Longevity and "look" of Opti-Coat

T

tguil

New member
Several members of this forum were early adopters of Opti-Coat. I would very much appreciate your take on the longevity of Opti-Coat and its "look" as it ages. I have a white truck and I am most concerned about yellowing and/or hazing. Any comments about body work and repainting after the application of Opti-Coat would also be appreciated. I know that much depends on the care of the vehicle after application. In my case, my truck is not exposed to harsh treatment....garaged every night, no long days in parking lots, no industrial pollution, no pollen to speak of, but lots of dust from gravel roads.
 
I've had it on my wife's white Jetta for almost two years now. Parked outside 24x7. Still looks exactly like when I installed it. The beading has relaxed a bit, but I need to clay it finally. If I didn't like playing around with other waxes/sealants, I'd have it on every car I own.
 
Look really seems to last, my parent's car and a BMW I did are past the 3 year mark and still looking and beading great.
 
I think it really depends on how it's maintained. The coating (like paint) can dull just like your paint from marring buildup, but takes alot longer than bare paint.
 
Ive had Opticoat on my semi-garage-queen for 2.5 yrs now. Up here in the Northeast Ive resigned myself to not washing at all during the winter, since I have Opti on the car I feel more comfortable leaving the dirt there vs attempting to wash it without marring the heck out of the Opti (plus since I drive it so little it doesnt "bake" the stuff on in the sun)



I just washed the car for the first time since last Nov and I have to say....it still looks darn good. I noticed a few spots that arent as hydrophobic as the rest, not sure if it didnt "take" correctly (I had a detailer do it that admitted he didnt have a ton of experience with it at that point) or if it just needs a good claying or maybe an Optimum Powerclean washdown.



Either way, Im a fan of the looks. This is on a Malbec Black G37....to me it gives a nice "wet" type look, very similar to a sealant. On a dark car thats how *I* like it....your preference may vary. I dont think the looks have changed one bit since it was applied 2+ yrs ago.
 
I have had opticoat on two cars. One had it for 2.5 years before I sold it and my current car has had it for 15+ months. Both vehicles look as good as the day it was applied and I saw no difference in level of protection provided. I am continually amazed at how well it holds up on my wheels....it makes cleaning my wheels as easy as washing my hood.
 
I think OptiCoat is brilliant on a daily driver. I can understand how some will want to work on their car maybe a couple times a year and this product might not be the solution.



I find our OptiCoated cars look better when dirty than just about any product I've ever used. It's very consistent, but the prep time up front is critical to the finished product as I find the OptiCoat itself is somewhat neutral in its appearance.
 
I've put a variety of sealants and waxes on top of it. The true waxes seem slightly compromised, not sure if the sealants are. Either way, the doom and gloom about your wax sliding off in a breeze are completely unfounded.



Also normally topping with a QD or OCW depending on mood.
 
After having it on my last three vehicles, I wouldn't ever have a daily driver without it. Making taking care of it so easy. Plus having it on my car makes it easier to upsell to customers when they can see how it actually looks.
 
While many disagree with me on this issue I will say that when I got my car... about a year ago now I guess it's been. I immediately did all of the prep work and OC'd the car (2012 WRX), I just throughly washed it the other day and really went over it. There are some areas where the water does not seem to bead very well, while other areas are much better, such as the hood and roof where I did 2 coats of it after I had already done it initally.



I personally go over the car with a fine tooth comb when I wash it and I was unable to find a single rock chip or sandblasted area. Now will it chip? Yes of course it will, but it knock on wood I haven't had any direct hits on my paint as of yet. I have 14,5k miles on the OC. The look for me is mediocre, but not "bad" by any means. I have thought about others such as 22PLE, but keep in mind that if you want that long term protection without having to worry about it wearing off in a few years I would certainly go with this. If you don't really care about polishing it all out and putting on whatever you choose the next time for something that looks better, a lot of people say that the 22PLE or the Cquartz finest looks much better. On white? I doubt you would notice that much of a difference though.
 
tom p. said:
I think OptiCoat is brilliant on a daily driver. I can understand how some will want to work on their car maybe a couple times a year and this product might not be the solution.



I find our OptiCoated cars look better when dirty than just about any product I've ever used. It's very consistent, but the prep time up front is critical to the finished product as I find the OptiCoat itself is somewhat neutral in its appearance.
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I started noticing something similar....I call my car "disgusting" after not washing throughout the winter (and its even a black car) but parked next to some other cars, or even the wifes non-OC-ed car, my car still looks good even while dirty.



Oddly enough, the spots that dont seem so hydrophobic are the ones that get the most dirt (vertical side panels like the lower half of the doors, etc). Makes me wonder if I just have contamination on the OC rather than "missing" OC.
 
Thanks so much for the reponses. I guess I'll move into the 21st century and apply Opti-Coat to my white Ram. I've been messin' with wax for over fifty years going back to the days of Cadillac Blue Coral polish and wax. That stuff made Meguiar's #16 child's play. I like the look of immaculate vehicles and know how to make them look that way, but I just as soon go huntin', shoot some archery or read a book. My Ram has two freshly applied coats of Meg's Ulitmate. I'll wait until summer to do the application. Because I'm retired I can take a couple of days to do it right. It has been suggested to do the prep using Optimum Polish II or Optimum Hyper Polish. Think this is a good idea? I already have Meg's Ultimate Polish, Ultimate Compound, #83 and #80 as well as Prep Sol and Iso alcohol. The temperature will probably be in the 80's or when I do the application. Any problem with this?



Tom :cool:
 
Chris11LE said:
Oddly enough, the spots that dont seem so hydrophobic are the ones that get the most dirt (vertical side panels like the lower half of the doors, etc). Makes me wonder if I just have contamination on the OC rather than "missing" OC.
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I definitely see the same on our cars. It's most noticeable on the fenders just to the rear of the wheel well...minimal beading. I have to believe it's due to bonded contaminants.
 
tom p. said:
I definitely see the same on our cars. It's most noticeable on the fenders just to the rear of the wheel well...minimal beading. I have to believe it's due to bonded contaminants.
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Good to know.



Im going to try an Optimum Powerclean soak in those areas before my next regular wash.



Definitely impressed with OC so far, even if those areas needed a re-coat I think its worth it. The car looks nice (sure, it might be able to look better with a whole host of different products), is easier to clean off and requires far less work/worry about keeping it nice.
 
Chris, try the plastic baggie test after you clean the surface. It may give you a bit of insight as to what's going on in that area. I'd be interesting to hear.



Thx.
 
tom p. said:
I definitely see the same on our cars. It's most noticeable on the fenders just to the rear of the wheel well...minimal beading. I have to believe it's due to bonded contaminants.
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THIS!!! I HATE that about OC, or maybe it's just the way that it is with anything. IDK.
 
tguil said:
Thanks so much for the reponses. I guess I'll move into the 21st century and apply Opti-Coat to my white Ram. I've been messin' with wax for over fifty years going back to the days of Cadillac Blue Coral polish and wax. That stuff made Meguiar's #16 child's play. I like the look of immaculate vehicles and know how to make them look that way, but I just as soon go huntin', shoot some archery or read a book. My Ram has two freshly applied coats of Meg's Ulitmate. I'll wait until summer to do the application. Because I'm retired I can take a couple of days to do it right. It has been suggested to do the prep using Optimum Polish II or Optimum Hyper Polish. Think this is a good idea? I already have Meg's Ultimate Polish, Ultimate Compound, #83 and #80 as well as Prep Sol and Iso alcohol. The temperature will probably be in the 80's or when I do the application. Any problem with this?



Tom :cool:
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Tom, both optimum polishes are great when you're going to coat. Just a damp towel and you can get off any residue that would prevent bonding of the coating. Of course you can always do a prepsol or iso wipe down just to be safe. Personally I'm digging the hyper polishes right now :)
 
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