Angelwax Enigma QED (as topper)

[acuRAS82]

Since 8/15/19, BMW X5 has Angelwax Ti-22/Enigma Wax as the LSP (exceptions: testing on roof, testing on back panel and spot correction with QED on passenger side hood spot). History if desired:

https://www.autopia.org/forums/clic...-pinnacle-correction-angelwax-protection.html

I continue to observe the Angelwax LSP combo over time, but have been itching to use Enigma QED (which is meant as a topper for Enigma Wax). Therefore I applied QED to the passenger side on 9/28/19 (excluding roof & top back panel). This will allow me to compare base LSP to the Enigma QED topping.

Including a spot correction on my hood, I’ve used about a half ounce from my 500ml bottle. I chose to apply via a small 4oz sample bottle, because the top to the 500ml bottle is smaller than typical, and would require a small sprayer head typical for a coating lite or 2-8oz bottles. The picture below is after I have applied, hence the 4oz bottle is empty.


Description:


Observations about the product:
- The consistency is thin liquid.
- The color is blue/violet
- The smell is like grape cough syrup (covering up an alcohol scent I think?)

Directions:
Use as a drying aid, that is, apply to wet surface one section at a time and then buff off.
But, I confirmed with forum friend Tony (SWETM) that the European bottle directs it to be applied as a normal spray wax, which is how I applied it.

Application:
- Applied with a rectangular MF applicator. A little goes a long way. The 4oz sprayer pumps very little out per spray, but it spreads decent despite the minimal product being used.
- Buffed off with a low nap MF towel. I tried wiping off right away while still wet and wiping off after it flashed and left residue. Residue comes off effortlessly either way. I prefer letting it flash so the towel doesn’t build up any moisture.
- I originally applied to 2’x2’ area, but due to ease of wipe off, I switched to applying on a full panel at a time.
- Applying to half the car excluding roof and top back panel took about 5 minutes! This included waiting ~30sec for each section to flash.

Results:
Amped up some shine as far as I can tell in my garage lighting. Added significant slickness. The 6week old Enigma Wax is no longer slick at the point. QED makes it about as slick as a spray sealant would, a little more slick than most SiO2 maintenance sprays I’ve used.

I will take some pics in the light tomorrow, but for now, here’s how the QED-applied passenger side looks in my small, cluttered, dark garage:



Months ago, I was never able to find many good reviews on Enigma QED (or the wax or Ti-22), so hopefully someone finds this thread informative.

 

[SWETM]

Looks great and will be interesting to hear how you experience is with the Enigma QED as a topper.

I had warnings about the Enigma QED would be much harder to remove than the AW QED. But have not yet experienced any hard removal as long as you are not spray on too much of it. A great product with great looks from it.

/ Tony

 

[acuRAS82]

Looks great and will be interesting to hear how you experience is with the Enigma QED as a topper.

I had warnings about the Enigma QED would be much harder to remove than the AW QED. But have not yet experienced any hard removal as long as you are not spray on too much of it. A great product with great looks from it.

/ Tony

That’s good to hear that it could be harder to remove if over-applied. It’s virtually impossible to over-apply anything with those small push-spray pump heads, so I would not have been able to reflect on this.

 

[acuRAS82]

Update 10/2/19 (4 days after QED applied to passenger side)



I’ll try to get some half and half beading/sheeting comparisons this weekend.

 

[acuRAS82]

Update 10/4/19 (6 days after QED application)

Washed the car today and compared hood - passenger side w/ recent QED topper vs drivers side w/ just Enigma Wax at 6+ weeks.



The QED side looks like freshly applied SiO2 spray sheeting (which it is), while the drivers side is a bit slower to sheet. By my counts, it took 2.5sec for the QED to sheer and 5sec for 6-week-Enigma.

Wish I took video but it’s hard with two wet hands, I’ll get help from wifey next time. Here’s a closer look in pictures at each side.

QED side:



Enigma Wax side:



Perhaps even more interesting is the difference between the two sides right after washing with Mckees SiO2 Auto Wash (before rinsing):



The soap breaks up quickly on the fresh QED side but lingers around much longer on the Enigma Wax side.

*Please note the QED is fresh (6 days old) and Enigma Wax at 6 weeks. From testing in another thread (link in post #1 above) Enigma Wax and QED water behavior is almost exactly similar when both are recently applied.

Beauty shots after rinse and dry: