Swirls on Coatings

[Route246]

Just curious, what happens to a coating when the owner runs the car through a swirl-o-matic car wash on a regular basis? If it swirls, what do you do? With wax/sealant you just polish and reapply. What happens with coatings? It seems wasteful to polish and reapply the coating.

 

[RaskyR1]

Just curious, what happens to a coating when the owner runs the car through a swirl-o-matic car wash on a regular basis? If it swirls, what do you do? With wax/sealant you just polish and reapply. What happens with coatings? It seems wasteful to polish and reapply the coating.

Coatings aren't really the best option for owners that plan to run their vehicles through automatic touch washes and I've even talk some out of doing a coating for that very reason. You can use a product like Essence Plus to help minimize the appearance of swirls, but personally I think that type of client is best suited to coming in for a yearly maintenance polish and reapplication of a good wax/sealant.

Just my $.02

 

[Route246]

Coatings aren't really the best option for owners that plan to run their vehicles through automatic touch washes and I've even talk some out of doing a coating for that very reason. You can use a product like Essence Plus to help minimize the appearance of swirls, but personally I think that type of client is best suited to coming in for a yearly maintenance polish and reapplication of a good wax/sealant.

Just my $.02

Thanks. The reason I ask is I know someone who paid a ton of money for a coating at a Ford dealer but runs his car religiously through a swirl-inducing car wash weekly. He garages it and after 3 years it still beads like crazy in the rain except the paint is swirled beyond belief. I suspect that being in the garage most of the time has preserved the coating but it seems tragic that he ruins his paint with the automatic car wash abuse.

 

[Rsurfer]

Thanks. The reason I ask is I know someone who paid a ton of money for a coating at a Ford dealer but runs his car religiously through a swirl-inducing car wash weekly. He garages it and after 3 years it still beads like crazy in the rain except the paint is swirled beyond belief. I suspect that being in the garage most of the time has preserved the coating but it seems tragic that he ruins his paint with the automatic car wash abuse.

Swirls or no swirls, some protection is better than none.

 

[TTQ B4U]

Swirls or no swirls, some protection is better than none.

This. It's the very reason lots of people buy coatings. Lasting protection.

Sent from my Galaxy Note 8 using the AutoGeek Mobile App

 

[Rsurfer]

This. It's the very reason lots of people buy coatings. Lasting protection.

Sent from my Galaxy Note 8 using the AutoGeek Mobile App

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[MikeC78]

Even if they run it though the car wash, the coating option would be benefical for the clear coat reagardless. Would you rather him come in and polish those yearly, clearly reducing his actual clear coat, or polish off the swirly coating or apply Essence+ to fix them? I believe you’d come out ahead with the added revenue and you’d be saving your clients clear on top of it. Definitely a win-win.

 

[FUNX650]

Swirls or no swirls, some protection is better than none.

Bob

 

[RaskyR1]

Thanks. The reason I ask is I know someone who paid a ton of money for a coating at a Ford dealer but runs his car religiously through a swirl-inducing car wash weekly. He garages it and after 3 years it still beads like crazy in the rain except the paint is swirled beyond belief. I suspect that being in the garage most of the time has preserved the coating but it seems tragic that he ruins his paint with the automatic car wash abuse.

Keep in mind most of those car washes have tiered packages and the higher priced ones have their "clear coat" protection, which will make the water bead. So just because it's beading doesn't necessarily mean it's the coating. The marring is from abrasion and abrasion over time will wear away at the coating.

 

[AutowerxDetailing]

Keep in mind most of those car washes have tiered packages and the higher priced ones have their "clear coat" protection, which will make the water bead. So just because it's beading doesn't necessarily mean it's the coating. The marring is from abrasion and abrasion over time will wear away at the coating.

This.

There is absolutely no way there is any coating still present on the vehicle if they've been running it through a friction tunnel wash for 3 years. If there are visible hydrophobic properties on the paintwork it is from the protection applied by the car wash.

 

[SWETM]

Keep in mind most of those car washes have tiered packages and the higher priced ones have their "clear coat" protection, which will make the water bead. So just because it's beading doesn't necessarily mean it's the coating. The marring is from abrasion and abrasion over time will wear away at the coating.

I agree on that!