Review: CarPro Essence + DP SIO2 Paste Wax

Finally took my car out of storage and had a chance to use both these products. I've had my bottle of Essence for a while now but this was my first time using it. Paint was already in excellent condition so I applied it more like a wax (i.e. faster arm speed, only 2-3 passes, light pressure) using a black Lake Country pad on a Rupes 21. Wipe off was a breeze and it left the paint super glossy with a lot of depth and clarity. I did encounter a bit of dusting on a few panels but I'm not sure if that was user error or just the way the product is. I've read a lot of differing opinions on how to best work this product. Overall, this is definitely a product I would use again for gloss enhancement on cars that require minimal correction.

Onto the DP product. I know most people use Essence as a base for coatings but I thought a coating would be complete overkill for this car as its always garaged, not driven a lot (and only on nice days), and never even sprayed with a hose! (I've been doing waterless washes on it for the past 2+ years). That being said I still wanted something that I thought would work well with Essence and given this also a SIO2 based product, I thought the two would work well together.


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After polishing with Essence, I waited 3 hours and then applied a thin coat via machine. The instructions say to wait 1-3 minutes before wiping off so I did 2 panels at a time then began wiping off where I started. Wipe off is not quite as frictionless as say, WGDGPS, but is by no means difficult.

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After pulling the car out into the driveway there were a few small smears I had missed so I went around the car with a microfibre very lightly dampened with UWW+ to ensure a perfect finish. The paint on the car was already in really good shape, so its hard for me to say exactly how much either of these two products added to the finish, but there is no denying that the car looks great and has a heck of a shine! Overall, both products were easy to work with and I would recommend either of them!

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Great car, great color, great shine! I’m glad you enjoyed both of these. I’m not a coating person but have used Essence 10-12 times as a base for ceramic sprays or waxes. It’s a glossy base and LSPs seem to enjoy being on it. No shame in that.

Thanks! Yeah, I definitely see myself using Essence as a base for all sorts of products in the future. Only knock is the cure time from a productivity perspective, but I may try topping it sooner (after an hour, or perhaps even immediately) to see how much of a difference it makes.

Used the same combo on another car this weekend. Equally happy with the outcome!

https://i.ibb.co/LrVvpLB/20200523-140516.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/D4fBFRq/20200523-140607.jpg

Bonus shot from after I cleaned the Boxster this week. Look at that clarity!

https://i.ibb.co/DwX4zjc/20200505-175946.jpg