Phantom Black A3 Owners ...... Regret Your Choice Of Colour?

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coupe-se

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Rather than highjack another thread, I wondered what other owners of Phantom Black (not sure if Audi do another version of black) A3's thought of these comments:

"black is the worst colour you can get a car in - stick with the grey - personally i would nevr ever buy a second hand black car due to evry single little scratch and mark being extra visible - if you want a car to look nicer for longer stick with the grey i reckon - thats my choice too mines a dolphin grey when it comes in march. Black looks good on delivery date only."

Do you regret choosing a black car and would you ever own another of the same colour again?

I've had mine for 6 months and the paint is still in fantastic condition even though my sport means I drive and park it on beaches. I always pressure wash my car before going at it with a soapy sponge to get rid of any loose dirt that could scratch it.
I do wash my A3 more often than previous cars to keep it looking at its best as I think it looks so damn good in black!! :)
My works vehicle is white and shows the dirt and looks grubby far quicker than my black A3.
I must say that Iv'e found the laquer on my Audi is far harder than my previous Impreza and Mazda6 and makes my previous Navara and 206's paint look like wax crayon in comparison.

I bought my previous Hyundai Coupe, Ford Mundano, Mada6 and Impreza in silver with the thought "its the best colour etc etc" but don't regret buying the A3 in Phantom Black one bit!!!:icon_thumright: :salute:

5578171271be09fb43ebe215a886549bfc4486f2358f09f74c52fde0.jpg
 
i picked up my new a3 sportback last week,

had it in brilliant black and love the colour , (while it is clean).....
i know it will show little scratches,marks more then any other colour and i will need to clean it more often then i have been used to, but when it is all clean it looks TOPS......
 
My last car was Phantom black or the equivalent and I still think it's the smartest colour available. Never had a problem with it showing up marks or found it showed the dirt more than other colours. Lets face it, it's you who knows when your car is in need of a clean , nobody else could care less.

I changed to Dolphin for my new one but only because I wanted a change.... ok wanted my mates to know I had a new car! :)
 
On my second black A3 now (first one was Ebony Black). Yes it's hard work keeping it clean and free of scratches but it's so worth it. When clean, nothing comes close.

BTW, coupe-se, you've not got any swirl-marks at all in your paint, despite using a sponge to clean it? That surprises the hell out of me tbh, as sponges are usually black's worst enemy.
 
mine's brilliant black and after having a silver car before it i have found it a git to keep clean but when it is clean boy does it SHINE!

To clean the car i hose the car down

then wash it with a lambs wool wash mitt which doesn't scratch the car - sponges do

then if i have time i will clay bar it

then i wax it

then a good old buffing off

if anyone is interested in keeping their car in tip top condition http://www.detailingworld.com is a good forum to browse!!!
 
My last car was metallic black. Did I regret the choice? No! Black always looks good when clean. Seeing the odd scratch or stone chip here or there is annoying, but I'll see those no matter what colour car I've got. I'd have black again, but I just loved the way Dolphin Grey looked on the car I had to have it.
 
Vertigo1 said:
BTW, coupe-se, you've not got any swirl-marks at all in your paint, despite using a sponge to clean it? That surprises the hell out of me tbh, as sponges are usually black's worst enemy.
Click to expand...

Plenty of water via the pressure washer then plenty of car shampoo concerntrate in the bucket of hot water. I never have to rub hard to get the dirt off, possibly why the paint is still ok.

I'm not anal when it comes to washing my cars but I am fussy and do clean it every other week at least.

RobinA3 ............... I discovered the Clay-bar last year and couldn't believe the results I got on my year old Navara. The paint felt glass smooth again and looked superb!!
 
Vertigo1 said:
On my second black A3 now (first one was Ebony Black). Yes it's hard work keeping it clean and free of scratches but it's so worth it. When clean, nothing comes close.
Click to expand...
Totally agree - once polished it looks fab. The plus side I think of visible scratches is that potential buyers can see how well you've looked after it, rather than hoping that with a brighter colour, no-one would notice!

Although I must admit, we test drove a Lava Grey Sport model at launch and I wanted it in that colour, the missus wanted black, and so it arrived in Ebony Black pearlescent.:unsure:
 
after owning my pearl black clio i doubt i will own another black car

i kept my clio is pristine condition, you wouldnt know it was a 3 year old car

i got a porter cable buff last year and got rid of all the swirls and scratches and the paint looked sooo fresh

black cars need a lot of attention :(
 
Most people think my lava grey is black. Not too bad with the road dirt but looks best clean of course (see gallery) - but i'm not letting the dealers wash it again - swirls all over the bumper...:mad:

Does anybody else still let the dealers clean their car?
 
southpaw66 said:
Most people think my lava grey is black. Not too bad with the road dirt but looks best clean of course (see gallery) - but i'm not letting the dealers wash it again - swirls all over the bumper...:mad:

Does anybody else still let the dealers clean their car?
Click to expand...

After many years of new car ownership I have one golden rule, and thats to always take the car for any repair (dealer or otherwise) clean, and spotless. The last time my car went to a dealer dirty, it got a scratch. I have only one exception, and thats my paint man (and good friend), who is a perfectionist, which show with the types of car he has to paint.

Chris.
 
i never let anyone else wash my car - ive only ever used a carwash on my first car

the audi however has used the carwash once - due to some *** drawing a big knob on my bonnet lol so had to bite the bullet and got to a carwash!

other than that, the car is washed with a mitt, two bucket method, drying towel - all to avoid scratches and swirls!
 
HeliChris (a little off topic) Looks like you're based in Essex - me too. Which dealer do you use?
 
i never let the dealer wash a car - its always some spotty kid using some manky old rag which hasn't been rinsed in the last 7 cars hes washed... ahem attempted to wash who is on about £2.50 an hour and so doesn't really care what happens to the cars!.

Defo agree with not taking a car in dirty to a dealer - i did this once to SKF Bolton and what a horrendous mess they made of my front wings - think they covered them up with sandpaper so they didn't damage them leaning into engine bay! My original train of thought was if you take a car in dirty - any marks that happen on a dirty car are always really visible cos it creates a clean patch - so i used to did it for this reason - but never again.
 
First black car I have owned, last one was silver. Much, much harder to keep clean, but boy does it look good when its clean. Mine is 14months old, it has a few white stone chips across the bonnet. I don't think I would have black again regardless that I wash the car everyweek no matter what colour.

I take extra care with cleaning my car and it has no swirls but it does show all the light scratches like if you go to the Shell at night you can see them all. I use two buckets, two meguiars mitts etc. I might invest in a Porter (PC) at some point and try that.

No regrets, sometimes like last night I went shopping and it was sat under the sodium lights looking fantastic after I had washed it on Sunday.

I would recommend souveran pinnacle wax for that WOW factor
 
coupe-se said:
Do you regret choosing a black car and would you ever own another of the same colour again?
Click to expand...

Nope, my last A3 was Phantom Black and yeah it did get a bit dirty but as I wash my car every other weekend didnt really bother me, current car is also black...
 
old s3 was phantom black

new 07 s3 is also phantom black - dont regret it one bit. A wee bit more washing required but nothing i cant handle
 
I too have no regrets, alittle more care but well worth it, as phantom is a pearl finish I don't find any problems with swirls etc whereas a previous 'flat' black Golf I owned was a bit of a git. I would buy a second hand black car and then claybar it !

When I search for cars my favourite colour is always blue but never bought one - go figure !! I always end up with black, grey or silver.
 
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