kvyg Posted July 17, 2023 Share Posted July 17, 2023 Hey all, Like the title says, finally got my first ever car (Tesla Model Y) and have been deep diving into how to best keep it in good shape (condo garage, highway driving)! So far it seems like a good starting place is ONR + Black sponge + Rag Company 500 GSM to dry? But also got some questions: How about Opti-Clean? From some research, seems like it reduces the need for even gallon of water/bucket/sponge, and you can just spray everywhere and wipe with the microfiber? In addition to ONR/Opti-Clean, a bit overwhelmed at the additional products. Opti-Seal seems like a good next item? What about Optimum Car Wax and/or the newer Optimum Ultra Ceramic Seal? Thanks and happy to have found this place! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoseG Posted July 17, 2023 Share Posted July 17, 2023 6 hours ago, kvyg said: Hey all, Like the title says, finally got my first ever car (Tesla Model Y) and have been deep diving into how to best keep it in good shape (condo garage, highway driving)! So far it seems like a good starting place is ONR + Black sponge + Rag Company 500 GSM to dry? But also got some questions: How about Opti-Clean? From some research, seems like it reduces the need for even gallon of water/bucket/sponge, and you can just spray everywhere and wipe with the microfiber? In addition to ONR/Opti-Clean, a bit overwhelmed at the additional products. Opti-Seal seems like a good next item? What about Optimum Car Wax and/or the newer Optimum Ultra Ceramic Seal? Thanks and happy to have found this place! So far so good! If you want the safest wash possible, get BOTH ONR and Opti clean. Spray Opti clean on the surface and use ONR as instructed for the safest slickest wash you’ll ever do. For protection, you can pick either one. UCS is OPTs newest product with great durability/slickness. Opti seal is a classic and great for maintenance. The small bottle will last a LONG time. Car was has less durability but you can buy it by the gallon and is a great drying aid. Can’t go wrong with either one. I’d suggest either UCS or small bottle of Opti seal and a gallon of car wax (initial seal then top every wash with car wax) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron@Optimum Posted July 17, 2023 Share Posted July 17, 2023 Welcome to the OPT forum! As Jose states, Opti-Clean is a great pre-spray or wash for a mildly dirty car. It will work on a dirty car, but might take multiple passes. Opti-Seal is an efficient general sealant, Ultra has better durability and great gloss/slickness, and Hyper Seal has the best longevity and adds greater chemical resistance and hardness (like a spray ceramic coating). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kvyg Posted July 18, 2023 Author Share Posted July 18, 2023 Thanks @JoseG & @Ron@Optimum! Tbh, my goal is probably to do that 20% effort for 80% of the results haha, so from your responses, I gather (Optional) Opti-Clean ONR + gallon of water + Black sponge Rag Company 500 GSM dry (Optional) After care products: Hyper Seal > UCS > Opti-Seal in terms of protection level? Would the trade-off here be price and/or how often they need to be applied? Given highway driving and bugs in the front, or tree sap, or bird poop, touchups, etc. I was thinking a spray bottle of ONR + a microfiber cloth in the trunk always for these purposes, would that be best? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron@Optimum Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 since all 3 sealants can be applied the same, the differences are pretty dramatic - with durability the major one. Cost differences are hard to compare because the usage can vary. Keeping a bottle of ONR/towel in the car is smart, and I recommend using the quick detailer ratio at 1 oz/16 oz for spot cleaning of bugs, tar, bird crap, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kvyg Posted July 19, 2023 Author Share Posted July 19, 2023 15 hours ago, Ron@Optimum said: since all 3 sealants can be applied the same, the differences are pretty dramatic - with durability the major one. Cost differences are hard to compare because the usage can vary. Keeping a bottle of ONR/towel in the car is smart, and I recommend using the quick detailer ratio at 1 oz/16 oz for spot cleaning of bugs, tar, bird crap, etc. I see, so technically I can get all Hyper Seal + UCS + Opti-Seal and apply them all at the same stage if I wanted to, so it's just a choice of what kind of protection I'd want? Thanks for the tip about the quick detailer ratio! So that's 1oz ONR per 16oz water? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron@Optimum Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 yes, your call as to what sealant characteristic is most important to you. 1 oz ONR to 16 oz water or 8 oz ONR to 1 gallon of water Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kvyg Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 19 hours ago, Ron@Optimum said: yes, your call as to what sealant characteristic is most important to you. 1 oz ONR to 16 oz water or 8 oz ONR to 1 gallon of water Got it, thanks! I'm still trying to wrap my head around the differences of - Hyper Seal: Longest lasting. Hard water deposits, bug splatter and other airborne contamination (Even better with existing ceramic coating) - Opti-Seal: General Sealant - UCS: Gloss/slickness + "hard water deposits, bug splatter, bird droppings, as well as protect automotive finishes from acid rain and other airborne contaminants." In a way, HyperSeal and Opti-Seal are like 2 ends of the spectrum, with UCS having some characteristics of the two, falling somewhere in the middle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron@Optimum Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 Nice summary! kvyg 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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