Describing "The Look" of Waxes, Sealants , and Coatings

This topic is an "extension" of a previous post/discussion about the viability of carnauba waxes as a car-care last-step product (LSP) in today`s world of modern sealants and, now, coatings.

It`s very difficult to use words to describe "a look" to someone else of the fore-mentioned LSP`s. Unless you`ve seen a particular LSP on a particular car color IN PERSON, it`s very hard to relate to that description. Looks are very subjective, meaning that its YOUR opinion and judgment on what it looks like. It`s also a truism that even with posted photos and pictures, "Pictures do not do it justice" or "you have to see it for real to believe it or describe it". It`s kind of like describing the feeling of love, but I digress.... that`s just for comparative purposes here.

So, here are some terms I`ve seen (and used myself) in no particular order:

Bright
Shiny
Reflective
Mirror-like
Wet (or water pool like)
Deep
Glass-like or glassy
Plastic-like (or the non-word of plasticy)
Jetting
Muted


Here are some more terms that are specific product-name related:
Pinnacle Souveran-like
P21S/S100 like
Zymol (pick one of their hi-end names) like
Klasse-like
Chemical Guy`s 50/50 like.
Collinite 476S like (my favorite LSP because it`s good and "inexpensive/cost-effective", AKA "cheap", like me (at least the cheap-part))
Dodo Juice Supernatural like
Meguiar`s M16 like

All of these (and any you can add) all have a specific look to them that can only be described by the experience of using and/or seeing in person on a vehicle. It`s just hard to relate to them unless you have had that visual experience (again going back to the "love" concept)

I know that there are gloss-meter tools to physically measure the amount of gloss of a surface to give reflectivity an objective number to relate to. (Think Dennis Weaver, AKA McCloud, using one in Coral Blue AutoFom with Fomblin A as seen on TV infomercials. Yup, I have some yet. Please... no comments on my age or how I am dating myself.)

If you want to take a stab at describing any of these terms or posting pictures and photos, be my guest. But I think most Autopians will agree that a certain look is best described by: "I know it when I see it".

Since I have not used most of the product name related products, I cannot associate them.

I would not be surprised that some products actually reduce measured gloss (done with a gloss meter) but enhance the look in other visual (not measured ways).

Lonnie- I agree completely!

Heh heh, I used "jetting" in a recent thread (about Collinite) and had to think long and hard about how to define that when asked what I meant.

IMO some of the "product-specific looks" can be described fairly well...and some aren`t all that different (P21s and 845 look an awful lot like M16).

Heh heh, the Dodo Supernatural gets my chuckle because people have mistaken 476S for it.

Souveran *IS* one of those special "gotta see it for yourself" waxes! Most folks love it on black/red/etc. but my wife can spot it *instantly* on Audi silver (her fave LSP for that paint and probably the only LSP she can ID other than FK1000P) and it`s always been my choice for my single-stage "metallic gray" Jag.

Jetting - BFMS

Crisp: Natty Blue

Glossy: Fuzion

Depth: Souveran

Glass like: Naviwax

Nuba glow: 915

Crayon like: Dodo Juice Pros

Wet: Bouncers CTR

For me its not only about looks. I mean seriously, five minutes after a wax job and you have dust sitting on the paint. Dusty waxed cars look like crap. So you have what...five minutes of perfection? Whoopie. Maybe ok for a car show just before the judging, but seriously now, for daily drivers... its about protection.
Take two popsicle sticks and put one in a Dixie cup of about 30ml of your favorite coating. The other popsicle stick in a Dixie cup of some wax or sealant. Let dry for three days. Pull the popsicle stick out of the coating and you have what looks like a Plexiglas lollipop. Pull the stick out of wax or sealant and you have a smeared mess. Which would you want protecting your paint? And BTW...coatings can look good all the time, not just after you apply them. They are much easier to clean and they STAY clean. Coatings are looking better and better. Didn`t mean to change the topic.

Klasse twins give me the most plastic look

Adding a new description for an old LSP I just reintroduced myself too:

Candy coated (Megs M21).

I had been using “glassy” SiO2 sprays, then “shiny” DG Aquawax / Ultimate Quik Wax on my silver Acura. The change to M21 is very blatant to the eyes, bring a totally different look.

I’ve never used a coating because I figure most look glassy. Any have the glow of carnauba?

Bill D- Noting your affinity for Souveran, do you *want* a "carnauba glow" on your Cadillac? Yeah, I`m still trying to get FK1000P on it ;)

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Originally Posted by William_Wallace

Klasse twins give me the most plastic look

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Yes indeed, it literally looks like there`s a plastic film there. It kinda grew on me with a few vehicles, and it *does* provide a physical barrier like no other (conventional) LSP I`ve ever used, only one that *ever* protected against marring the way some expect LSPs to do.

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Originally Posted by acuRAS82

I had been using...“shiny” DG Aquawax / Ultimate Quik Wax on my silver Acura.

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Noting that I only used it on paint a few times (as I didn`t like how it looked on that vehicle), I`m a little surprised you found the UQW "shiny". Maybe I`m too accustomed to seeing FK1000P.

OCW impresses me as more shiny/glossy than I`d expected on silver...I *never* thought I`d keep using it on the A8 after the paintwork finished curing, but all these years later that`s still what`s on it.

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Originally Posted by Accumulator

Bill D- Noting your affinity for Souveran, do you *want* a "carnauba glow" on your Cadillac? Yeah, I`m still trying to get FK1000P on it ;)

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Yep, been putting Souveran on my Cadillac for years. Still like it. I also have it on my black A4 where it really pops. I do use Fuzion on my blue Accord. (That’s the car I drive).

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Originally Posted by Accumulator

Noting that I only used it on paint a few times (as I didn`t like how it looked on that vehicle), I`m a little surprised you found the UQW "shiny". Maybe I`m too accustomed to seeing FK1000P.

OCW impresses me as more shiny/glossy than I`d expected on silver...I *never* thought I`d keep using it on the A8 after the paintwork finished curing, but all these years later that`s still what`s on it.

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I was actually struggling a bit to categorize the looks of UQW and Aquawax. Maybe “wet” is a better description? What would you describe it as?

It is hard to believe that someone is resurrecting a 4-year old thread I started, but describing "the look" of ANY LSP can be daunting and, as stated at the beginning, it`s really in the eye of the beholder. You know it when you see it. Sometimes words cannot do "the look" of an LSP justice and depending on the color of the vehicle and it`s prep work done before the LSP is applied, the same LSP will "look different" from a previous personal visual experience.

Like many of you Autopians know and state; it`s not only the LSP but the prep of the surface under it the gives it "the look". It is also the quality of the clear coat and paint. The ever-present OEM "orange peel" on the exterior of so many new "pedestrian" (IE, lower level) vehicles will also negate some of that look. There is reason WHY you pay more for higher-end vehicles: just look at the exterior paint.

Blinding is one more phrase.
Crystal clear is another.
My favorite? Surreal reflective duplicity. (Meaning the lady was using your fender to see herself as she re-applied her lipstick at the car show!!)

I wish my eyes were good enough to see all the nuances. I see shiny.

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Originally Posted by acuRAS82

I was actually struggling a bit to categorize the looks of UQW... Maybe “wet” is a better description? What would you describe it as?

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Yeah, that`s more like it IMO. I thought it looked decidedly "blah" on the dark blue `93 Audi (a really cool paint despite it`s trashed condition, I was shocked that it didn`t look as nice as usual with the UQW).

Like...I use it on some black plastics instead of OCW because the OCW makes them took "too gloss/shiny" and I`m more after "rich" if that makes sense.

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Originally Posted by Lonnie

It is hard to believe that someone is resurrecting a 4-year old thread I started..

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Heh heh, I`ve noticed lots of Thread Resurrections lately! I kinda appreciate it, as opposed to starting a whole new thread on an old topic.

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..but describing "the look" of ANY LSP can be daunting and, as stated at the beginning, it`s really in the eye of the beholder. You know it when you see it. Sometimes words cannot do "the look" of an LSP justice and depending on the color of the vehicle and it`s prep work done before the LSP is applied, the same LSP will "look different" from a previous personal visual experience...

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Yes, indeed! It often amazes me the diffs that I see *and don`t*.

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Like many of you Autopians know and state; it`s not only the LSP but the prep of the surface under it the gives it "the look". It is also the quality of the clear coat and paint. The ever-present OEM "orange peel" on the exterior of so many new "pedestrian" (IE, lower level) vehicles will also negate some of that look. There is reason WHY you pay more for higher-end vehicles: just look at the exterior paint.

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The Orangepeel on the S8 is simply *AWFUL*, but the car still looks great. Nonetheless, that was an awfully pricey car for a terrible paintjob done in a "modern" robotic plant :rolleyes: The orangepeel on the repainted panels of the Crown Vic OTOH (Govt. work..sigh..) makes those areas look almost "matte" :eek:

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Blinding is one more phrase.

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That`s the S8 in bright sunlight.

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Crystal clear is another.
My favorite? Surreal reflective duplicity. (Meaning the lady was using your fender to see herself as she re-applied her lipstick at the car show!!)

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Heh heh...yeah, that was good :D Although I wouldn`t want that look on the Jag.

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Originally Posted by John U

I wish my eyes were good enough to see all the nuances. I see shiny.

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Heh heh, watch what you wish for...Ignorance is Bliss when it comes to a whole lotta Detailing topics ;) So much easier to not care about stuff you don`t notice.

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Originally Posted by John U

I wish my eyes were good enough to see all the nuances. I see shiny.

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Nothing wrong with “shiny”.

I just waxed my Accord with Fuzion today and I can see how much “deeper” the paint is now compared to before. I re wax when I see that the depth has diminished. This is usually within 3-4 months. I’m sure glad today was a cooler day to wax. We had a very warm summer!

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Originally Posted by Accumulator

Yeah, that`s more like it IMO. I thought it looked decidedly "blah" on the dark blue `93 Audi (a really cool paint despite it`s trashed condition, I was shocked that it didn`t look as nice as usual with the UQW).

Like...I use it on some black plastics instead of OCW because the OCW makes them took "too gloss/shiny" and I`m more after "rich" if that makes sense.

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Makes perfect sense.

And maybe I should save “shiny” for LSPs like Collinite 845, Pinnacle Sig Series II, etc.

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Originally Posted by John U

I wish my eyes were good enough to see all the nuances. I see shiny.

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The more you see, the more problems it creates. I washed my best friends car and topped it with Polish Angel Viking Spritz. She thanks me, but didn`t seem wow`ed by it. 5 months later we dropped her car off at Toyota for an oil change. They "detailed" it for her, she couldn`t stop raving about how amazing and shiny it looked.

acuRAS82- Ah, yeah...845 is a "bright/reflective/shiny" wax, similar in looks to M16 (guess I date myself by mentioning that stuff), so that was a good example of that. I used to top 845 with 476S just to tone that look down a bit and add a little depth/jetting (the other side of the "nice LSP" coin).

quebert- Heh heh, there`s a reason why I don`t Detail cars for friends/family...or even broach the subject with them. Although if all fairness, the people whose stuff I used to do always said "never looked better!" Still, they`re just not on-board and didn`t really appreciate what it took to do the work (?!?"HOW many hours"?!?).