Automotive

Most Underrated Paint Protection Coating - Nanoskin Super-Charger

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I previously made a video showcasing Nanoskin Super-Charger. At the time, I said that for the price of about $5-$6 a bottle, if this coating lasts a month I’d completely be happy with it and would be willing to buy more. Well, I made an update video one month after applying the coating and it still looked good so that was a pass.

I used up the original bottle that I purchased pretty quickly and I wanted more. However, instead of buying the 16 oz bottle again, I decided to pick up the 1-gallon concentrate. The great thing about the concentrate is that Nanoskin recommends mixing it at 100:1. This means that for the $50 to $60 that the gallon concentrate costs, you can mix up to 129 gallons of usable solution, which in turn saves a tremendous amount of money over the 16 oz bottle and provides me with a seemingly limitless amount of product. I mean if the chemicals don’t go bad, I realistically have a lifetime supply of this stuff. And if you do go through a ridiculous amount of the stuff, Nanoskin also offers Supercharger in a 5-gallon jug and a 55-gallon drum. The savings per ounce goes up with every larger size but you have to detail at a ridiculous rate to be able to use up all the product.

Again, I’ve already made a few videos dedicated to this product so you can go ahead and watch those videos if you want to see how it performs in my initial testings. Here, I just want to add on and tell you the values that I see in a product like this.

First off, Nanoskin SuperCharger is a touchless sealant. To use this product, all we have to do is spray it onto a vehicle’s wet surface and then rinse it off. That’s it! Touchless sealants are the easiest to apply paint protection coatings and are my absolute favorite. I personally like to auto detail but I don’t like to do it for the pure act of auto detailing. I do it for the results and benefits of the products used. If I don’t have to waste a bunch of time applying a paint protection coating, I’m not going to do it. Supercharger is so quick to apply that I can literally apply it to an entire car in minutes. Whether it’s a Smart car or an F450, the entire vehicle can be coated in minutes, not hours.

That being said, this is not the type of coating that you should be looking towards for the best of durability. From my experience, this coating will provide a few months of protection but the length of time really depends on what you consider adequate. I personally left the first application on the Corolla that I applied it to for 6 months and I was ok with it. But now that I have the concentrate and so much usable product, I can use it after every wash because the application process is so quick. If I happen to see the coating slow down just a bit, the car’s getting another application. For me, this is a monthly coating at least but again that’s not necessarily because of performance, but because I have a lot to go through.

Now, Nanoskin Supercharger can be used as a standalone coating or as a maintenance topper for a more durable base coating. I personally use it both ways. If I’m coating a daily driver or a beater that I don’t necessarily care about, Supercharger is used as a standalone base coating. This is because I don’t care to waste the time to coat these cars with say a ceramic coating that’ll take a few hours to apply. I’d rather just use my touchless sealant and get the coating process over with. It’ll do an adequate job with UV protection and that’s all I care about. When the coating diminishes, I’ll just apply more.

Moving to a car that I care about that already has a more durable base coating, I’m going to use Supercharger as a topper to maintain my base coating and to make it last as long as possible. With this Supra, I’ve applied Adam’s Graphene Ceramic Coating. This coating has an advertised 7 years of durability. Whether that’s true is another story but I’m going to maintain it to get the most out of my investment.

Overall, I think Nanoskin Supercharger is a fantastic product. For the price and ease of use, I really think that this is the most underrated paint protection coating out there. Supercharger is such a huge part of my auto detailing regimen and I’m so glad to have found it. This product easily gets a recommendation from me. Pick up the smaller bottle. See how you feel about it and maybe invest in the concentrate later. With all the positives that Super-Charger provides, it’s definitely worth checking out.

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Nanoskin Ultra Line Super-Charger 16oz https://amzn.to/2NnCQpO

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Nanoskin SuperCharger 5 Gallon Concentrate https://amzn.to/3d8181H

Nanoskin SuperCharger 30 Gallon Concentrate https://amzn.to/3tO0uwp

Nanoskin SuperCharger 55 Gallon Concentrate https://amzn.to/3d89tSZ

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XPEL Ultimate Plus Paint Protection Film Aftercare

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If you’ve been with the channel for a while, you’d know that I had XPEL Ultimate Plus paint protection film or PPF installed on my Supra. Well today, I want to share with you the general aftercare regimen for this product because if you’ve invested in PPF, you’ll want to make sure to treat it right to get the most out of that investment. Caring for PPF is a little different from normal paint but nothing too crazy.

First off, let’s start with the time directly after installation. You do not want to wash the PPF. From what I was told by my installer, some soaps react with the film and its adhesive and make things not bond properly. So, again, no traditional car washes.

That being said, you do want to keep the film relatively clean. Say you get the film installed and you drive home with the car on the same day or the following. The car may get a little dirty. In my case, I caught some dead bugs on the bumper. In this case, there are some products that you can use to spot clean. I personally used a Meguiar’s Last Touch Spray Detailer. As the name implies, this is a quick detailer. For those unfamiliar with this type of product, it’s essentially a slick liquid that allows you to spray on and pick up light surface contaminants without scratching the surface and without the need of soap and water. I personally use Last Touch but any spray detailer from a reputable company should suffice. I’ll leave links to the products that I use and some other options below.

Moving out of the first 48 hours, you will be able to wash your car but this is kind of dependent on your situation. If you had the PPF installed in the summer, the adhesive is going to bond quicker than if you had it installed in the winter. If you store your car in a climate-controlled environment, then it doesn’t really matter so the 48-hour recommendation should be fine. Although I had my PPF installed in the summer, I just played it safe and waited a week before doing any washing.

When you do decide to wash your car, I would personally recommend a traditional hand washing. I never recommend automatic washes as they can do some real damage to your finish and in this case, could do damage to your PPF. Again, play it safe and just hand wash.

For those who haven’t been down the rabbit hole of car shampoos, let me just tell you that there’s a lot to choose from. To keep things as simple as possible, choose a pH balanced shampoo. This means that the shampoo is neutral in the sense that it won’t degrade any protective coatings that you have on the PPF.

Speaking of which, use some kind of paint protection coating on your PPF. This can be a wax, sealant, or ceramic coating. When you get the PPF installed, it is very likely that the shop offered you some kind of coating for the film. This is a good idea as the coating will likely come with some sort of warranty so it just makes life simpler for you. However, I can completely understand that you don’t want to get the coating because these shops usually charge a lot for the service. Because I’m experienced in auto detailing, I decided to do the ceramic coating myself. For this, I went with Adam’s Graphene Ceramic Coating. I decided on this one because it has a claimed lifespan of 7 years and at the time, this was the most durable coating that I could find. This coating is also compatible with PPF and that’s obviously what we want. If you’re interested in the application process of this coating or want to see how it performs, I’ve made a whole series of videos dedicated to it and you can find those on my channel. If want to go with something else, that’s fine. Just make sure that your coating is compatible with PPF.

Now, if you are going to attempt to apply a coating to the PPF yourself, I do want to elaborate on the process because it is a bit different from normal paint. Typically, to prep for a coating, we would need to wash the car, decontaminate the surface, do paint correction if necessary, then apply the coating. I’ve already covered washing so let’s move on to decontaminating the surface.

Decontamination is usually a two-step process, chemical decontamination and mechanical decontamination. Chemical decontamination involves using an iron remover chemical to remove any ferrous metals that may be embedded in the surface. Then you move on to mechanical decontamination and use a clay media and pick up anything leftover. This process should leave the surface smooth and contaminant free. However, with PPF, we are advised to not use any harsh chemicals as it could damage the film. XPEL doesn’t say anything about using an iron remover so I would personally play it safe and skip chemical decontamination as iron removers can be quite harsh chemicals. They can damage paint if used improperly so I have a feeling that they can have some negative effects on the film. With mechanical decontamination, XPEL does explicitly state that the film can be clay barred so we’re good there. Just use some of the quick detailer mentioned earlier as a clay lube and go at it.

From decontamination, we would typically move on to paint correction and this involves using a polisher to remove any defects and to allow for the best possible adhesion of the coating to the surface. Now, I have seen people polish PPF. However, I personally do not recommend this. Paint correction is essentially abrading the defects away. On PPF, this means that that you’re abrading a microscopic portion of the film away. Now remember, XPEL films have a self-healing top layer. It’s unlikely that you’ll polish through the entire film but it may be possible for you to polish through the self-healing top layer. To repeat myself, play it safe. Don’t do anything that can negatively impact the film. It’s a one-way road. Once the damage is done, there’s no going back. So, I would personally advise skipping paint correction altogether.

So from here, we move on to the last step before the actual coating process and that is to give the surface a wipe with some isopropyl alcohol. The alcohol strips the surface of any remaining oils and residues and leaves the surface as bare as possible. The official XPEL website mentions that you can use 99% isopropyl alcohol on the film.

At this point, the film is ready for coating and I would personally say that this is absolutely necessary. If you want to maximize the life of your PPF, you should protect the film with some sort of coating. Think of it this way, the film protects your car but the film itself needs something to protect it. To be fair, you don’t have to do this. The XPEL film comes with a 10-year warranty but in my opinion, applying a coating just makes the owner’s life easier. Again it protects the film and reduces the chance of a warranty claim. But beyond that, having a good paint protection coating makes it easier to clean the film. Water, dirt, and debris do not stick as easily so the time spent cleaning the car is reduced. I like to keep my car clean so this alone makes it worth it for me.

After you get the PPF coating, it’s just a matter of periodic maintenance. Wash the car and periodically maintain the coating. The process is not all that different from paint. Just remember not to use harsh chemicals and don’t do anything that may force the edges of the film to lift. Following this guide should help you to keep your XPEL PPF in a good state for years to come.

If you're considering buying any of the products mentioned, please support my work by using the links below.

Adam's Graphene Ceramic Coating https://amzn.to/3ragmab

Meguiar's Last Touch Spray Detailer https://amzn.to/3aqFKBI

Nanoskin AUTOSCRUB Fine Grade Clay Mitt https://amzn.to/3tenl3O

Other Quick Detailers https://amzn.to/36u32FM

Car Shampoos https://amzn.to/3cvXleb

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Chemical Guys Watermelon Snow Foam

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In this post we will be examining Chemical Guys Snow Foam.

The particular Snow Foam that I’ve been using recently is Watermelon Snow Foam but there is also Honeydew Snow Foam. I’ve gone through a gallon of Honeydew Snow Foam and am working my way through this gallon of Watermelon Snow Foam. As far as I can tell, both variations provide the same performance. They are just different in scent and color. In either case, the Snow Foam line is extremely popular and often recommended because of the quality for the price.

If you’re unfamiliar with this product, it is known for being used with a foam cannon so that’s where we’ll start. As with my other automotive shampoo reviews, I’ll be adding 3 ounces of product and 800 ml of water to my foam cannon’s water reservoir. This consistency will allow you to more directly compare the results of the various shampoos.

In my opinion, if there’s one thing that I can count on with Chemical Guys is thick foam. That’s kind of their thing. Wether the product performs in other aspects is a hit or miss, but at least the shampoos always put on a foam show and there’s no exception here. I've always found the Snow Foam line to provide very thick, dryer, more aerated foam. But the weird thing is, from my experience, this type of thicker, dryer, and more aerated foam often clings really well and sticks around for awhile. Here with Snow Foam, it actually moves off the panels fairly quick. Now, the weather may look sunny in the video above but the temperature was in the 30s while I was recording. It would’ve been difficult for liquids to dry out so it’s more so a characteristic of the foam to run off the panels. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It just depends on what you’re looking for.

Now, because this shampoo is advertised to also be good in a bucket, I’m going to do something that I’ve never done before and that is to use Snow Foam for a contact wash. The directions say to use 1-2 ounces of shampoo with 5 gallons of water so that’s the goal. I always start with the hand lubricity test where I run my hand through the solution to get an initial impression of lubricity. I stopped filling the bucket at 2 gallons of water and that means we have a mixing ratio of 1 ounce of product to one gallon of water. This is my personal standard expectation for a shampoo and I would say that Snow Foam easily passes. The solution is pretty slick. Next, moving to 4 gallons of water and that means 1 ounce of product to 2 gallons of water. Again, I would say that Snow Foam passes the hand lubricity test. Now, with 5 gallons of water. Again, I would give the solution a pass. I can still feel the slickness between my hand but this is probably the limit for me. I wouldn’t personally dilute this mixture any more. So for me, the advertised 1-2 ounces of shampoo to 5 gallons of water is true. For me 2 ounces is the minimum but who knows, 1 ounce may work for you. On a side note, you may have noticed me constantly having to push the suds aside in the video above. I’m doing this so I can read the gallon marker indicators on the side of my bucket and I’ve never had to work so hard to do so. Snow Foam just provides a ridiculous amount of suds when used in a bucket. I would say that without a doubt, this is the most suds that I’ve gotten from a shampoo in a bucket, even when I’m trying to avoid it. So if suds are something that you’re looking for, this is the stuff.

As far as actually using the solution for a contact wash, I don’t have any complaints. I’ve done enough car shampoo reviews to know that the hand lubricity test is a pretty good determiner. If a shampoo passes that, there’s going to be adequate lubrication for a contact wash. As far as cleaning ability, again no complaints. Snow Foam cleaned the car without leaving any noticeable dirt or debris. So in my personal opinion, Snow Foam gets a pass for contact wash use.

Overall, I would have to say that I’m happy with the Chemical Guys Snow Foam line. In a foam cannon, Snow Foam provides some of the thickest foam that I’ve seen. The foam is a bit fast to get off the panels but it just depends on what you’re looking for. In a bucket, I’m actually very surprised at this shampoo’s performance. To be honest, from the other Chemical Guys shampoos that I’ve tried, it always seems like Chemical Guys over estimate the mixing ratios. It’s often 1 ounce to 5 gallons of water and that never works. This is the first time where I’ve seen that ratio actually be usable and get the job done. So, we have a car shampoo that is arguably very good for foam cannon use and is extremely economical in a bucket. All of this while always being under $30 a gallon, regularly on sale for around $25 a gallon, and sometimes dropping close to $15 a gallon. Depending on how much you pay for this stuff, it can potentially be a fantastic deal for the performance that this product provides. For me, Chemical Guys Snow Foam wether Watermelon or Honeydew, gets an easy recommendation.

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Stoner Invisible Glass Glass Cleaner + Reach & Clean Tool

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In this post, I want to share with you my favorite glass cleaning chemical and that is Stoner’s Invisible Glass Glass Cleaner.

This product is an all purpose glass cleaner, meaning it can be used for all glass surfaces, not just those pertaining to a vehicle. Invisible Glass is also tint safe so no worries for those who have window tint installed.

Actual use of this product is fairly straightforward as it’s a wipe on wipe off type of product. This is not a glass cleaning tutorial so I’ll just briefly go over my approach.

When I clean glass, I generally like to have two microfiber towels. With the first towel, I spray the glass cleaner directly into it and then wipe with the towel. I do this rather than spraying glass cleaner directly onto the surface because this helps to minimize overspray and not get glass cleaner on unwanted surfaces. After the initial wipe down, I take the second towel and pick up any excess glass cleaner.

This two towel method is beneficial as it really helps with streaking. With some products, if you use too much and don’t completely wipe it away, streaks can develop on the glass as the cleaner air dries. That being said, Invisible Glass is my favorite glass cleaner because it is the only product that I’ve tried that is truly streak free. For the sake of the video above, I used the two towel method but in normal use, I generally just use one towel when I use Invisible Glass because I’ve never seen it streak.

Now, you probably noticed that throughout the above video I clean the various glass surfaces with a tool. This is the Invisible Glass Reach & Clean Tool. The particular package that I bought came with a few proprietary sized microfiber towels that are meant to attach to the tool itself. The tool is a triangle head that is attached to a handle. The idea behind this is that the triangle head is shaped to allow us to more easily get into corners and the handle allows us to clean a large surface without a lot of excessive stretching.

This particular tool isn’t all that helpful when cleaning side windows but it really shines with the front and rear windshields. With the Reach & Clean tool, I’m able to easily clean an entire windshield with minimal effort. I’m able to reach all surfaces without changing seats or put myself in overly awkward positions. Prior to getting this tool, I would often neglect cleaning the windshields because the task is a bit of a pain but now that I have the tool, the job only takes a few seconds so I don’t mind it as much. If you’re in a similar boat, I can definitely recommend the Reach & Clean tool or something similar.

So, that’s my review of Invisible Glass Glass Cleaner and the Reach & Clean Tool. These are two great products that I absolutely can recommend. The Glass Cleaner cleans glass adequately while being streak free and tint safe. It is also extremely budget friendly so I see no faults with the product. The Reach & Clean Tool tool is a luxury but it has become a critical part of my glass cleaning protocol. If you have a few extra bucks for such a thing, definitely give it a try.

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303 Protectant

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If you’ve been around a lot of older cars, you’ve no doubt seen some cracked dashes or interior trims. This is likely the result of long-term sun exposure. This isn’t as much of a problem for modern car interiors but it can happen. To help prevent this issue, we can use a product like 303 Protectant that when applied, will provide various surfaces with a layer of UV protection.

Before we get started, I should mention that 303 Protectant is labeled a few different ways. You may see it as Automotive Protectant, Aerospace Protectant, or Marine Aerospace Protectant. You may also see these products in a few different formats. I have both a spray bottle and pre-moistened wipes. No matter the name on the label or the format of use, if it’s 303 Protectant it’s all the same stuff. The different names are just for different markets but they all contain the same formula. So, if you can only find one form or the other, don’t worry. Just buy whatever you can find.

Use of this product is fairly straightforward. It’s largely a matter of spreading the product on the surface of choice then wiping off excess.

When I use the spray, I like to spray the solution on to a microfiber towel or an applicator pad, then wipe it on the surface rather than spraying the surface and wiping it in. Spraying an applicator first just helps to control overspray and not get the product on unwanted surfaces. Depending on how dirty the surface that you’re applying the protectant to, you may want to clean it first with something like an all-purpose cleaner or a dedicated interior cleaner. After you’ve coated the surface, just take another microfiber towel and wipe the surface completely dry. 303 Protectant does not dry by itself. If you don’t wipe the surface clean and you leave 303 Protectant on the surface, it’ll continue to sit there. Depending on how much you used, the surface may even look a bit wet and shiny. With 303 Protectant, extra buffing actually increases bonding, repellency, and longevity. So, don’t be afraid to get in there and buff off the excess.

I’ve been using 303 Protectant for a little over a year now and it has become one of my personal favorite products. I use it as a UV protectant, but it does have other uses. It can repel dust and stains and for those who have slightly faded black parts, 303 Protectant can actually restore some of the color. However, all of this is temporary. 303 Protectant only lasts up to 30-45 days so keep that in mind.

One thing that I want to note is that 303 advertises this product for interior and exterior use. I personally do not use this product on any exterior surfaces. From my experience, this product will run and streak if water hits it. I know that this isn’t just me because I’ve seen other people complain about this too. So, just keep that in mind. In my opinion, this product is really only good for exterior use if you live in a place where it never rains. Otherwise, just use it inside.

Other than that, I really enjoy using 303 Protectant. It provides the interior of my cars with UV protection and actually makes them look better because it makes the surfaces have a richer darker color. All of this at a great price. This is definitely a product that I recommend.

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303 Automotive Protectant https://amzn.to/38wWWFW

303 Aerospace Protectant https://amzn.to/2XuoAgy

303 Marine Aerospace Protectant https://amzn.to/38va5PV

303 Protectant Wipes https://amzn.to/3hY0HaA

Microfiber Towels https://amzn.to/3i0kqXf

Microfiber Applicator Pads https://amzn.to/3q72ZqR

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