GRAND FINALE -Optimum Opti-Coating - Durability Test Review!!!

Here’s a little 16 month VIDEO update for everyone. As you can see, the coating is still on the surface doing its thing. Still much easier to clean and the beading is like day 1 too. No signs of failure even though I maintain the car with weekly Dawn washes and monthly touchless washes. No signs of premature trim or paint deterioration either despite the harsh chemicals & hot Florida sun.

Click:



 
While the beading is great, it is different than day one IMO. The beads are not "perky" anymore. My coating is shaping the beads more like ameboa. The cleaning is excellent, which is a larger factor for me. The hydrophillic nature seems to be a bit different too.



Any ideas david on why yours has changed too?



Cheers,

GREG
 
Can this stuff prevent spot greening on trunk and grille badges and wheel center caps? Florida air can cause it to creep up even if you have a lot of LSPs on them.
 
Barry Theal said:
Thats really impressive! Speechless!
Click to expand...



salty said:
Thanks for the update David, still looking good.



What happened to your door?
Click to expand...



Thanks you guys!

I was parked one day with my door open and had my brakes applied. When I let go of the brake the car rolled back scraping the edge of my driver's door against a pole. I was pissed. I'm also unhappy not being able to get it fixed because of this test so I'll leave it until I have to turn my car back in.
 
Mush-Mouth said:
Nice update. How long is this supposed to last and when it wears off what happens? Has anyone witnessed failing and if so what are the characteristics?
Click to expand...



Bill D said:
Can this stuff prevent spot greening on trunk and grille badges and wheel center caps? Florida air can cause it to creep up even if you have a lot of LSPs on them.
Click to expand...



Not sure on either concerns? I would direct that question to Chris or Dr. G @ Optimum as they know this product much better than me. I will say that I believe this product has been tested for over 7 years though.



Bill - I've been told that this coating will actually block the air from going into the substrate. It has proven quite well on faded gel coat and single stage finishes.
 
Greg Nichols said:
While the beading is great, it is different than day one IMO. The beads are not "perky" anymore. My coating is shaping the beads more like ameboa. The cleaning is excellent, which is a larger factor for me. The hydrophillic nature seems to be a bit different too.



Any ideas david on why yours has changed too?



Cheers,

GREG
Click to expand...



Good assumption Greg, but I will both agree and disagree with you on this issue. Please understand, this car is sometimes parked at body shops all day. Many times right outside of the the bay door where techs are cutting in panels and spraying primer. My car is covered in overspray and is very rough to the touch. Put a celophane cigarette wrapper on your hand and you'll think you're touching sandpaper. That contamination alone *could* dramatically affect the appearance of beading. Also, the coated side of my car has some pretty bad water spots. Here's a taste of what that looks like:



Picture021-1.jpg




So, with these 2 issues present on my car, I can honestly say that yes, the roundness of the beading is different. But this does not in any way mean that the product itself has changed because I really don't believe it has. When I blast this car down with my pressure washer it still reacts very violently to water and the cleanability is unchanged.



When I find time I plan on using Optimum Water Spot Remover and claying it to remove these problems. This should also prove to be a great test for the coating if it remains unchanged or 100% restored and unaffected by these removers. Stay tuned.....
 
So David,



How many people have stopped you and commented on the 50/50 appearance of the car over the last 16 months? :D
 
Kean said:
T With OC it seems I will end up having to do a full correction or none (and having to worry about taking down the finish far enough that the product is completely removed prior to re-application). ....or maybe Im not understanding.
Click to expand...



I re-read and better understand. It seems to me any marring that may take place in OC is going to have to removed in the same manner as marring in regular. clear. It has to be polished out, not simply apply another coat of OC. I guess that makes sense, because like Chris said, you wouldn't just re apply clear coat paint to an area that is marred.



I'm also possibly interested in this product from trim and the like. I'd like to keep my original badges, on the Caddy in particular, oxidation free. No LSP I've used has been able to fully achieve that.
 
Nice to see how well the coating is still doing considering the harsh conditions the car is subject too. Makes me feel even more confident about the product performing well on cars that are well cared for.
 
David, I don't want to reread on what you covered with Opti-Coat, but if i remember right you did cover half the windshield. The wiper marks are visible, so did it remove the coating or compromise it?
 
RaskyR1 said:
So David,



How many people have stopped you and commented on the 50/50 appearance of the car over the last 16 months? :D
Click to expand...



ALOT! When I talk to people about this product and tell them how the driver's side is coated the best way to show them the results is to squirt it down with water. Seeing's believing for sure. I get the most props from painters when I tell them it's basically clearcoat paint that beads water.



Bill D said:
I re-read and better understand. It seems to me any marring that may take place in OC is going to have to removed in the same manner as marring in regular. clear. It has to be polished out, not simply apply another coat of OC. I guess that makes sense, because like Chris said, you wouldn't just re apply clear coat paint to an area that is marred.



I'm also possibly interested in this product from trim and the like. I'd like to keep my original badges, on the Caddy in particular, oxidation free. No LSP I've used has been able to fully achieve that.
Click to expand...



Bill - this product sounds perfect for your application. Also, please keep in mind that if you choose to apply a second layer after the primary has cured, you'll need to "scuff" down the existing coating for the new one to stick. You can do this with something like a finishing polish like 85rd/106/M205.



Scottwax said:
Nice to see how well the coating is still doing considering the harsh conditions the car is subject too. Makes me feel even more confident about the product performing well on cars that are well cared for.
Click to expand...



Thanks Scott. I'm pleasantly surprised myself. I don't have any idea when it's going to die.



salty said:
David, I don't want to reread on what you covered with Opti-Coat, but if i remember right you did cover half the windshield. The wiper marks are visible, so did it remove the coating or compromise it?
Click to expand...

Yes, the coating has been removed where the wipers have rubbed over. The areas around it look good. If I remember correctly it last about 9 months during our rainly season too. It abraded the coating right away after several 1000 wiper strokes. Not too shabby.
 
I am also interested to see how the Opti-Coat is holding up, especially since on some other forums, some people are claiming that furniture varnish appears to be protecting their headlights better than Opti-Coat.
 
Next time you wash it David, could you do a short vid showing the beads and water displacement? I'm curious to see how it looks with all the water spotting and overspray on the car.
 
David,

I have a handful of maintenance customers that I've put OG and OC2 on. I've noticed that a few of them are in need of a claybarring some 8-12 months later. Does this sound about right?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top