Opinions on Sealants please

[allycat45]

I am hoping to collect my new GTI this week and am planning on having a professional detailer do a New Car Protection job on it. I have made initial contact and will speak with him more again later. He has mentioned the following products which I think are all sealants (please correct me if I am wrong):

• Wolfs Hard Body
• Titan as01
• Polish Angel Cosmic Glasscoat

A number of forum members on the Mk7 board are recommending GTechniq C2V3 as a sealant.

Can any of you guys recommend any of the above products as better or worse than each other and in comparison to each other and the Gtechniq C2V3 ?

He has also mentioned Autoglym Lifeshine which I think is a whole system approach ?

Costs on his website are quoted as £210 for a full day New Car Protection job, with Ceramic Sealants being an extra cost, and Autoglym Lifeshine being £265 for 5-7 hours. Anybody got an opinion on how reasonable these prices are ?

Many thanks.

[dragonfly]

Have a look on Detailing World for the sealants.

Personally I would detail the car myself and save a few pounds.

[Jimmgc51]

Have a look on Detailing World for the sealants.

Personally I would detail the car myself and save a few pounds.

+1

Everyone is going to give you their preferred choice really and all are pretty good.

I'm assuming your GTI is white, the ones I looked at were:

Werkstatt trio
Zaino system
Auto finesse tough kit - this one I bought

Really not hard to do it yourself check out my detailing post:

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=259176.0

Following this is perfect for a new car, you could even omit the iron x stage but may as we'll be sure, you could buy all the products for £150 then you have it all left to keep it topped up over winter and re-do in spring and then winter again.

[Jimmgc51]

Carbon grey!! 

Unsure if sealant is the best option or perhaps wax.

Search over on detailing world!!

[AaronMc]

If your having it corrected and then a protection applied, I would go for a Ceramic Coating.

They give years of protection, which actually lasts, unlike any of these lifeshine, supaguard dealer kits. They form an extra layer over the paintwork which is a few microns thick, which is like a layer of glass. This also reduces scratches and marring from washing by upto 50%.

The results are amazing, have it done and then spray water on it and just see it fly off. Really is a good bit of kit!

Theres many ceramic coatings, but CarPro Quartz is a good one!

[Gtiless]

I have finished mine (carbon grey) with Dodo juice purple haze,is that good as a final finish or do I need to put something else on it to seal it?
Its never ending this-spent 80 odd quid already!

[Jimble]

I have finished mine (carbon grey) with Dodo juice purple haze,is that good as a final finish or do I need to put something else on it to seal it?
Its never ending this-spent 80 odd quid already!

Thats fine mate, you could've put some sealant underneath but as basic protection it's not bad, it won't last ages though so maybe top it up every month/6 weeks.


As with any detailing process, the prep work is what makes the big difference not the final coat although it is important, the better base you start with the better your final finish will be.

[Booth11]

I have finished mine (carbon grey) with Dodo juice purple haze,is that good as a final finish or do I need to put something else on it to seal it?
Its never ending this-spent 80 odd quid already!

Only £80 quid.......that's just the start of it 

Jimble's right - the better the prep, the better the finish.  I use Poorboys Ex-P sealant, which is great for metallic/pearlescent colours and gives an excellent base for a good wax.

[Gtiless]

Thanks, so would you seal it after a polish then wax it?
Does that sound about right?

[Booth11]

Thanks, so would you seal it after a polish then wax it?
Does that sound about right?

Yes, that's right  - polish - seal - wax 

That said, you can opt to use a sealant OR wax.  This is the protection element and both do the job but not everyone uses both, it's down to personal choice.

Sealants = synthetic - glass/mirror like finish.    Wax = natural or hybrid - glossy, deep warm finish

This is a useful quick guide and breaks down the process    http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/generalImg/guide.gif