Side by side Werkstatt vs Blackfire comparison on a pair of STI`s

[WX51 TXR]

This was a long, tiring day! I’d promised the secretary of the Subaru Impreza Driver’s Club a free demonstration detail ever since I took up sponsorship of ScoobyNet at the start of the year, but the weather had defeated us on several occasions, so when another local member, Jools, offered up his garage we jumped at the chance and did both cars on the same day. I just so happened to have received a full box of Werkstatt samples the week before, so it turned out to be a great opportunity to do a side by side comparison with Blackfire…



1. ~400bhp Roger Clark tuned STI (a bit scary to be honest!)



This 52 plate beast is a track day weapon, and does relatively little on road mileage. The lower half was resprayed last autumn, and overall the car is in great condition – some minor swirls here and there, a rope scuff in the front bumper and a couple if minor scratches. Accordingly, we did most of the work by hand, only breaking out the PC/Menzerna to correct the scuff. Jools had just started washing the car when I turned up, but the rest of the process was to (i) polish by hand with JEFFS Werkstatt Prime, applied with Ultimate German Applicator Pads and buffed off with Poorboy’s Super Thick n Plush Towels following a quick spritz with JEFFS Werkstatt Acrylic Glos, and (ii) protect by hand with JEFFS Werkstatt Acrylic Jet, applied with a microfibre pad and buffed off immediately with Poorboy’s Mega Plush Towels. The wheels were then treated with AIO (using up old stocks) and Poorboy’s Wheel Sealant, and the tyres dressed with Blackfire Long Lasting Tyre Gel. The exhaust tip was given a quick polish with Autosol and Meguirs NXT All Metal Polysh, while the trims were treated with a dose of 303 Aerospace Protectant. The windows were finished with Meguiars NXT Glass Cleaner. Here’s the pics…



Washing commences…







After the work, the flake is popping nicely given the semi-cloudy weather…







The wheels well protected for the next track day…







Not bad clarity for a semi-cloudy day…

[WX51 TXR]

The Werkstatt acrylic twins don’t do wet and glossy, rather wet and shiny, which is not often seen (and almost FMJ like)…

[WX51 TXR]

2. Bog standard STI (with deer impression on front part of bonnet!)



This 52 plate car is a daily driver, and sees a lot of track day action – unsurprisingly it is showing signs of age and abuse! The paint is covered in swirls and scratches, there are numerous scuffs and a dent in the front of the bonnet from a deer kill. It doesn’t help that the road where the car lives is a building site at the moment, so lots of sand scouring going on too! Given that it was 1pm by the time we had finished the first car, I knew that full correction was out of the question, so we opted to treat every panel to two heavy attempts with Optimum Compound via Lake Country orange light cut pads (would normally have gone in straight away with IP, but wanted to see how well the Optimum would do on Scooby paint). The residue was buffed with Poorboy’s Super Thick n Plush Towels following a quick spritz with OCW. After the correction stage, we then applied Blackfire Gloss Enhancing Polish by hand using Ultimate German Applicator Pads, and buffed off with Poorboy’s Super Thick n Plush Towels. We then finished with a coat of Blackfire Wet Diamond All Finish Paint Protection, applied by hand using a microfibre pad and buffed off using Poorboy’s Mega Plush Towels. As with the first car, the wheels were then treated with AIO and Poorboy’s Wheel Sealant, and the tyres dressed with Blackfire Long Lasting Tyre Gel. The windows were finished with Meguiars NXT Glass Cleaner. Ran out time so didn’t do the trims or the exhaust tip. Here’s the pics…



Before doing anything…

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Some correction pairs, showing how well the Optimum did in the limited time available…

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3. And now for some side by side comparison shots under exactly the same lighting conditions and orientation…



Werkstatt below…







Blackfire below…







Werkstatt below…







Blackfire below…

[WX51 TXR]

Werkstatt below…







Blackfire below…







And finally, all three cars I’ve done at Jool’s house recently… the finish on the Range Rover Sport is holding up well, seeing as it only gets jetwashed from time to time.







The three amigos, tired and ready for food, and at least two of them due for a royal bollocking when they get home for being two hours overdue!

[Scottwax]

Very nice work on both...suprisingly, it appears the Werkstatt car is a touch darker and deeper. Given Blackfire`s more `carnauba` appearance I would have expected the opposite. :nixweiss



Both look absolutely spectacular though!



How does Blackfire`s slickness compare to Werkstatt?

[WX51 TXR]

It`s a little hard to see in the above pics, but to my eyes the Werkstatt car looked a bit more shiny and flakey, whereas the Blackfire car looked more solid and wet. Overall, I preferred the Werkstatt finish, as I like to make flakes stand out as much as possible, and Werkstatt seems to do this exceptionally well. Slickness to the touch was about even, but I`ve found that Werkstatt seems to bead more, whereas Blackfire tends to sheet off with less noticeable beading (similar to FMJ in this respect). Overall, I love both ranges - the Blackfire is easier to work with (still finding Werkstatt residues a little tough to remove sometimes), but Werkstatt gives the clarity I love so much. However, if you want a very wet looking, wax-like finish with good durability then Blackfire is hard to beat. Perhaps I should try comparing Prime Carnuba topped with Carnuba Jet vs Blackfire - my feeling is is might be impossible to tell them apart!

[Gen2]

Hi Richard, nice work to both the STI and a very detail comparsion on Jeffs Werkstatt and Blackfire system. Recently I also did a comparision between these two product range and my finding is exactly the same as yours. JW looks more shiny and Blackfire looks more wet, same beading effect as mentioned by you and overall I still prefer the look of JW twins.

[chml17l]

Richard-- I always look forward to your posts and exemplary work. Your detailed explanations during your details always adds so much to the information you convey. Thanks for the great write up and comparison between the Werkstatt twins and Blackfire.



It would be good to know how the durability compares between these two over time.

[gmblack3]

Thanks for the excellent write-up. Most of us (including myself) dream of doing comparisons like this, but the time is always hard to find.

[imported_Lightman]

That rice is looking so good I could eat it!