Archimedes

Which isn't hard. Wash your car properly and these coatings will do an amazing job keeping swirls off of your car.

seattle_sun

I agree with you on all points, except that a wax "will never have the shedding properties that a nano coating does". A well waxed/sealed car is going to be the same as a nano coat in terms of protection and hydrophobic properties. It just takes more work to maintain those properties.

Archimedes

Agreed that it will have similar properties right when it is applied. But I was referring to later when you go to wash the car a few weeks later. The wax will degrade over time and over multiple washes, and lose some of it's ability to repel contaminants and shed water. One of the best aspects of the coating is that it makes washing the car so much easier. It's like washing a car that was just waxed. I owned a number of Porsches at once, some coated and one not. It was so much easier to wash and dry the coated car. Worth every penny IMO.

MJG911

just get a good installer too. I went with someone that friends recommended. They did my wife's Z4 summer before last, and the 991 I no longer have also. Her car has seen about 300 miles since then and been washed 3 times, and last time I washed it, the water didn't even bead on the hood. Not real impressed. On my current 991, I did Pinnacles new nano coating and its holding up great after a year, but I think its time to reapply now that spring is here.

btw, anyone want a cherry 2010 Z4 that looks like it just rolled off the showroom floor?

AWDGuy

Detailers set the pricing. the actual syringe of the product isn't that expensive.

911boy

I LOVE washing my car. 2-3 times/week. I find it relaxing. Spent 2 hrs last night washing and waxing. Not a waste of time to me. To each his own.

seattle_sun

LOL

I love washing my car too, but only once a week!

Archimedes: It takes me 15 minutes just to wash the wheels!

ttlwh

This.

Detailed Designs

I wrote a few articles to educate owners about the subjects discussed in this thread.

There are concerns with what causes defects, how to minimize those surface defects, how coatings are supposed to perform, what is required on your end to get the most value and expectations. If you find yourself a bit lost on those topics, take the time to read these pieces and I think you'll come away much better prepared to make your own choices with coatings.



The Paint Coating Triangle: A Necessity for Owner Satisfation - Detailed Designs Auto Spa (not to be confused with the "conjoined triangles of success"...)



What causes swirl marks and other defects in modern car paint? -The Clear Bra Installation Specialists of Atlanta-

mmaturo

I have Xpel on all my cars. 4 years on an RS5 that sat outside in direct Florida sun all day. Only a slight color shift when we traded the car in. It would have been vovered by xpel if I thought it was worth replacing yet. White car (Suzuka grey) On my R8 now almost 5 years and no waxing the Xpel looks still like new. Car is garaged. Also near white with the Suzuka color. My Porsche 2 years and fine (again not waxed) and my 50K daily driver. I have each car with a different coating but all have worked great...wheels really worth doing. It in my experience has provided protection against the swirls. Paint looks good on all after multiple years. I had my R8 re paint corrected and recoated after 4 years. I did full paint correction then coating on parts not getting the film. On one car we did a full coating but the film then had a hard time sticking in complex spots so skipped that part knowing the film is doing the work anyway. As said the skill of the paint correction is THE most important thing.

Dewinator

Interesting. It's possible that newer films don't yellow as bad. So just to confirm, you're getting the Xpel installed and then doing no waxing or coating, and not having any issues? Wouldn't it look much better with a wax or a coat anyway?