Opti-Coat has been discontinued for consumers

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OPTIMUM PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS ANNOUNCEMENT

Effective with this communication, there are major improvements to the Optimum product line and the Professional Program.

Opti-Coat 2.0 is being discontinued immediately and will be replaced with a hybrid consumer product with up to 2 years durability, Gloss Coat. Gloss Coat will be priced $59.99 for 10 mls.

Opti-Coat Pro will only be sold in the 10 ml Warranty Package ($150) and that warranty will be 5 years. The Lifetime Warranty and 40 ml syringe are discontinued. The 10 ml syringe is enough product for 1 vehicle and installers should use an entire package for each application, going over areas of heavy impact such as the hood with a second coat if there is product left. Every Opti-Coat Pro sale will carry the 5 year Warranty for any vehicle less than 5 model year old. Any Lifetime Warranty sold prior to this change will be honored as long as the printed requirements are met. The Minimum Suggested Price for a warranty Opti-Coat Pro installation is $495.

Opti-Coat Approved Installers will be required to purchase a minimum of $300 in Optimum products per month to remain authorized and listed in the Opti-Coat database. Purchases will be reviewed quarterly. Optimum is offering a 20% discount to Pro Installers on all non-professional products for full case orders (and the cases can be mixed product).

Chris Thomas and Dann Williams have been appointed Regional Managers; Chris will manage East of the Mississippi and Dann the West. They will handle technical issues, training, and are involved with Installer Approvals, and in general deal with Professional questions from the field.

New Optimum Products, including a dedicated Opti-Coat line available in coming months:

OptI-Coat Spot Remover
Opti-Coat Iron Remover
Opti-Coat Prep Solution
Opti-Coat Maintenance Wash
Opti-Trim Restore
Opti-Trim Protect

As labels and packaging are available these products will be introduced.

YOUR OPTIMUM TEAM


http://detailingaddict.com/news/major-changes-announced-optimum-coatings/

While I can't say that I fully subscribed to the "lifetime" claim, this was a very durable paint coating that served its purpose exceptionally well. It will be a loss to the consumer community.

In the time since Opti-Coat 2.0 was introduced, glossier and "slicker" coatings have been introduced....and these new coatings also released dirt much better. However, from a durability standpoint, Opti-Coat 2.0 was still the king -- in theory.

While it made sense for Optimum to better tailor their offering for the enthusiast market, I can't agree with the significant price change. Previously, it was 20cc for $70 -- but now it is 10cc for $60. As a reference, most mid-size cars should take about 8cc. Additionally, they've brought a significant increase to the cost of the PRO product - so now you are seeing many detailers drop the Opti-Coat product altogether.

So what does this mean for you? Almost all of the offerings on the consumer market are now going to have similar attributes and a similar lifespan. You'll just have to pick the one that works best for you. But the point is, no more ultra-durable coating for the consumer.
 
What Kind of business do you have to have? Will a licensed shop do? I have friends that own new car dealerships, will they be able to hook me up if i want it?
Watch ebay a lot of this sort of stuff gets clipped by workers and flogged.
 
I see that I could still pick up the Opti Coat 2.0 20 ml. for $80.
I really don't have a car that I would use it on but I wouldn't mind having it for my next new car.

Does this product last indefinitely?
 
Originally Posted By: spasm3
How can they possibly stay in business with pricing like that.


+1, Ive never understood it. I know there is a time savings in theory if you truly prep once and never seal/wax the car ever again. But the practical chance of that is nil.

And its doubly nil given that apparently the product doesnt last as well as was originally claimed, judging by the change in warranty period.

To have an MSRP of $495 or whatever, and then needing to do multiple hours of paint prep beforehand makes this a $1000 job. Maybe more. I get it that this is likely catering to a higher end crowd, but even then I cant see this being very popular, since folks with fancy cars are still wanting to take their cars in for "detailing" now and again regardless.

But the reduction in warranty of the pro version is most disconcerting to me...
 
The only flaw I see here is that the enthusiast people who wants to put on that kind of coating probably has no stomach to let their car go for years (???) without itching to apply more stuff to it aka our resident expert TheCritic. OCD guy *wants* to go through multi-step detailing processing every few week even with the permanent coating. I bet Opti-Coat probably already sells a product which you can apply *on top of the permanent coating* to give it the "added bling"! Am I right or am I right??

The real market is with the people who usually fell for the dealer sold paint protection packages which are rolled in to new car selling price. At least now, they would get something worthwhile for their $1199. Of course there would be a caveat as to annual check ups at low low price of $499 per year to keep the paint warranty intact.

You can guess how jaded I am with this business :-(
 
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Bad move by OPT. Honestly, they now have no edge on the consumer side. I wasn't a fan of Opti Coat and now I will not be using any of their products. There are other companies with comparable/better products, better customer service, and who truly appreciate the consumer.

Well done, OPT...well done.
 
Originally Posted By: pbm
I should have asked..."Does UNUSED Opti-Coat last indefinitely"?


At those prices it better.
 
Interestingly, with the advent of internet and savvy customers, one would think that market can't be growing.
 
So, that's nice. Now I'll just be a buyer of 22PLE. Exactly how the market should work. You raise prices, people may take their business elsewhere. And, by the way, 22PLE gives a great shine. Checking durability will be a work in progress...
 
it's half time, so i'll bore you all with a wall of text on why i don't have a problem with this.

OPT obviously have their reasons for doing this and to me, none of it involves greed or lack of integrity. or, performance questions about their product.

- this product is made here from start to finish. Dr. G makes it in his lab in Memphis. R&D and testing are conducted largely here, but over the past several years he has included international testers from what i've seen. production, packing, shipping...all here. he also does industry standard tests (coating, not "detailing") on his stuff, thus, the technical data about film build and longevity. all of that is not cheap.

- the people who have been installing Pro have largely been smaller "boutique" detailers. while many of them charge several hundred to over a thousand dollars for their work, the bottom line is most of them are low volume and also sell competing products. that means that overall sales for this product are probably limited and low for OPT. they have a very public authorized installer list. even if 25% of those guys bought $4000 a year, that is not a lot of revenue. and if the price is too low, the percentage that OPT gets after all overhead to produce the product is even less. anyone who is in manufacturing knows that is a recipe for disaster, especially if you are trying to be a market leader let alone just stay afloat. so, that means OPT MUST figure out some way to make this whole thing sustainable. if they feel their product is the most robust (it is, according to their testing), then, they also feel they should be able to charge the most. and the fact is...it's not THAT much more or even around the same as the main competitor, from what i've seen online.

- the biggest complaints are based on principles and i don't think that is fair. i see small time guys complaining that they are [censored] about the percentage of price increase, but they are not thinking about how severely undervalued it was from the beginning. i see guys making personal attacks on OPT staff because of their perception being that OPT is going after dealerships or something, which somehow lowers the quality perception of the product - even though it's the SAME EXACT PRODUCT (or better, as R&D continues) that they loved before. there are terrible dealerships that sell Porsche...and great specialty outlets that sell Porsche. the reseller doesn't dictate the quality of the product there so it certainly doesn't here, and especially since they can't devalue it in a literal sense because of MAP.

- OPT is a very small operation. in online banter, you only see discussion of a few people which you can count on with less than one hand. i've seen the same thing with automotive performance parts - you have a brilliant engineer who designs awesome parts but doesn't dedicate massive marketing fanfare to it, or doesn't have the smoothest means of figuring out programs, etc. it happens. and when it does, it's not a question of integrity, it's a question of resources and how they are directed.

i could go on and on and bore the heck out of everyone more than i probably already have, but i just don't see the issue here. if you want the best protection for your paint, get it. if you can't afford that, there are tons of other options and in fact OPT even offered their own partner product with the former 2.0 and now Gloss-Coat. CQuartz Finest is widely viewed as Opti-Coat Pro's main competitor and it has a two year warranty. Gloss-Coat claims up to two years durability and it's a fraction of the price and available to anyone.

i have two tubes of Gloss-Coat coming and i'm going to see how this stuff works. i love Pro, as i have it on two of my cars. i also loved 2.0 because it's SO easy to use. and i love Opti-Seal because it's brainless and super slick. so i can't imagine i won't love Gloss-Coat but we'll see.

admittedly, i am an OPT fan boi but that is because there is zero marketing hype and since 2008 everything i've used from them with the exception of one or two things has exceeded my expectations.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
What Kind of business do you have to have? Will a licensed shop do? I have friends that own new car dealerships, will they be able to hook me up if i want it?
Watch ebay a lot of this sort of stuff gets clipped by workers and flogged.


You have to be an approved dealer, carry liability insurance, and show that you're capable of producing quality work that lives up to the name. Oh and starting now, buy $300/mo in Optimum products.
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Originally Posted By: pbm
I see that I could still pick up the Opti Coat 2.0 20 ml. for $80.
I really don't have a car that I would use it on but I wouldn't mind having it for my next new car.

Does this product last indefinitely?

The product does last indefinitely in the syringe if it is not exposed to air. This is not true for all coatings, but it is for Opti-Coat.

I do have two tubes on my shelf if anyone's interested.

If the surface is properly prepped, I guess it could last quite some time, but lifetime is a difficult claim to believe. There are a few people out there with 3+ years, and that's because it has only been out for that long. You'll still need to wash the car fairly religiously and do a light claying periodically.

FWIW, I have a car that I coated with 2.0 that sits outside 24/7, and if I don't wash the car at least every other week, the beading goes away (but it comes right back if I clay the car).

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: spasm3
How can they possibly stay in business with pricing like that.


+1, Ive never understood it. I know there is a time savings in theory if you truly prep once and never seal/wax the car ever again. But the practical chance of that is nil.


I think the theory of the high pricing is that you are basically pre-paying for several years of wash/clay/seal packages at one time. Normally, one would take their car in every 3 months to have it wash/clayed/sealed for $125. With a 2-yr coating such as CQuartz UK, Gloss-Coat or C.A.R. Bulletproof, you would pay $600 up-front and would only need a quick visit maybe at the one-year mark to clay/de-contaminate the car, and you should be good to go. So it's a matter of 2 visits over two years, versus 8.

Originally Posted By: Vikas
The only flaw I see here is that the enthusiast people who wants to put on that kind of coating probably has no stomach to let their car go for years (???) without itching to apply more stuff to it aka our resident expert TheCritic. OCD guy *wants* to go through multi-step detailing processing every few week even with the permanent coating. I bet Opti-Coat probably already sells a product which you can apply *on top of the permanent coating* to give it the "added bling"! Am I right or am I right??

The real market is with the people who usually fell for the dealer sold paint protection packages which are rolled in to new car selling price. At least now, they would get something worthwhile for their $1199. Of course there would be a caveat as to annual check ups at low low price of $499 per year to keep the paint warranty intact.

You can guess how jaded I am with this business :-(


You have every right to be jaded about this business. From a lot of these so-called "Detailers" to the inconsistencies in the claims (and information cascaded from mfgs to distributors), there's a real reason why there's a general distrust towards the detailing industry.

With that said, with enough time (and money spent), you can find/learn the right techniques to maximize your results...and there are some very legitimate products available on the market today.

I think one of the main issues with coatings (not just Opti-Coat), is the misconception that you can coat a car and neglect maintenance going forward. The car still needs to be washed once or twice a month, and periodically, you will need to clay the painted surfaces to remove the built-up contaminants. Additionally, bird droppings will still need to be removed in a timely manner, and water spots should still be attended to.

The main benefit of coatings is the easier maintenance (much easier washing) and the added protection. But I think the benefits are also a bit oversold by some parties.

Also note that most of these 2-year coatings will benefit from a periodic wipe-down using their respective brand's spray sealant, in order to maximize the appearance. I don't think Optimum requires it though. CarPro has Reload to "top" their CQuartz UK product, and C.A.R. products has "Topper" for their Bullet Proof coating.

Originally Posted By: qwertydude
It really does sound like Opticoat is trying to move into the lucrative but very reputation damaging dealership protection partnership.


Yup. Truth of the matter is, the volume business is where the money's at. I see where they're coming from, but at the same time, I think they're definitely alienating the installer base that got them started.

Originally Posted By: DAC17
So, that's nice. Now I'll just be a buyer of 22PLE. Exactly how the market should work. You raise prices, people may take their business elsewhere. And, by the way, 22PLE gives a great shine. Checking durability will be a work in progress...


There are other coatings now that will probably give you equal/better performance than 22PLE at a much lower price. The coating is advancing rapidly. You might want to give CQuartz UK or C.A.R. Bullet Proof a try.
 
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And for the record, I have two tubes of Gloss-Coat coming, and I will be using it on a car that I have scheduled in a few weeks.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
Critic. Any opinion on this tuff? I have a few bottles and was thinking about using it.

http://www.simonizprofessional.com/business/DealersUpdates/newsView.asp?NewsId=409683

Trav, I am not familiar with the product itself, but my understanding is that it is a "glass coating" that is built on technology that is similar to CQuartz UK, 22PLE, C.A.R. Bulletproof, etc. All of those are 2-yr coatings, so the 7-yr claim does seem unusually long.

With that said, most of those Simoniz products are not marketed towards the discerning enthusiast, so it's hard to say what the performance will be. Additionally, I'm sure the installation done by the average dealership detailer is going to be questionable as well.

So I think I'd be in agreement that it is worth a try, but I would be sure that the surface is properly prepped and that you follow their application instructions to the T. If you do not polish, be sure to use Duragloss Squeaky Clean followed by an IPA wipe. I think 1-2 years is probably realistic (assuming this stuff does work), but 7 seems a little off for that type of coating....but I could be wrong.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
And for the record, I have two tubes of Gloss-Coat coming, and I will be using it on a car that I have scheduled in a few weeks.



I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it TC.
 
I think Opti-Coat is making a wise business decision. Keep the pro stuff with the dealers and a high end consumer product with "higher gloss and slicker surface".

For the Opti-coat pro coat you will apply the Optimum Gloss-Coat for further positive results. I can see where they are aiming at...If the Optimum Gloss-Coat can last 2 years I hear all kinds of claims...I really believe it's a refomulated product with higher consumer demands.
 
Originally Posted By: Mamala Bay
I think Opti-Coat is making a wise business decision. Keep the pro stuff with the dealers and a high end consumer product with "higher gloss and slicker surface".

For the Opti-coat pro coat you will apply the Optimum Gloss-Coat for further positive results. I can see where they are aiming at...If the Optimum Gloss-Coat can last 2 years I hear all kinds of claims...I really believe it's a refomulated product with higher consumer demands.



Joking, right? So now not only do I have to apply a $495 product after 2-______ hours of prep work, so youre practically talking a $1000 job, and then you have to top it with another product?

Meanwhile lots of other products make a slick, glassy surface for orders of magnitude less money?!?

And we think that anyone with the funds to do a $1000 job is actually going to trust that stuff to stay in place, and not pay a pro to do something quarterly/half/yearly anyway?

Makes no sense to me. Perhaps I have more sense than dollars though.
 
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