Ceramic Coatings: Pinnacle Black Label vs CQuartz Lite

**MSTucker** · 06-14-2019, 09:07 AM

I have an almost new Black Toyota 86 that I want to put a ceramic coating on. The car has 2000 miles on it so I'll need to do some minimal paint repair. I am new to ceramic coatings and want to make sure I don't do something that will be difficult to repair if I screw it up. I have a Griots orbital and polish using Meguiars Products. I know how to clay as well. I've read and watched your How To on ceramic coatings. I've also read multiple reviews and started to dig into the forums. I've gotten a little confused but think that I've narrowed things down to the Pinnacle Black Label or the CQuartz Lite. The PBL states it will last much longer than the CQuartz Lite (2yrs vs 6mos) but the CQ Lite seems like its the easier of the two to apply.

Can you give me the pros and cons of each and give me a recommendation. Thanks.

**Rsurfer** · 06-14-2019, 01:28 PM

Originally Posted by MSTucker

I have an almost new Black Toyota 86 that I want to put a ceramic coating on. The car has 2000 miles on it so I'll need to do some minimal paint repair. I am new to ceramic coatings and want to make sure I don't do something that will be difficult to repair if I screw it up. I have a Griots orbital and polish using Meguiars Products. I know how to clay as well. I've read and watched your How To on ceramic coatings. I've also read multiple reviews and started to dig into the forums. I've gotten a little confused but think that I've narrowed things down to the Pinnacle Black Label or the CQuartz Lite. The PBL states it will last much longer than the CQuartz Lite (2yrs vs 6mos) but the CQ Lite seems like its the easier of the two to apply.

Can you give me the pros and cons of each and give me a recommendation. Thanks.

The car is a 1986 Toyota with 2k miles. Are those miles after it's been repainted? I guess not if you need to do minor paint repairs.

Can't help you on the coating choice, but CQuartz Lite will be easier for sure.

**The Guz** · 06-14-2019, 01:30 PM

Posted in this thread as did Mike P

Pinnacle Black Label Coating vs CQuartz Lite
Pinnacle Black Label Coating vs CQuartz Lite

**Bruno Soares** · 06-14-2019, 01:31 PM

Originally Posted by Rsurfer

The car is a 1986 Toyota with 2k miles. Are those miles after it's been repainted? I guess not if you need to do minor paint repairs.

Can't help you on the coating choice, but CQuartz Lite will be easier for sure.

Toyota 86 is the name they gave the former Scion FRS which is also the same as the Subaru BRZ. So it can be brand new

**fightnews** · 06-14-2019, 01:55 PM

Originally Posted by MSTucker

I have an almost new Black Toyota 86 that I want to put a ceramic coating on. The car has 2000 miles on it so I'll need to do some minimal paint repair. I am new to ceramic coatings and want to make sure I don't do something that will be difficult to repair if I screw it up. I have a Griots orbital and polish using Meguiars Products. I know how to clay as well. I've read and watched your How To on ceramic coatings. I've also read multiple reviews and started to dig into the forums. I've gotten a little confused but think that I've narrowed things down to the Pinnacle Black Label or the CQuartz Lite. The PBL states it will last much longer than the CQuartz Lite (2yrs vs 6mos) but the CQ Lite seems like its the easier of the two to apply.

Can you give me the pros and cons of each and give me a recommendation. Thanks.

I didn't have good luck with the pinnacle black label and I did everything right. So there's a tidbit for the con list

**MSTucker** · 06-14-2019, 01:57 PM

Its a 2018 Toyota 86, like a Subaru BRZ. 😀. Tried uploading a pic but havent figured it out on my phone.

**vobro** · 06-14-2019, 04:25 PM

From my experience I'd use Cquartz, even though I haven't used the Lite version yet. I too wasn't impressed with the Black Label but have had solid results from Cquartz many times.

If you're going thru all the prep why not go with Cquartz UK? The 3.0 version is easy to apply and you'll get a solid 1 1/2 - 2 years out of it if maintained. Since it's your first time start with a test area and get familiar with your technique before you do the whole car. It's really a straight forward process so don't sweat it

**MSTucker** · 06-24-2019, 10:33 AM

So I used the Pinnacle Black Label coatings this weekend on my Toyota 86. Clayed, polished, and prepped paint before hand. Started with the windows - quick and easy. PBL went on easily and after about a minute was easy to buff out the high spots. Moved onto the wheels. I little more difficult only because most of the wheel is painted black. Pretty easy except for the multitude of nooks and crannies on these wheels. Found doing half the wheel at a time worked well. After doing glass and wheels, I felt confident in moving to the paint. I started behind rear wheel, just in case I screwed it up. Went on easily, but buffing out the high spots seemed to take a long time. I think that were two reasons - using too much of the coating and not waiting long enough for it to flash/dry. Bottle really doesnt tell you how much to use on your 2x2 area. I will say you use way more on the glass than you do on the paint. I found that using about 5 squirts on a 2x2 area worked best, with one squirt on the applicator. Also waiting a full minute seemed to let the high spots buff out easier. Probably took me about 2 hours to complete the paint. Very happy with the depth of the shine. Finished Saturday night and it rained this morning, so I'll see what it looks like this evening when the wife comes home.

Last note I would make is that it was hard to get every high spot off completely. I'm not sure if I missed them or if they formed overnight. The car was in my garage with two fluorescent lights (four tubes) and an LED desk light that I could use for spot checks. I went over the car MULTIPLE times with thick MF towels buffing any haze I saw and of course buffed out each panel as I worked them. Even so, when I pulled the car out the next afternoon in the sun, I found some hazing. Some areas were small, but others like the trunk and hood had large portions with a slight haze. I was very worried, but found I could buff them out. Luckily, I used a forgiving coating (PBL) and could get them out. Has anyone experienced this - slight hazing after leaving the coating overnight to cure? Is it normal or did I not buff enough or use too much coating?

**The Guz** · 06-24-2019, 10:44 AM

How many towels did you use during wipe off? The reason I ask is because multiple towels helps with ensuring the coating has been leveled out completely. Also low nap towels work best for leveling out a coating rather than plush towels.