dpscoupe
New member
- Sep 13, 2012
- 450
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I found myself with a few different trim renewal and protection products on the shelf and wanted to see which one I liked best in a side by side comparison.
The test subject is a well neglected 2003 F150. I used the outer belt molding on the passenger rear door for this comparison. This molding is rubberized, not plastic or metal. All loose dirt was cleaned away using ONR diluted to rinseless concentration. Then the molding was sprayed with Zep Citrus 10:1, agitated with a brush, wiped dry, and repeated. Final dry time was one hour in the garage with a fan blowing on it.
Products were applied with a tape separator between each with no protection on the tape "line". All were applied with a microfiber applicator (new applicator for each product). Each product received two applications; 30 min dry time between applications and 12 hr dry time before exposure to moisture.
Products used were:
Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant (WETS)
Mequiar's Ultimate Black
Mothers Back-to-Black
AutoTech Trim Re-Nu
The below results are immediately after the 12 hr dry. The products are in the above order, from left to right in the picture.
Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant
This product is very thin and a little goes a long way. I quickly realized that WETS needs to be applied with a foam applicator. Quite literally, a drop or two of this would have done the whole molding. The applicator was clean after application, so no cleaning ability detected. The trim was noticeably darker after application and the beading is insane for a trim product. It was two months before I noticed the beading diminish.
Mequiar's Ultimate Black
I've had really good experiences with the rest of the Ultimate line, so I wanted to give this stuff a shot. It has a thicker, almost creamy consistency and required a bit more product for coverage. The applicator did have some staining evident, so there appear to be mild cleaning abilities. It did darken the trim similar to WETS, but the beading was much less. After two weeks I could no longer tell any difference between the test spot and the unprotected tape separators.
Mothers Back-to-Black
The consistency of this one I found to be in between the WETS and Meg's. The applicator was noticeably dirtier than the Meg's indicating reasonable cleaning ability, and the trim was not as dark, but still darker than the untreated tape lines. The test area beaded water better than the Trim Re-Nu but not as well as Meg's, and after exposing this test area to water the next day I could no longer tell the difference between it and the untreated sections.
AutoTech Trim Re-Nu
This stuff was white in color with a similar consistency to the Mothers. After the first application, the pad was black! After the second it was still quite dirty. Overall this was the "cleanest" looking test spot with no darkening effect. The test area had a natural matte color and the untreated tape separator looked more brownish in comparison. There was minimal indication of protection compared to the untreated areas. When exposed to water two days after the initial test, no evidence of protection remained. It is still the "cleanest" looking spot on the trim today.
Conclusions
My new trim combo has been clean with Trim Re-Nu and then protect with WETS. My trim has never looked so good!
Thanks for reading!
The test subject is a well neglected 2003 F150. I used the outer belt molding on the passenger rear door for this comparison. This molding is rubberized, not plastic or metal. All loose dirt was cleaned away using ONR diluted to rinseless concentration. Then the molding was sprayed with Zep Citrus 10:1, agitated with a brush, wiped dry, and repeated. Final dry time was one hour in the garage with a fan blowing on it.
Products were applied with a tape separator between each with no protection on the tape "line". All were applied with a microfiber applicator (new applicator for each product). Each product received two applications; 30 min dry time between applications and 12 hr dry time before exposure to moisture.
Products used were:
Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant (WETS)
Mequiar's Ultimate Black
Mothers Back-to-Black
AutoTech Trim Re-Nu
The below results are immediately after the 12 hr dry. The products are in the above order, from left to right in the picture.
Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant
This product is very thin and a little goes a long way. I quickly realized that WETS needs to be applied with a foam applicator. Quite literally, a drop or two of this would have done the whole molding. The applicator was clean after application, so no cleaning ability detected. The trim was noticeably darker after application and the beading is insane for a trim product. It was two months before I noticed the beading diminish.
Mequiar's Ultimate Black
I've had really good experiences with the rest of the Ultimate line, so I wanted to give this stuff a shot. It has a thicker, almost creamy consistency and required a bit more product for coverage. The applicator did have some staining evident, so there appear to be mild cleaning abilities. It did darken the trim similar to WETS, but the beading was much less. After two weeks I could no longer tell any difference between the test spot and the unprotected tape separators.
Mothers Back-to-Black
The consistency of this one I found to be in between the WETS and Meg's. The applicator was noticeably dirtier than the Meg's indicating reasonable cleaning ability, and the trim was not as dark, but still darker than the untreated tape lines. The test area beaded water better than the Trim Re-Nu but not as well as Meg's, and after exposing this test area to water the next day I could no longer tell the difference between it and the untreated sections.
AutoTech Trim Re-Nu
This stuff was white in color with a similar consistency to the Mothers. After the first application, the pad was black! After the second it was still quite dirty. Overall this was the "cleanest" looking test spot with no darkening effect. The test area had a natural matte color and the untreated tape separator looked more brownish in comparison. There was minimal indication of protection compared to the untreated areas. When exposed to water two days after the initial test, no evidence of protection remained. It is still the "cleanest" looking spot on the trim today.
Conclusions
- Wolfgang won on protection and durability hands down This product did not disappoint!
- Meguiars is a great OTC product with acceptable results and I'll continue to use for routine maintenace.
- Mothers did offer good cleaning ability, but protection and durability were not up to par with the rest. I have used to clean wax residue and it does do a fine job in the cleaning category.
- Trim Re-Nu showed excellent cleaning cpabilities, but should be followed up with some sort of protectant as it does not deliver in that area.
My new trim combo has been clean with Trim Re-Nu and then protect with WETS. My trim has never looked so good!
Thanks for reading!
