Prius plastic rear Decklid Opti-coat 2.0 advice needed

[schiddy]

On my parents brand spankin new 2011 prius there's a plastic or plexi rear deck lid that is slightly transparent but not completely see through. It's a nice black but is quite swirled already. My plan is to opti-coat 2.0 the whole car as they've only had it for a couple of weeks. From what I can tell looking at this strange bright khaki color (sandy beach metallic uke, there was very little swirling or RIDS if at all upon delivery. I figure I won't even polish at all and apply the opti-coat. As far as my experience, I'm a beginner that's done quite a bit of experimenting with Griots DA, m105, m205, hydrotech pads, on a few cars, and just got PO85rd to mess around with on my car.



1. I can opti-coat 2.0 the plastic decklid surface right?



2. Should I polish out the swirls on the plastic decklid or not even mess with it at my level of experience?



3. What kind of prep should I do to this paint if I'm not polishing before opti-coat?



4. Should I not clay since it might mar the paint and I'm not polishing?

 

[schiddy]

 

[schiddy]

David G. answered some questions via email:

You do not need to polish before applying Opti-Coat, however, once you apply

it, it will seal in any paint imperfections and swirl marks. You do need

to remove all waxes and sealants from paint as you suggested for

Opti-Coat to bond to the paint. Washing with a strong detergent like

Dawn or adding Power Clean to your wash solution are some of the ways

people remove any wax residue.



You can apply Opti-Coat to the plastic decklid but as I mentioned, it

will seal in the swirl marks that are present. Alternatively, you can

polish this area only and then apply Opti-Coat to it.





Now I'm just not sure if I want to polish that plastic/plexi. Could there be a protective UV coating on it?

So I think I'm gonna stick with my idea of not claying unless someone chimes in that I really should polish before applying the OC. My parents aren't crazy about me polishing a new car but I could persuade them if that is ultimately necessary.

Also, wondering if I should do an IPA wipedown after the wash before coating. I have prep-wash coming but it won't be in time for the job. I guess I could postpone but this long weekend would be perfect to do the job.

 

[David Fermani]

Now I'm just not sure if I want to polish that plastic/plexi. Could there be a protective UV coating on it?

So I think I'm gonna stick with my idea of not claying unless someone chimes in that I really should polish before applying the OC. My parents aren't crazy about me polishing a new car but I could persuade them if that is ultimately necessary.

Also, wondering if I should do an IPA wipedown after the wash before coating. I have prep-wash coming but it won't be in time for the job. I guess I could postpone but this long weekend would be perfect to do the job.

Dr. G is a wealth of info for sure! It really depends on the condition of your finish and to what extent you'd like to prep the surface for the coating. It sounds like you also have everything in your arsenal to correct it to 100% if you so desire. You could probably get away with doing a good 85RD step as this would really bring out the metallic. The plastic window on the deck lid can totally be polished too. Just take it slow and avoid overheating the surface. I seriously doubt you'll alter the UV integrity of the plastic, but regarless, you're coating it anyways so you'll be doing nothing but helping it.



As for the surface prep, I feel this is the most critical aspect of the application. You want the surface as "bare" as possible for the best adhesion. I would consider doing both a APC & Alcohol wipe down. Make sure to keep folding your MF towel so that as you remove the oils you're not redepositing them further down the vehicle. Definately consider coating the wheels and all glass as I think this will make a dramatic improvement in maintenance. Good luck!

 

[avg_joe]

I just did my 2011 Blizzard Pearl Prius. I had 2K miles and did the correction using Menzerna SIP/orange followed by 085/white with a Flex XC3401. I did clay the car as well, then used the Opti coat 2.0. The dealer added some marks on the side and a bit on the hood. The rear spoiler had some as well. I only used the 085 on the spoiler and it came out great. It was worth the extra effort for me. I have yet to take any pics so I can't post up. So far I'm well pleased with the Opti Coat 2.0, cleaning the car has been very easy. The only thing is the foam doesn't sit on very long so I have to change my technique a bit. Good luck..... I did not coat the glass because it said it was not recommended.

 

[SpoolinNoMore]

If I were you, I'd go all out with it. Dawn wash, clay, spot polish out the swirls to 100%, IPA wipedown (or wash again), then Opti-Coat

 

[schiddy]

Dammit you guys are too slow with your responses! lol Did it over the 4th of july weekend. I only washed the car at stripper concentration with chemical guys citrus wash. That was the only prep because my parents were uneasy about me polishing their brand spanking new car and out of laziness on my part. I did think about claying but didn't want to mar paint that I wasn't going to polish. I coated all paint, most hard plastics including rear deck, and only the quarter windows to see how it would work on glass (My instructions said not for glass either but from what I read the only difference between opti-coat 2.0 and the original is the longer cure time.)



I did completely polish out my civic si NHBP hood and coat it the day before to test the opti-coat. Came out awesome. Added 85rd on crimson as a last step to my usual process of 105 on cyan -> 205 on tangerine for the first time. Not sure If I noticed an extra "pop". I did notice how ever an increase of depth and gloss after using Chemical citrus wash which I found odd, I used it at normal maintenance wash strength. It really got rid of some cloudiness I didn't notice before. I hope it didn't strip any protection off the rest of the car (BFWD).



While applying opti-coat on the NHBP was easy as pie to see, completely had a hard time applying opt-coat to the sandy beach metallic. Absolute nightmare trying to see the high spots in the opti-coat curing. I was moving my halogen work light all over the place, pulling the car in and out of the garage, looking at the panel from every angle, ugghhhh. I think I wound up doing lots more buffing with the microfiber than I should have. I hope this does not affect coverage and durability.

 

[SpoolinNoMore]

Couldn't you hit up another layer in 24 hours? I know Opti Coat lacks layering capabilities from what I've read, but it'd ensure 100% coverage.

 

[schiddy]

Getting the finished prius sun shots this weekend when I go to scotchgaurd it. In the meantime...



Strange stain left on concrete by spilled chemical guys grime reaper. It was bright reddish purple and immediately rinsed it. This is AFTER tons of rinsing, found it kind of odd:

Hood before:

Hood after polishing and opti-coat cured:

50/50 With a fender that was taped off:

How hammered the rest of this thing is, have to find time to get to it. Hood took FOREVER: