Looking for product advice

[gti14]

Hey guys,
Long time lurker here, this is my first full post. My gf has a 2013 VW GLI that is being garaged most of the winter and I am thinking of doing a correction + coating for her.

A few details about the car and what type of results I am looking for.

• White paint -doesn't need to be near 100% corrected but I have some time so I want to do a good job.
• I am looking to put on a long lasting coating (on wheels also) - I can do maintenance washes when needed.
• The paint has been somewhat abused (automatic washes, which are no longer used)
• The car is a daily driver for about 8 months out of the year - we have a Jeep for the NY winters.

I know that test spots are needed to decide final products and pad combinations but I am open to suggestions on where to start. I currently own the HF da polisher but I am willing to upgrade to say the Griots if I feel its needed.

I have only completed one step polishes so far so this would be my first full correction job I have done, any advice is appreciated.

I had a few coating options in mind, I am leaning towards Optimum Gloss Coat.

TIA for any advice / suggestions.

[The Guz]

Welcome to AGO.

What polishes if any do you have in your arsenal? You are on the right track about doing a test spot.

If you are going to pick up gloss coat then I would recommend picking up their hyper polish and paint prep. They all work well together. Gloss Coat will net you a year easily. Definitely one of the easiest coatings to apply.

If you are open to other coatings, McKee's would be a nice alternative. They carry coatings for paint, wheels and glass. Also user friendly.

[gti14]

Welcome to AGO.

What polishes if any do you have in your arsenal? You are on the right track about doing a test spot.

If you are going to pick up gloss coat then I would recommend picking up their hyper polish and paint prep. They all work well together. Gloss Coat will net you a year easily. Definitely one of the easiest coatings to apply.

If you are open to other coatings, McKee's would be a nice alternative. They carry coatings for paint, wheels and glass. Also user friendly.

Currently I have:
Jescar Correcting Compound
Jescar Finishing Polish
Megs Ultimate Compound / Polish

I was considering going all Optimum, after watching all of the videos about their system it seems very user friendly with great results.

[The Guz]

You have some good polishes already. I would say you are good to go with jescar.

[JCDetails]

Use the Jescar compound and polish with the HF DA and pick up some Lake Country thinpro pads. Orange for cutting stage with compound, white for refining with the finishing polish.

Remember to have either an IPA mix or prep solution on hand prior to coating. I personally prefer Gyeon Prep.

Coating wise, OPT is a great way to go. For a vehicle used the way you describe I'd personally lean more toward a good sealant (Power Lock is what I typically employ) rather than a coating, but since you'll be doing the maintenance you can't go wrong. I might suggest you look at Carbon Collective platinum rims for the wheel coating, and supposedly their Oracle is great as well for both paint and trim, but I haven't personally used it.

[gti14]

You have some good polishes already. I would say you are good to go with jescar.

Great, Thats what I plan to do. Thank you for the advice.

Use the Jescar compound and polish with the HF DA and pick up some Lake Country thinpro pads. Orange for cutting stage with compound, white for refining with the finishing polish.

Remember to have either an IPA mix or prep solution on hand prior to coating. I personally prefer Gyeon Prep.

Coating wise, OPT is a great way to go. For a vehicle used the way you describe I'd personally lean more toward a good sealant (Power Lock is what I typically employ) rather than a coating, but since you'll be doing the maintenance you can't go wrong. I might suggest you look at Carbon Collective platinum rims for the wheel coating, and supposedly their Oracle is great as well for both paint and trim, but I haven't personally used it.

I have some ipa already mixed up but I think I will purchase a paint prep product this time. I prefer to not use ipa on the paint if I dont have too. I do actually have Power Lock, any reason why you suggest a sealant other than a coating?

[JCDetails]

Great, Thats what I plan to do. Thank you for the advice.



I have some ipa already mixed up but I think I will purchase a paint prep product this time. I prefer to not use ipa on the paint if I dont have too. I do actually have Power Lock, any reason why you suggest a sealant other than a coating?

If you weren’t going to be maintaining it, a sealant will give you good looks and decent durability even if a less savvy individual is maintaining the car. Maintenance on a coated vehicle is different and can be a bit more cumbersome especially for the uninitiated.

For example, I might coat my or my wife’s vehicle because I would do all the maintenance and understand what that takes. I’d also be willing to put the extra care and effort in.

My sister in law or my mother as an example would not be interested in putting the same effort and would likely use automatic washes, so for that I’d go with a good sealant (also cheaper materials) and do it a couple times a year to keep it up rather than ‘wasting’ the coating.

Some people just like coatings, and that’s cool. Even in situations where I might recommend otherwise, if you just want a coating instead, go for it. But only if you are going to be maintaining it or the owner/driver of the car is willing to put the additional effort into maintenance.


Sent from my iPhone using Autogeekonline mobile app

[gti14]

If you weren’t going to be maintaining it, a sealant will give you good looks and decent durability even if a less savvy individual is maintaining the car. Maintenance on a coated vehicle is different and can be a bit more cumbersome especially for the uninitiated.

For example, I might coat my or my wife’s vehicle because I would do all the maintenance and understand what that takes. I’d also be willing to put the extra care and effort in.

My sister in law or my mother as an example would not be interested in putting the same effort and would likely use automatic washes, so for that I’d go with a good sealant (also cheaper materials) and do it a couple times a year to keep it up rather than ‘wasting’ the coating.

Some people just like coatings, and that’s cool. Even in situations where I might recommend otherwise, if you just want a coating instead, go for it. But only if you are going to be maintaining it or the owner/driver of the car is willing to put the additional effort into maintenance.


Sent from my iPhone using Autogeekonline mobile app

Yea that makes sense. Thanks.

I have previously used CarPro HydroFoam with my car and found it to be a pretty sweet wash/sealant in one step. Could that take the place of something such as reload? Or should I just use a more common spray type to maintain a coating..?

[JCDetails]

Yea that makes sense. Thanks.

I have previously used CarPro HydroFoam with my car and found it to be a pretty sweet wash/sealant in one step. Could that take the place of something such as reload? Or should I just use a more common spray type to maintain a coating..?

I do mostly production and mobile work right now so coatings really are not my area of expertise. However, I have been doing a lot of research into them in preparation for hopefully diving into that world soon.



General wisdom seems to be you're best off using the sacrificial product made by the same company as the coating. I.e. you'd want to use reload for CQuartz, Q2 Cure for Gyeon Mohs, Overcoat for Kamikaze etc.

Many companies now offer SiO2 enhanced soaps (M37, Gyeon Bathe+ etc.) but I don't know that I'd use that in place of a wipedown with the relevant product. Can't hurt, meaning wash with one of those followed with the appropriate product. But I don't think I'd trust just the wash alone to leave behind enough protection to build a suitable sacrificial layer.

[gti14]

I do mostly production and mobile work right now so coatings really are not my area of expertise. However, I have been doing a lot of research into them in preparation for hopefully diving into that world soon.



General wisdom seems to be you're best off using the sacrificial product made by the same company as the coating. I.e. you'd want to use reload for CQuartz, Q2 Cure for Gyeon Mohs, Overcoat for Kamikaze etc.

Many companies now offer SiO2 enhanced soaps (M37, Gyeon Bathe+ etc.) but I don't know that I'd use that in place of a wipedown with the relevant product. Can't hurt, meaning wash with one of those followed with the appropriate product. But I don't think I'd trust just the wash alone to leave behind enough protection to build a suitable sacrificial layer.

So say i choose to go to Opti-Gloss route, would I use optiseal? or OPT spray wax?