Durable & noob-friendly wax/sealant recommendations?

[d00df00d]

One is a 2008 BMW M3, garaged. The other is currently a 2012 Mazda5, not garaged.

This year, the Mazda will be replaced with either a 2010/2011 BMW or a 2019+ EV. If we go the EV route, it might be garaged and the M3 might live outside.

@2strokeNorthstar , never fear; we did not go the EV route, so the M3 still lives inside.

The Mazda was replaced by a rare-spec 2011 BMW 328i sedan (manual, RWD, no nav, no sunroof).


EDIT: Gah, this post kicked the thread onto a new page! Hope people still notice my follow-up post at the end of the previous page: https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/t...nt-recommendations.391204/page-3#post-7281782

 

[d00df00d]

Questions:

What should I do to maintain this coating while keeping the car clean? I'm curious about spot cleaning (bird poop etc.) and future washes.

For spot cleaning, Gyeon has a Ceramic Detailer and Quick Detailer, but their videos say those products are supposed to be used on a clean surface. What should I use if I get some schmutz on the car and want to clean it off without doing a full wash?

For the next full wash, if I were to stick with the products I already have, I'd use Q2M Foam followed by CanCoat again. Is Q2M Bathe a better product to use? It's supposedly specifically for ceramic coatings; not sure if that includes CanCoat. Or, if I use Bathe+ (has SiO2), can I expect that to extend the time between CanCoat applications?

Got some guidance from Gyeon on this (hope I'm passing it along correctly).

Q2M Foam was... not a terrible call for the contact portion of the wash, but not the best either. The Bathe products have more lubricity, so they're better for the contact portion.

They advised ECO Wash for spot cleaning. It's mostly lubricious but has a little SiO2 to help maintain the coating. For reference, Ceramic Detailer is kind of the opposite: more SiO2, less lubricity – hence their guidance to use it on a clean surface.

We had a fairly long conversation about my usage and needs. They recommended switching to this regime for my regular washes at some point:

1. Prewash with Foam
2. Contact wash with Bathe
3. Finish with Q2M Cure

That way, there's less need for 1-2 long, painstaking washes per year in addition to the shorter washes; I can just do this each time and it'd be fine. Or at least 80/20 rule fine, if you know what I mean.

For now, though, I still have most of the bottle of CanCoat I bought, and I'm not about to throw it away. So, for until that runs out, they recommended this:

1. Prewash with Foam
2. Contact wash with Bathe+
3. Finish with CanCoat

They also advised to keep some Q2M Restart around for if the coating gets really contaminated. I'm in less of a hurry for that, but I'll probably pick it up at some point.

This is all a lot more fun that I had expected!

 

[Slick3914]

This is what I use. It won't last 6 months though. No matter, because you can apply in less than 10 minutes. I do it about every other month, even though that's extreme. It's so easy, plus it smells good, so why not?

View attachment 261973

Big fan of this product as well.

 

[thescreensavers]

Big fan of this product as well.

Just bought this, will try it out next wash.

 

[Fordiesel69]

My favorites:

Traditional:
Collinite 845 - Easier to apply, slightly better / deeper shine.
Fusso soft 99 - Better for Durabilty. Might be the best non Si02.

Ceramic / Graphine:
Turtle Wax Seal n Shine - Still the best consumer price point to durability ratio.
Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions Ceramic Spray Wax - One notch lower durabilty, but a much improved gloss.

Then you can move onto the pro coatings and that is where it gets really confusing.

 

[ChrisD46]

Today’s spray coatings last as long as most wax/sealants.
Griots 3n1 spray or Turtle Wax seal shine are really great performers, inexpensive, and incredibly easy to use.

I wonder why the TW Seal ‘N Shine isn’t widely available any more in local stores ?
It’s a good product which I can only find on line now .