MK6 GTI Gets Buffet of Polishes and a CanCoat Topper

WARNING: This is a bit long. I got a little carried away with my writing. There is a picture if you stick with it!

A few months ago, I sought advice on new polishes since I was running out of stock and at least one of the products I was using (Blackfire SRC twins) was actually no longer in production.

After much discussion I made a purchase and also received some samples from a very generous member of this forum. Fast forward to last weekend and I finally was able to put several of them to the test.

The car in question is my black pearl MK6 GTI (2014). Despite not being detailed in nearly 20 months, the paint was in surprisingly good condition. There were no shocking amount or swirls or other abuse which makes for great photos. In fact, despite taking photos, I really wasn`t able to capture what was even hard to detect with my own eyes, so I won`t bore you with meaningless photos.

As a good examples of what Mike Phillips posed last week in his case against two-year coatings, my car did have quite a bit of grime which had built up over nearly two years. It wasn`t until I started polishing that I realized exactly how dull the paint had become. The paint was significantly clearer when the polishing was done and all the grime and expired coating was nothing but gray gunk in my polishing pads.

Polish "Buffet"

Over the course of this job I used Sonax 04-06, Wolfgang Swirl Remover, Blackfire SRC Compound, and the new Blackfire Compound. All of which were used with a series of LC white Flat and Thin Pro pads on my crude, yet trusty HF DA. The intention was to see which one served best as a one-step polish which would clean up the paint and finish off LSP ready. Below are my thoughts on their performance on my rock hard, black VW paint.

- SONAX 04-06: Nice polish, but clearly not up to the task on the hard paint. The working time was really good and the paint did get somewhat glossier, but there wasn`t really any correction going on. I could have stepped down to an orange pad, but in the interest of time I moved on. I was hoping the polish would be a bit more aggressive based on the SONAX scale, but I think this product is firmly in the finishing polish category. I`ll be sure to use it on our family Honda, Toyota, or even the in-law`s Genisis where I`m sure it will perform just fine on the soft paint. I also noticed it was a bit harder to remove than any of the others.

- Wolfgang Swirl Remover: Great product. Just about the right amount of cut for my needs, great working time, and easy to remove. It was a bit oily, but not too bad. I was also surprised at how thick the product was in the sample bottle. It was like trying to apply a thick lotion to the pad. After a couple of tests of all the other products, this was the one I came back to and I used up the entire sample finishing the car. For VW paint it`s a great option for a one step. Depending on the level of the defects you might have to work it a bit longer, but it is up to the task.

- Blackfire SRC Compound: Sadly, no longer in production, but using the last bit in my bottle was like meeting an old friend. On a white LC pad it finishes out really nicely with about the perfect level of cut and easy to remove. The only down side is the amount of polishing oils. Plenty of panel wipe is needed to get any surface coating ready.

- Blackfire Compound: This is the new stuff. I found it to be everything I liked about the SRC Compound, but not as oily and even a bit easier to remove. Probably the easiest of any I used that evening on my car. It also might have a bit more bite than SRC, yet finishes down equally as nice. One area I used this product was the horizontal surface on top of the rear bumper. Since the GTI is a hatchback, this area gets some abuse from loading/unloading stuff like my kids athletic equipment or my bike. The product easily wiped out the worst of the damage and left a great shine with very little effort. I`m sure a more aggressive pad and some pressure would do some serious work if needed.


Verdict: Based on my needs and techniques I`ve found work great on my car, the new Blackfire Compound was easily the winner. It produced the best results with the least effort. The Wolfgang was close behind. SONAX was a DNF since it was not really what I needed, at no fault of it`s own. The SRC Compound was an honorable mention since it is no longer in production.

Which of the two winners will I guy? I don`t know. The Blackfire only comes in 32oz bottles which is way too much product for me. At current usage rates, a bottle would last me roughly 15 years. The Wolfgang is nice, but I`m not sure I want to spend $26 for an 8oz bottle. Fortunately I have a year to decide, but at this point if nothing else comes to the market, I`ll probably go with the Wolfgang.

Once all that was done, I topped off the car with a coat of CanCoat. The application didn`t go so well, and my issues are documented in the Gyeon forum over at Autogeek. However, once it was all done, I was really pleased with the look of the car. Again photos really don`t capture how clear and glossy the paint looks in bright sun and the way the pearl flake pops. Those aren`t holograms you see in places...those are small wispy clouds which were passing by at the time!

http://www.autogeekonline.net/galler...708_140006.jpg

Appreciate the review of the Wolfgang and BLACKFIRE products. I have both but have not used.
I agree 32oz is too much for me. I got a free 8oz sample of BLACKFIRE Compound along with a couple of 2oz.
I followed the posts on the CanCoat issue which I also have not used yet. I try too many things.

I have used can coat successfully on many occasions. It is essentially a wipe on, wipe off coating. I usually do 2 layers.
I use one MF to apply the first coat and usually a 2nd to remove. I repeat the same process for the second coat. I find the can coat lasts about 6 months for a daily driver and anywhere from a year to a year and a half for a garage queen. I use it for garage queens mostly or car close to being off lease. It is super fast to apply, looks amazing and beads like crazy. If it lasted longer I stop looking for something more durable. It’s my favorite Gyeon product to date.

I also use it on door jambs and trunks and hood shuts because it’s super easy and fast.

The prep is the same for any regular coating.