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…





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









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…









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









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…



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!

[golfdude]

Wow, an excellent write-up and a great side-by side comparison with proper picture captions. For me, Werkstatt seems a little more wet-looking! But I couldn`t stop admiring both STI`s! Excellent job.

[holland_patrick]

MAN that s what I`m talking about..

That color is great and I WANT IT...

i`m going to have to brake down and buy one of them used...

[G35stilez]

Definately more depth with the Blackfire...You can really see it in the first set with the reflections.


Great test, details, and writeup!

[jdoria]

Blackfile = Menzerna licensed, correct?

[Craigster]

Great job and write up. Its too close for me to call. In the first set of pics, Blackfire looks deeper, but in the last comparison shots, Werkstatt looks deeper. I guess you cant go wrong either way. The color of those STIs is killer, nicest blue Ive seen.

[WX51 TXR]

Blackfile = Menzerna licensed, correct?

No, Menzerna USA = Menzerna Werk licenced, Blackfire = Blackfire, with a little help from Menzerna Werk for the SRC polishes.

[Beemerboy]

Those cars look great!!!!


and you guys have some funny looking license plates

[JeffW]

The edge to Blackfire, IMO, but both look fantastic! Very sweet job on the details!

[CARTfan]

Now those are some proper Imprezas. Great job with the details too. That view from the first pic isn`t bad either. Beautiful countryside. I`m jealous on all counts.

[Craigster]

Im not trying to start a war, just to learn a little, so I have a question:

Does anyone think the Blackfire`s edge could be because the whole 2nd car got Opt Compound and Blackfire finishing polish before Wet Diamond as opposed to 1st car where Werkstatt Prime being the one and only polish (which is mostly chemical)?

[WX51 TXR]

Excellent question, and proof that it`s so hard to make such a test totally objective. The paint on the Werkstatt STI is quite new (repainted last autumn) and was in generally great condition, so it`s not like two four year old cars were chosen and only one polished. However, it is completely fair to say that both cars were prepared very differently, so I guess the jury is out on this one! Mental note to self - prep both cars in the same way next time!

[hemin8r]

Both cars look great. Both cars look have a nice shine though I do see a bit more of a deep shine on the first STI.

[01WJLimited]

That is a beautiful damn color. Just beautiful.

As for the products - no comment, they each have their strong points, and look amazing.