Noob to Ceramic Coatings......CSL topped with Gliss?

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Medicaptain

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My first post everyone, go easy. And thanks for all of your posts here....days and days of reading for me.

Wife is picking up her brand new BMW M550 in an amazing Black Azurite color (Dealer is not touching it, I am getting it straight off the truck). I am going to prep/coat my daily with CSL and EXO to get my first experience doing a Ceramic. I have been a Jescar/Collinite/Beadmaker guy for awhile but the dust and pollen here in AZ is kicking our butts....

but! I am not really liking the feedback I am reading and seeing on EXO. Now I am considering doing CQUK 3.0, but it does not seem to be a great install process for someone who hasn't done it before where CSL seems to be pretty easy.

What is the thought on doing CSL, topping with Gliss and Reload? All three look pretty easy and hard to mess up.

Thanks for any advice
 
My recommendation is to stick with the product family to avoid install issues.

Exo is not that much harder to install compared to CSL. Just takes a bit more due diligence to wipe off the excess residue. Multiple towels come in handy for Exo.

CQUK 3.0 is not that hard to install either. Topping it with Gliss is a fun option. TiO2 is a bit easier to work with and a good coating in its own right. Can also be topped with Gliss.

If you are not ready to go to a full blown coating Cquartz Lite and Gyeon CanCoat are great options.
 
Awesome idea Guz, thanks

I may have to punt....looks like it will be 110-115 degrees when we pick it up on the 21st....I will check into the ti02 too. The cquartz lite also has my full attention right now.....but I may just be wimping out a little....locking something in for "years" has me a little paranoid on a brand new ride
 
Just did my 1st/2nd coating and used CQUK3 with can coat on top. Just make sure to have good lighting to see high spots. If you’ve got that it’s pretty simple.


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Medicaptain said:
...but I may just be wimping out a little....locking something in for "years" has me a little paranoid on a brand new ride
Click to expand...

If you've got a black car that you daily drive and are even mildly OCD-ish about it's appearance, anything over 2 years as far as longevity goes is pretty pointless IMO. It's a tough world out there and you will pick up some defects and marring through daily use and maintenance over the course of 2 years so you'd likely be re-polishing and applying something new at the end of that time anyway. I just don't understand the appeal of "5 to 7 year" longevity products on daily drivers despite the marketing claims of it being the best way to go.

Having recently (2 or 3 months ago) done 2 identical vehicles, 1 with CSL and EXOV4 and one with CQ UK 3.0 + Gliss V2, I prefer the CQUK3/Gliss combo. Many rave about how awesome the Gtechniq stuff is and it certainly is nice but isn't as all-out, crazy awesome as folks make it out to be since I've been watching both vehicles daily. All personal preference though so YMMV.

I think one thing folks tout about the Gtechniq stuff is CSL has a greater claimed longevity but again, 2 years in on a black vehicle will make that kinda pointless. At least aht's been my experience owning/coating and living with 2 black cars.

Although I'm a certified coating junkie, sometimes I wonder if the best way to go if *extremely* OCD-ish about the appearance of black paint, something like Gyeon CanCoat or Cquartz Lite....easier and cheaper to fix/reapply as necessary when the roads throw ya a curve ball...
 
The Guz said:
Give CQ Lite a try. Pretty straight forward to use. No need to worry about flash times. Essentially on and off.

Here is my review of it

https://www.autogeekonline.net/foru...2-review-carpro-cquartz-lite.html#post1632363

For maintenance you could keep it pretty simple with CarPro Elixir or if you like invest in Reload and alternate between the two. I have a review on Elixir as well.

https://www.autogeekonline.net/foru...etailer.html?highlight=review+-+carpro+elixir
Click to expand...

Thanks Guv...great reviews, thanks for all your work for our benefit. It will be CQ Lite with Elixir...after 6 months I will step up to the big boy stuff when it's cooler and easier to work on.
 
You will enjoy it. The coating will probably last you close to a year as CarPro has stated it will.
 
Sounds like you may already be dissuaded away from the GTechniq line but let me offer my experience on it.

My biggest problem with coatings has always been water spotting. I'm currently testing out CSL+EXO v4 and have been impressed with how the EXO keeps them to a minimum. So far this combo has been the best of the 4 coatings I've tried in dealing with spotting.
 
BudgetPlan1 said:
If you've got a black car that you daily drive and are even mildly OCD-ish about it's appearance, anything over 2 years as far as longevity goes is pretty pointless IMO. It's a tough world out there and you will pick up some defects and marring through daily use and maintenance over the course of 2 years so you'd likely be re-polishing and applying something new at the end of that time anyway. I just don't understand the appeal of "5 to 7 year" longevity products on daily drivers despite the marketing claims of it being the best way to go.

Having recently (2 or 3 months ago) done 2 identical vehicles, 1 with CSL and EXOV4 and one with CQ UK 3.0 + Gliss V2, I prefer the CQUK3/Gliss combo. Many rave about how awesome the Gtechniq stuff is and it certainly is nice but isn't as all-out, crazy awesome as folks make it out to be since I've been watching both vehicles daily. All personal preference though so YMMV.

I think one thing folks tout about the Gtechniq stuff is CSL has a greater claimed longevity but again, 2 years in on a black vehicle will make that kinda pointless. At least aht's been my experience owning/coating and living with 2 black cars.

Although I'm a certified coating junkie, sometimes I wonder if the best way to go if *extremely* OCD-ish about the appearance of black paint, something like Gyeon CanCoat or Cquartz Lite....easier and cheaper to fix/reapply as necessary when the roads throw ya a curve ball...
Click to expand...

GREAT info....Thank you

I am not dissuaded on GTechniq at all as I will be doing my daily (2012 Platinum White F150) this weekend. I have no worries what goes on that truck even though it is near flawless. The new BMW on the other hand has me hesitating....or a better way to put it would be that I am doing an overload of research...it is unique and beautiful paint, brand new and my experience level is upper DIY and hoping to move to Prosumerish level. With that said, thats why I will try both the GTechniq on the truck and the CQuartz Lite on the BMW....if I screw up the BMW....at least it won't be for long.

I have tons to learn and this is certainly the right place to get the right information. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to respond....GREAT website
 
Medicaptain said:
I am going to prep/coat my daily with
CSL and EXO to get my first experience
doing a Ceramic.

What is the thought on doing CSL,
topping with Gliss and Reload?
Click to expand...
•I’m thinking that any Coating, that’s worth
its salt, really shouldn’t need any of these
“Coating toppers” in order to have a survival
rate that, most assuredly, closely approaches
their advertised/purported end-of-service-life.


•(With that out of the way)...However:
In your case it appears that “topping/toppers”
have become a way of life.

TO WIT:
Medicaptain said:
I have been a Jescar/Collinite/Beadmaker
guy for awhile...
Click to expand...

•With that in mind; (and despite what I say):
-There’s that chance that you may also
consider “Coating toppers/topping events”
to be essential.



Bob
 
If it's worth anything...my coating "tester" is my black BMW 335.
 
Medicaptain said:
GREAT info....Thank you

I am not dissuaded on GTechniq at all as I will be doing my daily (2012 Platinum White F150) this weekend. I have no worries what goes on that truck even though it is near flawless. The new BMW on the other hand has me hesitating....or a better way to put it would be that I am doing an overload of research...it is unique and beautiful paint, brand new and my experience level is upper DIY and hoping to move to Prosumerish level. With that said, thats why I will try both the GTechniq on the truck and the CQuartz Lite on the BMW....if I screw up the BMW....at least it won't be for long.

I have tons to learn and this is certainly the right place to get the right information. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to respond....GREAT website
Click to expand...

Don’t over think it. That’s when trouble happens. Sometimes taking that leap of faith and getting out of your comfort zone is the way to go.

Obsessed Garage has a couple videos going over the application of both CSL and Exo.

CSL is a breeze to put on. The downside is it lacks in hydrophobic properties (water beading) but excels in the sheeting aspect. Exo takes the water beading to another level with still a good sheeting aspect.

You won’t have any problems applying either one. Just have your towels ready for Exo to avoid those high spots.

CQ Lite is easy to work with. You won’t have any issues with it. It is pretty forgiving if you have a high spot.

Post pics when you are done.
 
Will do on the pics.....I have been planning the arrival of this car for nearly a year (my garage is jacked out with OG stuff)....all great info.....I plan on just keep it simple and have fun with it


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Ok here we go.....Just need to confirm with you all of this process that I intend to do.

Going to do a quick polish with CarPro Essence....should just wipe it off and go straight to the GQuartz Lite or use eraser beforehand...it seems there are different opinions on that

After the Lite application I was planning on doing Reload and then Gliss after the first week. OR.....should I do Gliss and if so, before or after the Reload?

All opinions welcome
 
Medicaptain said:
Ok here we go.....Just need to confirm with you all of this process that I intend to do.

Going to do a quick polish with CarPro Essence....should just wipe it off and go straight to the GQuartz Lite or use eraser beforehand...it seems there are different opinions on that

After the Lite application I was planning on doing Reload and then Gliss after the first week. OR.....should I do Gliss and if so, before or after the Reload?

All opinions welcome
Click to expand...

You have a few options.

1. Polish the entire car and by the time you are done you can apply Lite where you originally started with polishing.

2. Follow up with a prep with Eraser after polishing to ensure no residue from Essence is removed. It will not remove the SiO2 left behind. I would recommend this step and then coat.

3. If you have access to a garage let Essence sit overnight after wiping off to allow the SiO2 to cure and the excess residue will “evaporate” off the surface. Come back the next morning with a light prep wipe mostly to remove any dust and proceed to coat.

With the coating here is what you should do:

- Apply 2 coats of Lite as recommended
- Apply 1 coat of Gliss 4 hours after the last coat of Lite. Or wait the next day.
- Reload is optional if applying Gliss. Not really needed in my experience. Save I for down the road. I find Elixir to be much better for maintenance.

If you apply Reload after Lite then you would have to strip it in order to use Gliss. So apply Gliss prior to Reload.

All of this comes from the folks over at CarPro in my research and experience using their coatings.
 
Awesome......I will follow this to a T and do the Gliss and not ReLoad. I ordered Elixir too to play with moving forward......

Thanks for everything Guz
 
Ok...here we go with one final detail of the off going 535 and I can't wait to pick up the 550
 
Wow that was a ton of work and I am SORE! Had a few snafu's to overcome, my foamer stopped working so I had to rebuild it but then we were off to the races. Full decon, a small amount of paint prep on the side/rear bumpers had some scratches, 2 coats of CQuartz lite followed by Gliss and Reload. Tons of hours put in this weekend but all worth it.
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Wow! Gorgeous. The muscle pain is temporary. The shine and protection on that new Bavarian Beauty will last MUCH longer.

Congrats on her new ride! Love that new wheel style.
 
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