Well our receptionist at work purchased this 2010 Mustang and brought it to me with just a couple hundred miles on the clock. I got it just 2 days after it was delivered to her. The dealership said they would detail it for her but she told them not to touch it all because she had a detailer. I have been using Opti Coat coating for a while now and it is the most durable coating out there. The durability is the reason I love this coating. The coating flash cures in less than 30 minutes and after that nothing other than buffing with machine and polish will get it off. If you get it a little thick it kind of hazes when it cures so you need to buff it with a MF about 5-10 minutes after application to even out the coverage and not get those hazy high spots. I have gotten it a little thick before and it cured that way and I couldn't remove it with APC, Body Solvent, Cosmoline Remover, 50/50 IPA and water, or even straight 90% IPA. This coating is perfect for people that don't want to ever have to worry about an LSP again, and that's exactly what she wanted. She now never has to worry about her new "baby" being unprotected again. Anyway here's what I did: Wheels/Wells/Tires: Since the wheels were relatively new they weren't too bad and I used my favorite wheel cleaner, Autoglym Custom Wheel Cleaner on them. I used a variety of brushes including: my favorite wheel brush of all time the Raceglaze XL wheel brush, my Black Magic wheel brush bent to 90 degrees to get behind the spokes, lug nut brush, and green foam finger pocket. For the tires and wells they got the ol' standby Majestic Solutions Super Green Stuff at 3:1 in a Gilmour 2 gallon pressurized sprayer and the long handle brush I got from Majestic Solutions. The tires were first dressed with MS Perfect 10 with a MS tire applicator, then with Megs Hyper Dressing @ 3:1 with another MS tire applicator. Then right before she picked it up I dressed them with a MS tire applicator and my Tropi-Care tire dressing. This gives a glossier look like a gel gives but is bone dry to the touch. Wells were dressed with MS Super Blue. Exhaust: Cleaned with Megs Wheel Brightner and #0000 steel wool, then wiped down with IPA and coated with Opti Coat. Engine: I gave the engine a quick rinse with the CR Spotless, and sprayed it down with MS SGS. There was a lot of "tree debris" in just about every crevice there was so I blew it out with the leaf blower and for the rest of the engine I agitated it and re-rinsed. I dried most of the water with a leaf blower and then sprayed the engine bay down with Megs Hyper Dressing @ 3:1. I cranked the engine and let it run for about 20 minutes and voila it looks better than the day it left the Ford factory. Wash: The gas filler area and all badges and emblems were soaked down with MS SGS, agitated with a Swissvax Wheel brush, and rinsed before beginning the wash routine. You could tell while doing the initial rinse with the PW that there wasn't much LSP on this thing but I needed a good cleaning because to get a good cure from the Opti Coating you need a clean surface with no wax or oils. Since I wanted it really stripped I first did a soak of the entire car with MS SGS @3:1 and after letting it dwell it was rinsed. For the wash I went with my favorite LSP stripping formula and loaded up the foam cannon with 2 oz. of MS Super Foam and 1 oz. of MS Power Prep. Man this combo foams like crazy and cleans even better. I used my CR Spotless for the entire detail and the 2 bucket method. In one bucket I used 2 oz of Superfoam and an ounce of MS SGS (to ensure everything came off) and the other was a rinse bucket, both with grit guards. I used my Raceglaze wash mitt. The car was then dried with a leaf blower. Here it is all foamed up: Clay: Since the Mustang was brand new there was very little contamination on the paint so I went with Bilt Hamber soft clay for this one with CR Spotless water for lube. Opti Coating Prep: After claying and drying the car I wiped it down (paint, glass, and trim) with a 70/30 alcohol/water mixture and a CGs 530xl MF. Paint was "squeaky" clean after this. Glass: The inside glass got Zep Glass Cleaner with Pop Up glass cleaning wipes from Proper Auto Care and buffed dry with a Walmart WW. The outside glass got cleaned with the alcohol/water mixture described above then it was coated with the Opti Coat. She will never need her windshield wipers again when going over 40 mph. Trim: The trim got cleaned with the alcohol/water mixture described above then it was coated with the Opti Coat. The Opti Coat makes the trim darker and now it's protected so it won't fade over time. Interior: Well the interior didn't need a lot so I vacuumed it out with my wall mounted vacmaster. I dusted down the entire interior with some Swissvax look alike brushes from Micheals and then cleaned with MS Leather and Plastic cleaner and a MF mitt. It was then protected with Jeffs Werkstat Satin Prot. The leather was conditioned with 1z Leather Care. The door jambs were cleaned with ONR at QD strength and some cheap MFs and then coated with Opti Coat too. LSP: Needless to say the Opti Coat has been incredibly successful as an upsell. It comes in a syringe and there is 40cc of product. I use it on everything including paint, glass, headlights, taillights, trim and wheels and have been using 5-10cc per vehicle. People love knowing they will never need any other kind of wax or sealant again and all they have to do from now on is wash it. I put a small amount of Opti Coating on a Blackfire Concours gold foam applicator and apply it to a panel. It starts to evaporate and cure immediately so you have to work fast. After applying to a panel I wait about about 5 minutes and go back with a Danase Phat MF to smooth out any high areas that there might be. I work my way around the entire car applying to each panel including trim and glass. Application is a lot like that for Opti Seal only if you get Opti Seal a little thick you can go back hours later and even it out, but not so with the Opti Coating. Like I said before if it gets thick and cures you have to get out the buffer and polish or it won't come off. After application the paint had a tremendous amount of reflectivity. It's definately a sealant look so if you don't like that then just stay away from this product because you probably won't like the look. It has a super slick look about it as well and it got even wetter and slicker looking the next day. She was ecstatic and said she had tons of compliments on her car that weekend. She has been thrilled with the coating and her wheels have been blindingly shiny since the application. Here are the before and afters: Couple of reflection shots: A pic of old and new Mustangs:
Very nice job on the Mustang! It looks ablaze. I really enjoyed the thorough write up too. Without being able to show someone how to apply OC in person, threads like this are wonderful. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Chris. I love the Opti Coat and have to say it should be voted best product of 2010. I have had tremendous success with Opti coat and my clients love it. Thanks much appreciated.
Thanks I really appreciate that. I haven't had a lot of time to do write ups as I've been coaching my son's football team and now coaching my daughter's basketball team. Oh and I can't wait to see you turning out some details in your new garage! Thanks!
JL You are the man. A world class detailer and gentleman, if I do say so myself. I am surprised you didnt foam it up with that Cherry smelling stuff. I LOVE that. Gotta get some more. Its nice to see pictures of your work. Awesome neighborhood. Thanks bud, Joe D.
Thanks, I really love doing the write ups just don't always have the time I like to dedicate to them. Man I envy you right now having summer time! Thanks and I know what you mean about these new coatings. I tried Opti Coat first and haven't looked back. Thought about the CQuartz but I'm having such great success with Opti Coat no real reason to change. I'm on my 3rd syringe of Opti Coat right now. Thanks Joe much appreciated. I save the Ultra Gloss for maintenance washes and you are right that stuff is the best. You should have let me know you were out I might be able to hook you up! Thanks on the neighborhood, we love it.
