Satin Deep Black Wet

HEXIS Satin Deep Black Wet is a satin black film, catalogued as HX20890W. HEXIS lists 12 other black shades, so it is worth seeing them side by side before you settle on one.

This is color change wrap vinyl from HEXIS's catalog. It resurfaces the car in a new color and can be removed later without touching the factory paint underneath, which is why wraps hold resale value in a way a respray does not. Vinyl changes how the car looks; it is not impact protection, so if you also want the paint shielded from rock chips, the same kind of color exists as color paint protection film at a higher price.

The satin finish

Satin sits between gloss and matte — a soft sheen that moves along the body lines as the light changes rather than mirroring what is around it. It is the finish that most often makes people ask what color the car actually is. It marks more readily with fingerprints and oils around the handles and fuel door, and it is never polished: cleaning is a gentle wash and a wrap-safe detail spray, nothing abrasive.

Living with black in the Pacific Northwest

Black is the hardest color to keep looking perfect and the best looking when it is. Every swirl and every water spot shows, and in Seattle that means drying the car rather than letting it air dry after rain. Dark colors show water spots, dust and wash marks sooner than light ones, and our rain leaves spots the moment it dries on a panel. Drying the car after a wash rather than letting it air dry is most of the battle.

Care: hand wash with a wrap-safe soap and a soft mitt. Nothing abrasive and no polishing — satin cannot be corrected the way gloss can.