Product Recommendations: What Should I Put On My Car?

Aether

Aether

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Hey AGO,

I recently purchased a low-mileage Black Mica 2008 Mazdaspeed3 and I'm coming to you all for a bit of fun. The paint on this thing is fairly trashed; swirls everywhere, a few scratches, and some of the worst touch-up work I've ever seen. I'll be correcting this in my spare time with M105 and M205 primarily (and that ain't changin',) but I wanted to diversify my post-correction products a bit.

Here's what I'm looking for:
- Glaze
- Sealant
- Wax

Here's what I want from it listed from most important to least important:
- Effectiveness
- Ease of use
- Longevity
- Affordability

So what do you have for me? I have no preference as far as paste wax versus liquid wax, though I do enjoy the process of applying paste wax provided it's not impossibly hard to remove.
 
Had a modified MS3 in Pearl White myself. Welcome to AGO.

To address you questions, Chemical Guys Blacklight or Poor Boys Black Hole. Both are excellent. Seal it up with Collinite 915 or if you're coming into winter where you are 476. Both are Hybrids so no need for a seperate "wax" 915 is designed to give a warmer glow. Another option is Blackfire's Hybrid Montain wax too. Pricey but good. I have used them all.
 
Y'know, a Pearl White MS3 was in the cards, but it had twice the mileage and the paint was only in slightly better condition; I figured the low-mileage option was the better choice. Also my daily is a white Integra and I really didn't want another white car to work on.

I've been wanting to try Collinite 915 for a while, but I'm not really the type to buy into the whole show wax thing. Fortunately, it's not expensive so I don't feel like I'm being had. Does it hold up pretty well? Where I live, it's either Summer or Autumn, so not worried about Winter protection.
 
Since you are going to be correcting the paint with a polish/compound, you can skip the glaze.

As for the LSP, since you live in a mild climate I'd think you have many more alternatives since you don't need to armor plate your car with a long lasting product to get you through the dark months of winter. You pretty much have your pick of products from the inventory here at AG. Nearly all of them are very good. It's really a matter of finding one that produces the look you enjoy that's within your budget.

My preference on metallic black paint is to go with a sealant vs a wax. From my limited experience, I found waxes like tend to mute the flake while sealants produce a more glass like finish which makes the flake pop.
 
Desertnate said:
Since you are going to be correcting the paint with a polish/compound, you can skip the glaze.

As for the LSP, since you live in a mild climate I'd think you have many more alternatives since you don't need to armor plate your car with a long lasting product to get you through the dark months of winter. You pretty much have your pick of products from the inventory here at AG. Nearly all of them are very good. It's really a matter of finding one that produces the look you enjoy that's within your budget.

My preference on metallic black paint is to go with a sealant vs a wax. From my limited experience, I found waxes like tend to mute the flake while sealants produce a more glass like finish which makes the flake pop.
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The glaze is for later on down the road, so I can reduce the amount of correction done to it if (when) damage is done, this thing will eventually become my daily driver.

Desertnate, do you have a favorite sealant for metallic black? Part of the reason I made this thread is to get acquainted with the AGO community and see what it is they'd put on the ride if it were in their hands. Fun stuff... right?!
 
Aether said:
Desertnate, do you have a favorite sealant for metallic black? Part of the reason I made this thread is to get acquainted with the AGO community and see what it is they'd put on the ride if it were in their hands. Fun stuff... right?!
Click to expand...

Right now I'm I'm liking Collinite 845 and the Blackfire Products on my black metallic VW. 845 is like many products these as it's a blend of waxes and other ingredients, so it isn't a true wax. The Blackfire Wet Diamond Polymer Spray as a spray sealant looks amazing too. Right now, I'm topping the 845 every 3 weeks or so with the Blackfire spray and am very pleased.. I'm sure the Blackfire All Purpose Paint Protection, or their Crystal Seal would yield similar results. I've also used Klasse Sealant Glaze (it's a sealant, not a glaze), but like the Blackfire look better.
 
I've really been liking the Duragloss 105/601 and 111/601. They meet all of your listed criteria. Effective, easy to use, durable, and affordable. Super gloss, easy application and removal, it's top notch stuff. Don't let it's low price fool you.
 
Harpolith said:
I've really been liking the Duragloss 105/601 and 111/601. Don't let it's low price fool you.
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For me, it's not their low price that fools me. It's the sheer inability to figure out what each 3 digit number is, and what I should use it for. I can't even find a section on their website that says "exterior protection", or anything that sounds remotely similar.

But I guess their marketing is working for them. I just don't feel like using my decoder ring to figure it all out.
 
Hantra said:
For me, it's not their low price that fools me. It's the sheer inability to figure out what each 3 digit number is, and what I should use it for. I can't even find a section on their website that says "exterior protection", or anything that sounds remotely similar.

But I guess their marketing is working for them. I just don't feel like using my decoder ring to figure it all out.
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105 and 111 are just polymer paint sealants ("synthetic waxes"). 105 has some cleaning ability (it's an AIO). 111 has no cleaning ability (a straight up sealer like Megs Ultimate Liquid Wax or Menz Powerlock, for example). 601 Bonding Agent is absolutely not necessary, but it increases the longevity of both 105 and 111.

Of all the paint sealants I've tried, I've never seen gloss like 111 provides without having machine polished first.
 
Harpolith said:
I've really been liking the Duragloss 105/601 and 111/601. They meet all of your listed criteria. Effective, easy to use, durable, and affordable. Super gloss, easy application and removal, it's top notch stuff. Don't let it's low price fool you.
Click to expand...

I prefer the 111/601 combo for ease of application and the 111 seems to be a little more durable then 105 for me. 111 does look fantastic on dark colors.
 
Big fan of M205 here as well. How about one that's boutique-ish, only without the hefty tag that goes along with it: Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection. I switch around a bit, but every single time I rotated back - the product always wowed me. Brilliant stuff.
 
Digging the suggestions and the discussion so far. Thanks to everyone!

As it stands, I'm leaning towards the Finish Kare products recommended by Bob. I feel like in my climate, they'd serve me well. Can anyone elaborate on their products more? I'm interested in pretty much all of them and even though I didn't come into this looking for a QD, it looks like FK425 and the FK Anti-Static Poly Wipe are right up my alley.
 
Just remember how important prep is and if you have the time to correct as close to perfection as possible, the finish will already look amazing. In 2016 we are very lucky to have the products that are available. The truth is that they are all good. But I will agree with Bob. I use to use that combo and it was the most durable in my experience at that time. Their QDs are also excellent, and used those as well. If you love a slick feeling, you are in for a treat. For maintaining the finish, you should look into rinseless washes. If you want to wash your car fast that is also easy to do, these type of washes are god sent. Check out the videos on youtube.

GL!


Aether said:
Digging the suggestions and the discussion so far. Thanks to everyone!

As it stands, I'm leaning towards the Finish Kare products recommended by Bob. I feel like in my climate, they'd serve me well. Can anyone elaborate on their products more? I'm interested in pretty much all of them and even though I didn't come into this looking for a QD, it looks like FK425 and the FK Anti-Static Poly Wipe are right up my alley.
Click to expand...
 
tdekany said:
Just remember how important prep is and if you have the time to correct as close to perfection as possible, the finish will already look amazing. In 2016 we are very lucky to have the products that are available. The truth is that they are all good. But I will agree with Bob. I use to use that combo and it was the most durable in my experience at that time. Their QDs are also excellent, and used those as well. If you love a slick feeling, you are in for a treat. For maintaining the finish, you should look into rinseless washes. If you want to wash your car fast that is also easy to do, these type of washes are god sent. Check out the videos on youtube.

GL!
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Oh absolutely! The beauty comes from the polish, the protection comes from what I put on top. That's why, to me, the FK1000P seems like such an awesome product. I actually do use rinseless washes already, they're my go-to method.

Are the Finish Kare QDs all synthetic formulas? Do they work well on trim pieces and plastics as well as the paint?
 
While I haven't used those QDs in years, they were fine on trim and as far as I remember they were all synthetic
 
That's good to hear, I'm going to try a gallon of the FK425 since it's on sale. I'll also be getting the FK1000P and a few other things as well.

Thanks for the recommendations, everyone!
 
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