ford. Colour dependant white is inherently harder than black due to black NOT being a colour its a pigment ( think of rgb computer colours white is 255,255,255.. Black is 0,0,0 ). So for all paint types you can get a fairly good inclination of the hardness by using a colour wheel and seeing what the rgb numbers are. The higher the numbers the harder ( POSSIBLY ) the paint is but thats only a rough guideline country of origin pays into that too


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## Derek Mc (Jun 27, 2006)

Thanks for taking the time to reply, I have an Anal retentive approach to cleaning two buckets if lightly dirty, and done after rinse and foaming, separate for wheels and arch cleaning done quarterly etc etc so I think it will be much on a par with any car in that the pre-attention and care taken to remve grit debris and things the better!

Many thanks


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## AllenF (Aug 20, 2012)

Its all about the attention to detail in the prep BEFORE a wash mitt comes near the paint.
Get that bit right and swirls can be knocked right down if not out altogether.


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## Derek Mc (Jun 27, 2006)

Agreed fully My neighbours all must think I am nuts as the prep before I get my mitts on the car takes a good half hour!

Also while the car dwells with foam, I get the wheels washed up so as all my neighbours wash them last with the remains of a dirty shampoo bucket,,,,,, I just laugh


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## bidderman1969 (Oct 20, 2006)

Derek Mc said:


> I am considering a Kia Optima in the White pearl as my next company car. Can anyone advise on the paint system they use does it fare well compared to the anti scratch laquers used on BMW Mercedes etc?
> 
> Naturally I will be building a product regime for it and am keen to hear your experiences on it.


this is what i am leaning towards for my next taxi (2nd hand though)

between the Kia and Skoda for me


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

bidderman1969 said:


> this is what i am leaning towards for my next taxi (2nd hand though)
> 
> between the Kia and Skoda for me


How about the Toyota Avensis? They are very popular cars as taxi's.


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## bidderman1969 (Oct 20, 2006)

I spent all this time whittling it down to these two ta


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

bidderman1969 said:


> I spent all this time whittling it down to these two ta


Fair enough, looks like you did your homework.


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## Clancy (Jul 21, 2013)

bidderman1969 said:


> I spent all this time whittling it down to these two ta


I'd go for the kia, there newer cars are great I've been really impressed with them, drive lovely and good quality


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## Eliasasas (Feb 22, 2014)

I drive a 2013 Kia Cee'd, which I've owned since new. I had to go through sort of a mental block before buying a Kia, but I don't regret it. New Kias are up there competing with some of the best in their respective price ranges.

The color of my car is black pearl, and as for paint hardness, I haven't had much trouble keeping it fairly swirl free despite constantly battling the dirty roads and rough winters here in Sweden. It'll get its first light polish this spring, after two years of daily driving, which is not so bad considering the circumstances and the color of the car. I've even done some very questionable ONR washes on a very dirty, salty car, but it has handled it pretty well.


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## bidderman1969 (Oct 20, 2006)

Good to hear!


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