Short Review of Autoglym Super Resin Polish Extra Gloss Protection, 5-month Durability

This is going to be just a short informal review.

Back in April this year, I gave my daily drive a full treatment - wash, clay, polish, and seal. All this was done completely using a full range of Autoglym products.

I washed the car using Autoglym Bodywork Shampoo conditioner. For its review, please read here. I used the full wash method described here.

Once done washing and claying, I used my trusty old Bosch GEX 125-1AE with a green Lake Country CCS foam to polish the surface. This was done using Autoglym Super Resin Polish. This is an all-one-product. It has mild abrasives for mild correction power and fillers to fill in minor scratches, and some very mild protection.

Correction vs Hiding Defects

This heading might irk some OCD enthusiast. If you are one of them, please skip this section.

There are two main ways to keep a car looking great. The first is to go all out and remove all or almost all of the defects by cutting down the clear coat (as much as going with wet sanding) to remove all (or almost all) of the defects. Most might argue that this is the "correct" way. I agree but to a certain extent. If the paint condition is new and there is some heavy defects, then this is the correct way. 

However, a clear coat on a car surface is only a few microns thick. So that leads to this question: How many times can we compound a car before the clear coat is gone? Well, we could use a paint thickness gage (gauge EN-GB) but would cost a few hundred Ringgit but I have one anyway :-p. My approach again is, if in doubt use the least aggressive methods.

Say for example a car has been compounded a few times before or you would prefer to "save some thickness" for future correction, you could use a milder approach that would remove minor defects and fill up heavier defects. This is where mild polish with fillers comes in handy.

 Autoglym Super Resin Polish (SRP)

This is an all-in-one product that has:

- good cleaning ability

- mild correction ability

- good fillers

- mild protection

The application method is the same for a normal car polish. See here for details. It is a little dusty compared to other polishes like Meguiar's Ultimate Polish.

I mostly use either this or Dodo Juice Lime Prime (LP) as a pre-wax cleanser. A pre-wax cleanser is used to clean car surfaces before waxing for better bonding. Think of it as a very light polish. So when to use a pre-wax cleanser? Let say my previous wax (or sealant) application was 3-4 months ago and the protection seems to be wearing off and the condition of the surface is still good with no heavy defects, then I would use a pre-wax cleanser to remove the old wax (sealant), dirt, minor defects before rewaxing (resealing) the car again.

Comparing Autoglym SRP and Dodo Juice LP, the former comes with fillers and some very mild protection whereas LP is a pure cleanser. Both are good products but for hiding defects before resealing I would go for SRP. As I always mention, there is no right or wrong here. It is just a matter of personal preferences.

Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection (EGP)

This product is a sealant (or synthetic wax). See here for comparison. This product has been in the market for quite a long time but it still works well in comparison to newer products. EGP comes in a liquid form. Give it a good shake before applying. As usual, I always apply sealant by hand using an applicator pad. Once applied to the entire car, let it sit for at least half and hour before buffing off. 

Once done, enjoy a durability of 3-4 months (or more) with regular maintenance.

Look at the water behavior after a recent downpour (the pictures were taken in early September with the car washed a week ago). That is a 5-month durability in a hot and humid climate and it is still working. Yes, this can be achieved with regular maintenance and by regular maintenance, I mean wash and add additional protection using spray wax after every wash.

Have you found a durable sealant that you like? If yes, enjoy.
Happy detailing :-)

Hands-on Review on Clover 15mm Throw Dual Action Polisher

This is a review of my 15mm dual action polisher. You can read about the unboxing and initial impressions here.

After much procrastination, I decided to re-seal my daily drive. I used the new DA with the included green pad. It is a medium cutting pad which is ideal for an all in one polish. Before starting, I was dilly-dallying to use either Autoglym Super Resin Polish (SRP) or Dodo Juice Lime Prime. Then, while doing a walk-around, I noticed some very minor scratches on the sides of the car, maybe due to some brushing from twigs. This is what we usually get, parking by the roadsides. To remove and fill those scratches, I went on with SRP that has some fillers in it.

Straight on, the DA works as it should have with well-controlled vibration. My hands did not feel as numb as with Bosch GEX. Cutting power with the supplied green pad was good. See the condition of the pad after polishing the roof top. This is after washing and claying.

One thing to note is that this DA is quite loud. It is louder than my old Bosch GEX. I had to use my wireless headphone with active noise cancellation to seal off and cancel off the noise. See that headphone hanging on the top of the chair? That headphone sealed off about 70% of the noise. Do take this with a pinch of salt though as I am not an audio expert. This was merely based on feelings. Luckily my neighbors were not in. Although it is loud, I am guessing it would be the same with other DA's. I read on the Internet that DA's tends to be loud :-p

Another point to take with this DA is that it tends to get quite hot especially near the top. It could get a little uncomfortable. I should have used the provided handle. I was working with this for about an hour or so (on and off in between wiping panel by panel) and the temperature sort of maintained at the same level as when it first ran in the first 15 minutes. So, not a deal breaker.

And as with larger throw DA's in general, getting into tight spot is a little difficult compared to smaller throw DA. Here, at the rear bumper, I could only get this to polish near the outer edge. Any closer, the side of the pad would hit the panel. With my old GEX I could get much closer. I had to use hand polish for this area. Luckily I went for the 15mm throw, a 21mm throw would not even go in, I think.

All in all, this DA works great and is really worth buying. The pads stayed very well throughout the whole polishing. The Velcro is very strong. Comparing this to my old GEX, I could get more work done in shorter time.

Coming back to my daily drive, I sealed it with Finish Kare Hi-Temp Paste Wax (1000P).

And now for some shinning gallery.

More posts coming up.
Happy detailing.

Quick Review: Autoglym Professional Express Wax

This a quick review of Autoglym Professional Express Wax. This is a bulk packing (or professional) version of Autoglym Aqua Wax. 5 liters. Please visit my previous post on spray wax for other spray waxes reviews. I got this for about RM350 from eBay including delivery from the UK. This is a lot more economical than buying the standard packing version that costs around RM170 for 500ml that is sold locally. Check Lelong.com or Lazada to see for yourself. Crazy, right? The standard packing includes two microfiber towels but it is still way too expensive.

Results

I followed the instructions of spraying the wax on while the car is still wet (with excess water wiped off first). This wax does not behave like other spray waxes that I have used before. It feels grabby when wiped on. I think it is actually a good idea to spray it on a wet surface because of the "grabbiness". This is not a normal wipe on, wipe off product. After drying the car with this product, I could see smearing or streak mark appearing. I was like uh-oh...

Following the instructions, I then used another dry towel to buff the wax off. Buffing this wax off feels like buffing off a traditional wax. The towel felt grabby. After buffing the wax off, I was like wow! This wax seems to make the car shine more than other spray waxes I have used. The gloss is deep and the shine is excellent. The surface feels ultra slick, almost as slick as a traditional wax. I guess this is the reward for the extra buffing.

I then left the car outside after dressing the tires, sun-baking the car. The gloss became more pronounce after "curing". However, it started to rain after about 4 hours of application. I drove the car into the car porch and was amazed by the beading. Looking at the previous post here, the sealant on this car has become quite weak but this Express Wax managed not only to enhance the gloss but to create a good hydrophobic barrier. I am impressed.

As for durability, I do not know yet as this is my first time using this Express Wax but anything that can last a week or two is good by my standard.

Will I use this after every wash? No, because it takes some effort to buff off. I would continue to use other spray waxes after every wash and maybe use this once a month.

That's it. Happy detailing.

P/S: I was only planning to post this today but due to a great revelation, I ended up posting this and another post on the same day.

Meguiar's Ultimate Paste Wax Poor Performance?

Back in June 2016 ( 3 months back), I corrected and sealed my wife's daily drive using a full suite of Meguiar's products from Ultimate Compound, Ultimate Polish to Ultimate Paste Wax. You can read about it here.

As I was washing my wife's daily drive this morning, the sun rose earlier, seemingly wanting to reveal something to me :-). Great revelation - a lot of water marks and stains on the car. It was quite bad considering that the car was waxed less than 3 months ago.

The actual conditions are worse than the pictures. This car followed the spray wax after every wash routine, mostly using Meguiar's Gold Class Quik Wax.

I am not sure why the wax is not doing its job as it is one of the most hyped about waxes/ sealants in the detailing world and it is not cheap.

Comparing to my own daily drive that was sealed almost 5 months ago, the condition on my wife's daily drive is far worse. My daily drive was sealed using Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection. There are some watermarks and stains on my car but not as bad.

However, this observation; although with evidence; is still inconclusive. The two different cars could be exposed to different environments. So to be fair, I have planned to tape-up my wife's car into sections and test with the following products and conduct a long term observation test. I actually do not prefer taping up a car because of the adhesive residue and unprotected surfaces under the tape. I guess I will device a slightly better method that does not leave any surface unprotected. I already have an idea... stay tuned. Happy detailing.

Global products.

From USA: Meguair's Ultimate Paste Wax & Finish Kare 1000P Hi-Temp Paste Wax (FK1000P)

From GB: Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection

From Japan: Soft99 Fuso Coat