Any opinions on opticoat?

I put Ceramic Pro on my last vehicle (2013 Ford Focus ST). It was a 3 day affair to get it polished, prepped & applied properly with 4 coats. I was pretty disappointed with the results after 1 year even though it was kept pretty clean and maintained every 6 months with their products. When I did my 2016 Tacoma I washed, clayed and applied a much less expensive sealant with a coat of old school carnauba wax on top. Knocked it all out in 6 hours and so far I am quite satisfied with the results.

 

Interesting. I was actually thinking about ceramic pro for my scat pack challenger. Might have to look into it more.

 

amateur detailer here.. never went with opticoat. just used menernza products. Never had an issue and my paint protection would last for over a year. with proper washing I rarely got swirls. quick polish to remove what little swirls I had and just reapplied wax and sealant. I just can't justify the price

couple of car's I've done..

My summer car - factory paint


2005 CRV factory paint


my friend's FRS

 

this

 

My friend is a opticoat dealer. I won't use it. Only because you can't wash it the way you use to. I don't want to have to have to wash it with the stuff they give you.

 

My truck has Americoat acrylic coating. Was not going to have the Taco coated, but my detailer had just started using this and it was half the price of the quartz-ceramic coatings. So far, so good. My last two cars had G-Techniq coating, but my shop stopped selling it and switched to Ceramic Pro. Now they have stopped selling that and are selling something else. So, hard to say which one is best

 

Sorry, wrong. Opticoat is not a scam that dealers try to sell you. You should only trust high end detailers (not body shops) to apply this. It's usually several hundreds to 1k+ to apply. It's basically like adding an additional clear coat to your paint that you can wax on top. It should be used only on new or freshly corrected paint as it will seal in any swirls or marring of the original clear coat and requires a long curing time unlike waxes or sealants.

The other "coatings" that dealers try to sell to you last minute are definitely garbage but Opticoat is the real deal. I did a 3 step paint correction on my previous mirror-black mercedes that took ~14 hours using menzerna products and wish I had it opticoated afterwards to prevent swirls and micromarring. Opticoat is used a lot in the high end car scene.

Check out this article if you want to actually read up on newer "coating" technology.

http://www.automotivequalitysolutions.com/opti-coat-pro/

 

There is a definite advantage to using opticoat PLUS wax/sealants over just waxing/sealing your vehicle however. Opticoat is a semi-permanent coating rather than your regular carnuba wax or synthetic sealant. True, putting a clear-bra is the only real way to full protect your paint but you will never get the same level of "pop" compared to a good detail job over clear-coated paint.

 

If you're like me, we like to detail ourselves. For others who don't have the time to do a 12-16 hour 3 step paint correction, opticoat is a good way of protecting the paint.

I also use primarily all menzerna products with a DA buffer as well.

 

Only if you were washing your car wrong to begin with. A standard 2 bucket wash will suffice.

 

I don't doubt you. I think the no rinse wash procedure is to extend the life of the coating.

 

Not a great pic but my brother had some left over from when he did his F150 and I did my hood on my 14 it seemed okay.....

 

Please don't give bad info. Do some research on ceramic or glass coatings. Wax isn't even an option anymore. Complete and total waste of time for a vehicle that gets driven.

Menzerna makes some good products, but no wax or sealant on the market can even begin to compare with a ceramic coating.

 

+1 for Modesta. Last I checked, a consumer couldn't buy it. You had to go through their testing process to be able to purchase it.

 

I went for the OptiCoat pro or whatever the top level one is called. Had it done shortly after starting this thread and would do it again in a heartbeat. Truck doesn't hold snow or ice... comes right off easily. And when it gets all covered in salt, a rainy day and it's like I washed it. Dirt just doesn't want to stick to the truck at all.

Thanks to all the people who provided advice, especially the ones who had positive things to say about the product.

 

i waxed my truck a day after I got it with Menernza wax and then I tried using my work's Diamond Kote. We'll see how long it lasts. I havent had durabilty problems with Menernza wax on my other vehicles, and I wash them quite often. I just recoat once a year

 

how long is opticoat supposed to last? If anything I think Id go with the Opticoat fabric stuff. Also, with Optiglass, does it wear off like RainX does and then fucks up your wipers?

 

I just have the Opticoat, not the glass stuff. I have Aquapel for the glass. The Opticoat is warranted for 7 years.

 

I'm telling you man, been detailing for a decade and wax is all but obsolete. A quality glass coating will outlast the very best wax 100X.

 

Anyone that says wax with a good polish means avoid.

Opticoat is a good product. I've had vehicles opticoated last years...in fact I sold them before opticoat wore off. Still beaded water after every wash like a freshly waxed vehicle.