CarPro Essence Rayview

RaysWay

RaysWay

Autopia Specialist
As I`m working on writing all of the details on this weekends paint corrections, I just wanted to take a break and quickly review a product that really stood out for me this weekend. I remember seeing this product get a lot of attention after its initial release and wanted to give it the attention it deserves.

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I`m guessing a lot of you know how great CarPro Essence is since it sells like hot cakes and has an astronomical re-order rate. But for those of you who haven`t tried this out yet and are in the market for a finishing polish...consider adding this product to your wish list!

If you plan on applying a coating, CarPro Essence is a no brainer. I tried CarPro Essence as my final polish on black back on both of my RUPES polishers with CarPro Gloss Pads and the results were the same on both.

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Things I look for when testing finishing polishes are:

1. Cut
2. Finish
3. Residue wipe off
4. Price

1. Cut - On the Autopia Polish Comparison Chart, CarPro Essence has a cut rating of 3/10. In comparison, Meguiars #205 has a cut rating of 4/10. With the CarPro Gloss Pads, I would even argue that the cut is 2.5 or 2 out of 10. Not very much correction ability, but with compounds on the market that can finish LSP ready using a dual action polisher and foam pads; it can be the perfect gloss enhancer before applying your final wax, sealant or coating. Even on brand new cars, CarPro Essence can be used to remove any microscopic marring found from using a clay bar.

2. Finish - The finish is were this product really excels. The SiO2 Quartz protection finished down great on the black paint I was working on and left the finish looking even better than some other polishes I performed test spots with. As I went around the car for the final step of polish with CarPro Essence, I was happy knowing I wouldn`t need to give the car an isopropyl alcohol wipe down before applying a coating. The built in primer saved me time and sweat while squeezing every ounce of gloss from the paint.

3. Residue Wipe Off - AMAZING. The first time I wipe Essence off of the paint gave me flashbacks. It felt like the first time I wiped off BFWDAFPP or WG Fuzion. The last thing I want to do when prepping black paint for a coating, is use something that I have to scrub off the paint. CarPro Essence easily scores an A+ in this department.

4. Price:

8 oz =$3.12 / ounce
16.9 oz = $2.36 / ounce

A "premium" price tag for a premium product. Considering that the finishing polish step and final surface prep for a surface coating are arguably the most important steps before applying a coating, some of the premium in the price can be figured by the fact that this takes a lot of worry out of prepping the surface for a coating. Now everything is relative of course and the "premium" price tag on this polish means you`ll be paying about $4 more to use this as your finishing polish over other popular industry standards (since it takes about 4 oz of polish for a car). Now CarPro does state in the direction to use this product SPARINGLY, which can turn that $4 per car premium into a $3 premium...but who`s counting quarters when you`re looking for the best finish possible for your pride and joy?

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Although this weekend was the first time I used CarPro Essence on an entire vehicle, I can now understand the enthusiasm others had following SEMA 2015. It seemed like every other phone call I received someone else was asking me if I`ve used this yet. This will NOT be the last time I use this product.

Has anyone else used CarPro Essence? If so, feel free to share your unbiased thoughts! :)

Thanks for reading!
Ray
 
I used mine for the first time yesterday. I only had enough time to do my wife`s hood but you are right. Wipe off could not have been easier. That is what I always loved about Reflect. I ended up doing FG 400 on Orange LC, Essence on White LC Thin and then Essence on a Crimson LC Hydro Shred to try to add to the gloss. The color on my wife`s car is insanely difficult to see any added benefits of the last step on the Crimson but it does look great. I plan on adding 3 coats of Opti-Gloss and a layer of Opti-Seal on top of that. I just wish I had the time to do all this at once.
 
I did TWO test spots on my `96 Jeep Cherokee (white).

1) Carpro Essence with a 3" Megs MF CUT disc (yes, cut)
2) Megs M100 on 3" wool pad, followed by M205 on foam

Although the (2) option removed more scratch defects, it left some small little holes behind. Not sure if this was from the painting (outgas or something?), but I prefered the (1) option because from a few feet away, they looked about the same. And, done in one step instead of two.
 
I really like it for light finishing polishing before a coating or even doing a light polish before applying hydro2. I will say on certain paints it can be a bit tricky.

I have a newer Tundra this week that will probably get Essence then Hydro2.


This was Essence with CSL on top.

 
I`ve been a devoted follower ever since this was released last year. I use it on a Meg`s microfiber cutting pad too. The heat generated seems to cure Essence faster and the results are great. Use PBLv2 paint coating right after wipe off with no need for any extra steps. A killer combo for detailers looking to shave a few minutes off a job.
 
for me, essence cuts well enough on a rupes yellow pad to follow a micro cut disc and 3d AAT compound just fine

its a perfect follow up for even a marring compound (you know when they leave that compound haze and swirls on there) with the same yellow pad

I`ve already gone through about 16 ounces of essence

I used it again sunday on the mopar sitting in my garage to be picked up in a bit

its one of those products id use every polishing detail

adapt, essence and pblv2
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I just used it for first time a few weeks back and um what can I say but that it`s a great finishing polish. I`ve used several in last few years but this stands out as the best, I can`t wait to try out the essence plus when it comes out


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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