DG AW vs. UQW Showdown (as toppers)

[Accumulator]

I wouldn’t worry about it, they are both classics that will never go out of style due to ease of use, drying aid benefits and the yummy look they provide. The car looks awesome (both sides) after washing.

I find it a little odd that I disliked how UQW looked on my paints...I seem to be the only guy here with a strong negative opinion of that.

..The longevity now due to the 4 coats is what I’m really watching for at this point. AW beads and cleats water a bit better but w/e. Will be interesting to see how long each lasts with the car sitting outside 24/7, getting washed about once a week on average, even though this last wash was a bit longer.

Heh heh, "once a week"...you crazy Autopian you But OK, OK...I used to wash some of `em after every drive and you`re parking outside. But seriously, I`ll be interested to hear how they hold up for you. I was no sooner posting about how the OCW on the A8 only lasts until the next wash (which for me might be a while! ) when I noticed that it didn`t need redone after the last wash after all.

 

[acuRAS82]

Update 9/26/19:
Just a hood bead shot after a night of rain. No major difference, beads look fine on both.



Same morning, different car (for additional comparison sake’s). Q5 has 3 week old WG Fuzion Spray Wax, which I consider to be the king of non-SiO2 spray waxes (one of the king’s anyways).

 

[Accumulator]

acuRAS82- Gulp, I`m gonna risk offending you by basically calling your baby ugly Or at least asking/commenting about that beading "looking fine".

To me, those beads look large and flat compared to those on the Q5. Like..."oh [snap] I should`ve rewaxed". Maybe it just needs washed or something...IThe Q5 looks good in Pic#3, less so in Pic#4 (but still not bad).

OK, we`re talking SprayWaxes here, but the OCW on my wife`s A8 gets smaller, more spherical beads by comparison. Again, maybe it just needs washed or something...

Eh, I`m just a sucker for a certain type of beading

 

[acuRAS82]

acuRAS82- Gulp, I`m gonna risk offending you by basically calling your baby ugly Or at least asking/commenting about that beading "looking fine".

To me, those beads look large and flat compared to those on the Q5. Like..."oh [snap] I should`ve rewaxed". Maybe it just needs washed or something...IThe Q5 looks good in Pic#3, less so in Pic#4 (but still not bad).

OK, we`re talking SprayWaxes here, but the OCW on my wife`s A8 gets smaller, more spherical beads by comparison. Again, maybe it just needs washed or something...

Eh, I`m just a sucker for a certain type of beading

The “baby” is dirty, no doubt. I’ve driven it this week and let the beast be pampered in the garage. No offense taken, I’m just not anywhere near declaring DG AW and UQW dead yet. I didn’t have high expectations for the beads, it was more of a “it is what it is, but it is still beading fairly identical on each side” type of observation.

Im glad you brought this up though. The Wolfgang Fuzion Spray Wax on the Q5 was washed last at the same time as the Acura (Monday 9/23) and last sprayed on 9/7 (Acura 4th coat was 9/14). The Q5 also drove 50% more miles this week, yet the beads are much better. Perhaps I’ve indirectly added Fuzion Spray (albeit on different paint) into the competition. Either way, the beading is significantly better.

Sometimes beading anomalies like this happen and then the the LSP makes a “comeback”. We’ll see if that’s the case as time goes by.

 

[Accumulator]

acuRAS82- So glad I didn`t give offense

And yeah, never know just how well/not it`ll revive after a wash, and that Fuzion has sorta barged into the comparison by being so markedly different (at present). Makes me wonder how the A8 will look after its next wash, it`s been..oh, I dunno...over a month since its last wash with OCW as the Drying Aid. Heh heh, after all that time, and daily use, it`s high time I did that wash anyhow!

 

[acuRAS82]

Update 10/17/19 (One month after last application):

Beading still, but it’s not pretty. The car was kind of dirty, had been driven for 4/5 days with no wash. This after it had been pouring. I’m getting close to calling these “done enough”. Maybe not quite yet, but soon. Sides look alright, but I veer towards worst case (trunk).




DG AW side:



UQW side:





Any thoughts from the crowd? Am I quitting on these too soon? Am I just desperate to cleanse and try something new??

 

[Accumulator]

Update 10/17/19 ..Beading still, but it’s not pretty.. This after it had been pouring. I’m getting close to calling these “done enough”...Any thoughts from the crowd? Am I quitting on these too soon?

Heh heh, IMO you`ve waited more than long enough, but it`s easy for me to spend your time/effort

 

[acuRAS82]

Heh heh, IMO you`ve waited more than long enough, but it`s easy for me to spend your time/effort

I love time and effort doing this stuff, that’s why I’m having trouble leaving it. But decided I will wash today and leave it on for now.

...In the name of providing real world experience to readers.

 

[Accumulator]

I love time and effort doing this stuff, that’s why I’m having trouble leaving it...

Heh heh, you crazy Autopian you

 

[acuRAS82]

Below is a reply of mine from another thread about the wash today:

The AW and UQW still have some fight left in them. They sheet water off pretty slow during final rinse, but it does eventually sheet off and it’s left with dry paint plus beading similar to the hood in the picture from my other thread. The trunk top is still the worst (likely because it’s parallel to the ground) but those beads look improved after the wash. The paint isn’t very slick, which wasn’t an issue during the wash but drying without an ad is becoming a little scary, and I was too lazy to pull out the blower. Will probably bring it out next time.

 

[acuRAS82]

Update 10/25/19:

Washed today with Mckees Foam Soap. Finally got some exciting news! UQW is now outperforming DG AW for water behavior. Both before and after the wash, the UQW side sheets faster. That is, DG AW has significantly slowed down but is still present. I observed this on the trunk, roof and hood.

I grabbed some pictures of the hood. The below pictures are from the time I stop rain flooding the hood, until around 10 seconds after. DG AW on the left, UQW on the right:




Lots of rain coming tomorrow and Sunday morning so stay tuned!

 

[Accumulator]

Update 10/25/19.. exciting news!

Gee, the UQW is lasting a long time for you! Although you and I must judge this stuff differently...TBH, I wouldn`t call either side LSPed at this point. But hey, I`m just looking at the pix and you`re evaluating it IRL.

 

[acuRAS82]

Gee, the UQW is lasting a long time for you! Although you and I must judge this stuff differently...TBH, I wouldn`t call either side LSPed at this point. But hey, I`m just looking at the pix and you`re evaluating it IRL.

Since different people have different expectations for when they consider an LSP failed, I’m letting this go as long as I can. There’s no doubt still protection on the car, nowhere near as much as I would normally let slide if I was super busy I would at least know that something remains still.

Here’s pictures this morning during light/moderate rain going on for a few hours.




The back looks pretty hideous but the hood looks a little better (all things considered). I’ll take some more pics between now and tomorrow during a likely washout and decide if it’s time to move on after 5+ weeks since the last application.

 

[acuRAS82]

Update at 4:20pm just now, looking better, go figure (maybe rain cleaned surfactants from Mckees Foaming Wash or maybe Mother Nature is just mysterious with different types of rain:

 

[Accumulator]

Huh, that *is* funny how it looks so much better after that rain!

 

[acuRAS82]

Update 10/28/19 and End of Test, 6 weeks, 1 day after last application

Washed the car today with Mckees Foam Soap. These have been ruled as “Done enough” now. The pics below show beading on the front hood at 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15 and 20 seconds after simulating flood rain.

DG AW is still technically there (water eventually unsticks and leaves a dry, beaded hood), but for any of us it’s gone. UQW is similar but better off.




Overall thoughts;
- They both look really nice, shiny, wet.
- UQW darkens a bit, DG AW is lighter.
- Both are fantastically easy to use as drying aids or straight
- Both protected very well from bird poo, leaf stains and whatever junk fell from the tree that it was parked under often. All of these washed away fairly easily with WW with no etching.
- DG AW has slightly better water behavior for the first month.
- UQW has slightly better durability in this test and holds on to it’s water characteristics longer.

Tonight I threw some M21 on the car while I figure out which test to do next or what winter LSP I want.

 

[Accumulator]

acuRAS82- Heh heh, much as I appreciate the way you let this test run to the sorta-bitter end, I`m glad you LSPed it with the M21

I sure found your results interesting! I wish my OCW protected as well against etching...and maybe that "darkening from the UQW" helps explain why I don`t like it on my paint but do like it on exterior trim.

Oh, and FWIW...the way the beading could vary after different washes/rains/whatever confirms my suspicion that we can`t really take internet pix as gospel IF some [individual] wanted to, uhm...be disingenuous...he could make a nearly-dead LSP look a lot healthier than it is.

 

[acuRAS82]

Oh, and FWIW...the way the beading could vary after different washes/rains/whatever confirms my suspicion that we can`t really take internet pix as gospel IF some [individual] wanted to, uhm...be disingenuous...he could make a nearly-dead LSP look a lot healthier than it is.

Yeah, I don’t have all the answers about beading differences but try to be honest and consider variables. I’ve noticed what looks like poor beading in the past if the temperature drops quickly during a rain. The last rain there was very cold in the morning (poor beading) but then the temperature warmed up during the day (better beading).

Who knows!?!

 

[Accumulator]

acuRAS82- Ah, interesting! I`m gonna watch for temp-related diffs in our beading now...

Heh heh, I ended up finding this thread more interesting than I`d expected since I won`t be replacing my no-cost UQW no matter what, and probably not my OCW either.