Flannigan
New member
Re: TLC Auto Detail:Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant vs. Ultima Tire and Trim Guard
So I know a couple people have done reviews on this product, but I had some free time today, so I figured I would ad my thoughts. I think they are pretty much in line with what others have said, but it has my own little spin.
I will break this review/grudge match into three sections. First will be a very textured piece of trim that is almost white it's faded so badly. Then we have a cowl panel that has a very little texture to it, and is almost brand new. Finally we have a chrome grill, since both products say they can be used on chrome as well as trim. You might be wondering why I didn't do any testing on tires, but there was a storm quickly approaching and I didn't want to run out of time. If it clears up this weekend I will add some tire testing to this review. On to the review.
Here are the products, along with their applicators.
Product: Ultima Tire and Trim Guard (UTTG from here on)
Price: $31.99 for 12oz
Price per oz: $2.67
Product: Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant (ETS from here on)
Price: $14.99 4oz /$24.99 8oz/$39.99 16oz (These are "Sale" prices at time of review)
Price per oz: $3.75/$3.12/$2.50
First we have the rear trim panel on my wife's 2006 Ford Expolorer. Before I came along this vehicle was not well cared for, and most of the exterior trim is pretty faded, almost white like this piece. I broke this piece up into two section with a small control spot in the middle. Before the testing the panel was cleaned once with Optimum PowerClean, and then again with 50/50 IPA mix to make sure it was as clean as possible. For application a few drops were put on each applicator and it was worked into the trim. The ETS required a few more drops, but neither product required additional buffing after application. On to the pics...
This is just to show what product is used on what side.
Here is the piece of trim all clean. It's very faded, and full of scratches, thanks to our dog climbing in and out of the truck on a regular basis.
Entire Piece Before
ETS Side Before
UTTG Side Before
These pictures are right after application. Both products go on looking very similar. they look very shiny at first, which I like because it's easy to tell where you have gotten full coverage. Obviously on a faded piece like this it's easy to tell where you have been, but on a well maintained piece of trim it would be harder to tell if it wasn't shiny to begin with.
Also the application is the first difference I noticed between these two products. While both require only a small amount of product, I found that the UTTG goes farther than the ETS. I needed several more drops of the ETS to get full coverage, while the UTTG only required 3 drops to get full coverage.
ETS Right After Application
UTTG Right After Application
Close up of ETS vs. Undressed trim
Close up of UTTG vs. Undressed Trim
50/50...or I guess 33/33/33...ETS vs. Undressed vs. UTTG
Now the top of the trim wasn't as faded since the sun can't hit it with the rear hatch closed. This is just to show what the two products look like compared to a better maintained piece of textured trim.
ETS only close up
UTTG only close up
ETS Macro
UTTG Macro
Here are some pictures of beading. Both look pretty identical. Beading doesn't really matter, well the size/look doesn't at least, but I don't think I'm alone when I say I LOVE looking at beading pictures...so here you go...
Final thoughts on faded, heavily textured trim. In some of the pictures (and when I was looking at it with my own eyes) the ETS seems like it might be SLIGHTLY darker. BUT remember I did have to use slightly more ETS to get full coverage, so that may have something to do with it. So while it does look a little darker on this faded trim, I don't think it's enough to say ETS "wins" this part. Now when it comes to the part of the trim that isn't faded as badly both products look identical to me. Since we don't know the durability of the ETS yet this means a clear winner cannot be declared. IF ETS proves it lasts as long or longer than UTTG then they would still be fairly identical products in my mind.
Next round we have the cowl of my Nissan Cube. It's been well cared for since it was new, so I can confidently call it "like new". Just like the last piece of trim, the cowl was cleaned once with Optimum PowerClean, and then again with 50/50 IPA to make sure it was perfectly clean. As far as application a few drop were put on each applicator and it was worked into the cowl. No further buffing was required to get a smooth finish. In this case it did NOT seem like more ETS was required to get total coverage.
This just shows what product goes on what side.
Both products applied to the cowl, with an undressed section in the middle.
Close up
Beading
Sorry, not as many pics on this since it was obvious a storm was headed my way quickly. But I think you can still get the point.
Now this trim has a slight amount of texture, but nowhere near as much as the trim on the Explorer. In this round I can clearly say that the UTTG left not only a darker finish, but also a slight shinier finish. I can't speak for everyone, but I like this look better on my trim. It's not greasy at all, but it is nice and dark, with just a hint of shine. Both products do dry to the touch however, so neither is greasy at all. I'm going to give this round to UTTG since I like the look better. Thats not to say the ETS looked bad, or I won't use it, but I do prefer the look of the UTTG here.
So I know a couple people have done reviews on this product, but I had some free time today, so I figured I would ad my thoughts. I think they are pretty much in line with what others have said, but it has my own little spin.
I will break this review/grudge match into three sections. First will be a very textured piece of trim that is almost white it's faded so badly. Then we have a cowl panel that has a very little texture to it, and is almost brand new. Finally we have a chrome grill, since both products say they can be used on chrome as well as trim. You might be wondering why I didn't do any testing on tires, but there was a storm quickly approaching and I didn't want to run out of time. If it clears up this weekend I will add some tire testing to this review. On to the review.
Here are the products, along with their applicators.
Product: Ultima Tire and Trim Guard (UTTG from here on)
Price: $31.99 for 12oz
Price per oz: $2.67
Product: Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant (ETS from here on)
Price: $14.99 4oz /$24.99 8oz/$39.99 16oz (These are "Sale" prices at time of review)
Price per oz: $3.75/$3.12/$2.50
First we have the rear trim panel on my wife's 2006 Ford Expolorer. Before I came along this vehicle was not well cared for, and most of the exterior trim is pretty faded, almost white like this piece. I broke this piece up into two section with a small control spot in the middle. Before the testing the panel was cleaned once with Optimum PowerClean, and then again with 50/50 IPA mix to make sure it was as clean as possible. For application a few drops were put on each applicator and it was worked into the trim. The ETS required a few more drops, but neither product required additional buffing after application. On to the pics...
This is just to show what product is used on what side.
Here is the piece of trim all clean. It's very faded, and full of scratches, thanks to our dog climbing in and out of the truck on a regular basis.
Entire Piece Before
ETS Side Before
UTTG Side Before
These pictures are right after application. Both products go on looking very similar. they look very shiny at first, which I like because it's easy to tell where you have gotten full coverage. Obviously on a faded piece like this it's easy to tell where you have been, but on a well maintained piece of trim it would be harder to tell if it wasn't shiny to begin with.
Also the application is the first difference I noticed between these two products. While both require only a small amount of product, I found that the UTTG goes farther than the ETS. I needed several more drops of the ETS to get full coverage, while the UTTG only required 3 drops to get full coverage.
ETS Right After Application
UTTG Right After Application
Close up of ETS vs. Undressed trim
Close up of UTTG vs. Undressed Trim
50/50...or I guess 33/33/33...ETS vs. Undressed vs. UTTG
Now the top of the trim wasn't as faded since the sun can't hit it with the rear hatch closed. This is just to show what the two products look like compared to a better maintained piece of textured trim.
ETS only close up
UTTG only close up
ETS Macro
UTTG Macro
Here are some pictures of beading. Both look pretty identical. Beading doesn't really matter, well the size/look doesn't at least, but I don't think I'm alone when I say I LOVE looking at beading pictures...so here you go...
Final thoughts on faded, heavily textured trim. In some of the pictures (and when I was looking at it with my own eyes) the ETS seems like it might be SLIGHTLY darker. BUT remember I did have to use slightly more ETS to get full coverage, so that may have something to do with it. So while it does look a little darker on this faded trim, I don't think it's enough to say ETS "wins" this part. Now when it comes to the part of the trim that isn't faded as badly both products look identical to me. Since we don't know the durability of the ETS yet this means a clear winner cannot be declared. IF ETS proves it lasts as long or longer than UTTG then they would still be fairly identical products in my mind.
Next round we have the cowl of my Nissan Cube. It's been well cared for since it was new, so I can confidently call it "like new". Just like the last piece of trim, the cowl was cleaned once with Optimum PowerClean, and then again with 50/50 IPA to make sure it was perfectly clean. As far as application a few drop were put on each applicator and it was worked into the cowl. No further buffing was required to get a smooth finish. In this case it did NOT seem like more ETS was required to get total coverage.
This just shows what product goes on what side.
Both products applied to the cowl, with an undressed section in the middle.
Close up
Beading
Sorry, not as many pics on this since it was obvious a storm was headed my way quickly. But I think you can still get the point.
Now this trim has a slight amount of texture, but nowhere near as much as the trim on the Explorer. In this round I can clearly say that the UTTG left not only a darker finish, but also a slight shinier finish. I can't speak for everyone, but I like this look better on my trim. It's not greasy at all, but it is nice and dark, with just a hint of shine. Both products do dry to the touch however, so neither is greasy at all. I'm going to give this round to UTTG since I like the look better. Thats not to say the ETS looked bad, or I won't use it, but I do prefer the look of the UTTG here.
