Paint Coating Questions

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Countersteer46

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Mike,
I just finished reading your Complete Guide To A Show Car Shine. What a great investment!! Towards the end of the book, you mention Paint Coatings. This is the first I have heard of them and had a couple questions. Mostly, I'm trying to figure out if a coating would be right for my situation. My daily driver is a Cruze and I will be wet sanding, compounding and polishing . My thought was that a Coating would be good for a few reasons and just wanted to make sure my logic was sound. Firstly, because the paint is getting wet sanded and thinner an extra layer of protection would be a good safety barrier, especially for a daily driver. Secondly, because it is a daily driver, a coating would cut down on some of the maintenance time to keep it looking nice in the future. Would that be correct logic? Also, if I do apply a coating, would I still use a sealant and/or wax over it for either increased protection or more beautiful finish? Finally, is there a particular coating out there that you would recommend? Thanks for the book and the help, Mike!
 
Countersteer46 said:
Mike,
I just finished reading your Complete Guide To A Show Car Shine. What a great investment!! Towards the end of the book, you mention Paint Coatings. This is the first I have heard of them and had a couple questions. Mostly, I'm trying to figure out if a coating would be right for my situation. My daily driver is a Cruze and I will be wet sanding, compounding and polishing . My thought was that a Coating would be good for a few reasons and just wanted to make sure my logic was sound. Firstly, because the paint is getting wet sanded and thinner an extra layer of protection would be a good safety barrier, especially for a daily driver. Secondly, because it is a daily driver, a coating would cut down on some of the maintenance time to keep it looking nice in the future. Would that be correct logic? Also, if I do apply a coating, would I still use a sealant and/or wax over it for either increased protection or more beautiful finish? Finally, is there a particular coating out there that you would recommend? Thanks for the book and the help, Mike!
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If u were you I would look opti-coat 2.0. All your thinking is correct. These coatings are permanent and last well over two years. The most important thing is getting your paint to be defect free as best as you can. Once the coating is applied any scratches or swirls that remain will be sealed and seen for the life if the coating. Even though these coatings are scratch resistant you still want to wash and dry your car properly. You can add a wax or a
Sealant over top of the coating if you would like but just so you know it's not needed.
 
Depending on how long you expect to own/keep this DD-Cruze,
especially after performing: Wet-sanding, et al...upon it:

It'd probably be prudent having one of the Coatings applied to this vehicle.

As such:
The Opti-Coatings currently hold the position of prominency as being the longest lasting.


:)

Bob
 
Ok, so everyone seems to say it's a good idea and that Optimum makes the best coating right now, specifically citing its durability. Is there a difference between one coating and the other when it comes to shininess and clarity, or are they all pretty close?
 
I find GTechniq coating better than Opti-Coat in terms of looks, durability so far is dead even. From my personal testing GTechniq C1 with GTechniq EXO over it has the best look. GTechniq EXO v2 is something that I have yet to test.

That said, you really can't go wrong with either Opti-Coat or GTechniq coating.
 
Some coatings are a bit better looking than opti coat,but it is hard to notice for an untrained eye. I have opti coat on my 2013 WRX and I cant say enough good things about it. Great shine, and it repels water like crazy. I usually top it with a wax to give a little extra protection and a different look.

One application of opti coat should only use a tiny amount out of the syringe. You could probably do 7-8 cars with what they give you. Great value for the money.
 
OK.....Is the look of Opti-Coat as least as good a a high quality over the counter sealant/wax, for example Meg's Ulitmate Wax?

Does a coat of wax over Opti-Coat give it the slickness that it apparently lacks and how often do
you apply the wax?
 
jlax2485 said:
Some coatings are a bit better looking than opti coat,but it is hard to notice for an untrained eye. I have opti coat on my 2013 WRX and I cant say enough good things about it. Great shine, and it repels water like crazy. I usually top it with a wax to give a little extra protection and a different look.

One application of opti coat should only use a tiny amount out of the syringe. You could probably do 7-8 cars with what they give you. Great value for the money.
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Seems like the Opti-coat has some real good qualities. So, a wax or sealant over it would in fact improve shine? Can anyone speak for the Opti-coat glass coating? Is that of similar high quality?
 
Topping the coating is something that will only produce very short lived results, as the wax or sealant or whatever you apply on top of the coating will not last because the properties of the coating do not allow it to properly bond to the surface. I have my car coated with 22ple VX1 Pro coating and simply apply a spray sealant as a drying aid after washing, but I do not count on it for much added protection.



Also, I've got to ask... what condition is your car in that you feel you must wet sand the entire car? Clear coat is extremely valuable for a DD, so I would think that wet sanding is definitely above and beyond any levels of restoration needed for such a car, unless it was repainted and has a terrible finish.
 
Countersteer46 said:
Seems like the Opti-coat has some real good qualities. So, a wax or sealant over it would in fact improve shine? Can anyone speak for the Opti-coat glass coating? Is that of similar high quality?
Click to expand...

Any wax or sealant that you top the coating with will only last for maybe a week or two, due to the fact that opti-coat (or most other coatings) are designed so that nothing will stick to them.

It doesnt bother me because I will usually wax my car every week anyway just because I enjoy it and the warm, wet look it gives the car.
 
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