Gtechniq Halo

[Zenny]

Ever since I had Xpel PPF added to my car I’ve been eyeing Gtechniq Halo and CQuartz Skin. Since I blew my budget on Xpel I need some time to recover and in the meantime I went with a moderate SiO2 protection solution Fictech One and Fictech Supercharged Ceramic Booster.

In my opinion these spray on wipe off SiO2 products aren’t as durable as I like. Perhaps the 20% SiO2 content in One this is to be expected but I’m not sure what to think. Perhaps they don’t bond well with Xpel, I’m not sure. Water beading is pretty good after application but winter road traffic film seems to destroy the beading on lower half of doors and rocker panels. So it’s about maintenance wash and respray of Supercharged as a topper.

Usually after a few months I get the itch to try something new. Between Halo and Skin I went with Halo based on the 2 year durability claim and the helpful development video posted by Gtechniq to show how it performs against contact washes and UV exposure.

It’s too early for me to say much about Halo. I applied two coats and after 12 hours of curing the surface is very slick. The first coat needed to be applied thicker than what I’m used to to spread it around. It also took a lot of passes to buff and level out. Although it didn’t fight me like a Sonax PNS does the product needed multiple passes. The second coat was more joyful to apply. Easy to use less and spread around and less passes to buff out.

I’ll post updates of water behavior with Halo as the weeks pass. For now I’ll share my base case — the stripped PPF water sheeting off the hood, the Fictech coated rear door vs stripped front door.

https://youtu.be/eZv76czRmKg

https://youtu.be/Xzee3Q1lLF4


Halo coating after 12 hours of curing. I would say the gloss was increased but nothing crazy.

[Zenny]

Did a contact wash to see how Halo beads. Used Fictech Foam Bubble.

https://youtu.be/r9SHd5XP3j4

My wash mitt glides over the surface, feels more slick than my previous experience using Sonax PNS or BSD, Fictech One and Supercharged, Griots Poly Wax, Griots Best of Show Wax.

https://youtu.be/83iWaDrDSz8

First time after a wash I didn’t feel the need to add a topper. I think about how many $17-$20 bottles of toppers I sprayed over the years

[Zenny]

I haven’t washed it in two weeks and put about 350-400 miles over a combination of county back roads and highway. Model 3’s front bumper is a bug magnet but a recent rain storm has pleasantly shown Halo’s amazing self cleaning feature. It also fights water spotting more than any SiO2 spray I’ve tried. Like zero spots while drying off in the garage. The only dirty area is the rear bumper and panel above it. The top of the trunk is clean.

[Coatings=crack]

Is whole car ppf’d?


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[Zenny]

Is whole car ppf’d?


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Yes with Xpel


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[Coatings=crack]

Yes with Xpel


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Cool. Glad to see Halo working like it should


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[Zenny]

Cool. Glad to see Halo working like it should


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Yeah it’s better than all the sealants and waxes I’ve tried.

Sonax PNS
Sonax BSD
Griots Poly Wax
Griots Best of Show Wax
Bead Maker
Fictech One
Fictech Supercharged
Nanolex SiSplash
Jescar Bead-it

[Zenny]

4th maintenance wash on Halo. It’s been 380 miles since last wash, mostly highway. It’s been hot, mid 90s. Halo is a joy to wash over.

Added Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armor 10 days ago so first wash on it. Keep in mind Tesla pads don’t dust much but the wheel surface still gets contaminated by road film, tar, etc. C5 definitely kept all the crap off and all I did was rinse, no soap no contact. I’m happy to save 15 mins from not having to contact clean wheels in this heat!

15ml was enough to cover all 19" wheel surfaces and calipers with one coat. I didn’t have any left over for the center caps so I used what I had laying around, Nanolex SiShield.

Vid of water behavior below.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xKj...w?usp=drivesdk

[Zenny]

Time for an update on the Halo coating. It’s been through 3500 miles since mid June, 9 contact washes with various shampoos ranging from aenso ONE, Nanolex Pure, Sonax Actifoam. It has been hit with Sonax fallout remover 2x, Nanolex insect remover on the front bumper and mirror caps. Surface slickness has taken a hit to the touch but not grabby like bare Xpel. The best part is hydrophobic behavior remains as amazing as day 5 after application.

Gtechniq

https://youtu.be/m_Jkgm3kGGA

https://youtu.be/kOkJPr3UcIQ

https://youtu.be/jYVPMAFVAr8

[japjoe7]

Thanks for this thread. Please keep updating!

[Zenny]

Thanks for this thread. Please keep updating!

Thanks. Nothing different to report. It’s now been through 12 contact washes over 4800 miles. 3 sessions of fallout remover and insect remover on the front bumper. The Xpel on the bumper took on two rocks strong enough to flay the film but not chip the paint. Very happy with the protection and swirl free self healing is real.

I top it with SiSplash because I like its gloss and slickness. Water behavior remains very hydrophobic.

[Zenny]

[Zenny]

5300mi on the HALO

https://youtu.be/w0MKSQaUaQ0

Gtechniq C5 on the wheels since July 2020

Very happy with performance. 8955 on the odometer and looks 99% as good as week 1.

[Zenny]

Odo 9802 update. It’s been a good month of bad weather. A winter storm, plenty of rain, a trip on the rock flying Long Island Expressway. The car got filthy but took it all in stride. Maintenance wash today revealed no additional damage to the Xpel and Halo stayed hydrophobic, no signs of fading.