Dellinger
Certified Finest Installer
My review of Ultima Acrylic Waterless Wash…
Apologies to the board for my delay, I had a few items outside my control that postponed my testing of the product and my review. Some of that was weather related as I wanted to test the product in full sun and we experienced almost 2 weeks of unseasonal rain and cloudy weather. Also, I was awaiting the delivery of a new lens for my camera that I also wanted to use for the pictures.
Whenever I review a product, I tend to focus in on the primary role for which it was designed. As detailers and enthusiasts we are always pushing the boundary of how to use almost every product and that is not something I am pursuing here. So, I wanted to test the product in various ways to verify ease of use, ability of cleaning, and if the product added an improved look to the surface.
So, I had two vehicles of which to test the product.
A.) My ’67 Chevelle Malibu (has SS trim but not a #138 car) which I have not driven or washed over a 12 month period. (Shame on me, I know but life and business has not allowed the time, sadly.) You will see via the photos there is a HEAVY accumulation of dust, dirt, some bird poop, fly poop… blah, blah, blah. It was FILTHY.
Now, I did NOT expect the Ultima product to clean the Chevelle's paint to perfection as the grime was truly nasty… but…I it was a test to really see just how much cleaning it could do.
B.) My ’03 Dodge Ram which had not been washed in over 1.5 months. Most of the truck is coated with all sorts of CarPro products but I leave the hood for testing traditional protection products or spray waxes, quick detailers, and items such as Ultima Acrylic Waterless Wash. The truck was parked outside, in the full sun, for testing the product for streaking. The full sun would also give me a good indication of any sort of marring that I would inflict with the waterless wash.
And onto the dirty Chevelle and the challenge it posed to Ultima Acrylic WW...
Some in process shots...
This front fender is after I dried off excess product with a dry MF towel.
With the Chevelle example, I found that UAWW did not address all surface debris. Don't get me wrong, it did remove all dust and dirt but it left behind a some fly/ bug poop. I don't think that is a deal breaker for the product because if I really wanted rid of such nastiness... I would have used Ultima Waterless or Meg's D114.
And now we turn our attention to a 'more normal' use of the product but with the different challenge of 'sun friendliness'.
Results of UAWW in full sun...
The product proved to be really effortless in full sun and didn't mind the 'heated' panel one bit. I used excess product to try to get it to streak and let it dwell for 1 min. This intentional improper use DID lead to some streaking and dried haziness from excess product. Reapplication removed it. In full sun, best to work in an intentional manner. I didn't find over application with prompt removal to be a problem... so that is nice since we are dealing with a waterless wash.
In the end, the product is EXTREMELY slick even when drying with a MF towel. The slickness does seem to dissipate after the surface is dry... but I can't exactly describe it. It remains slick after but just not as slick when cleaning or drying a treated section. By far, the level of glide of a MF towel in application and drying is beyond anything I have used. Ever.
I did not note any marring. I have not polished my truck in the past year so there are some light water spots but no major swirling to speak of. I varied my pressure from very light to very heavy (almost abusively) just to see what would happen defect wise.
The product does seem to add some gloss to the paint. Nothing off the charts but a definite improvement.
Protection... didn't test this but it does bead water and bead well. Not 'tight' beads but somewhere between a carnauba and polymer sealant.
Scent is very pleasant... have no idea what is smells like... maybe a mix of blue berries and fruit punch.
In the end, I am comfortable to recommend the product in the following areas:
-Quick Detailer (and probably a superior choice since it seems to be excellent at cleaning SAFELY)
- Light maintenance product (light dust, dirt, debris, etc.)
-Cleaner & Booster to polymer sealants
-Final wipe after polishing or machine applying a sealant
What I DO NOT recommend this product for:
-Waterless wash with a heavily soiled exterior
-Exterior wash with presence of bug soiling or heavy contamination.
And I believe my findings should fit neatly inside the box of which Ultima designed this product for.
Apologies to the board for my delay, I had a few items outside my control that postponed my testing of the product and my review. Some of that was weather related as I wanted to test the product in full sun and we experienced almost 2 weeks of unseasonal rain and cloudy weather. Also, I was awaiting the delivery of a new lens for my camera that I also wanted to use for the pictures.
Whenever I review a product, I tend to focus in on the primary role for which it was designed. As detailers and enthusiasts we are always pushing the boundary of how to use almost every product and that is not something I am pursuing here. So, I wanted to test the product in various ways to verify ease of use, ability of cleaning, and if the product added an improved look to the surface.
So, I had two vehicles of which to test the product.
A.) My ’67 Chevelle Malibu (has SS trim but not a #138 car) which I have not driven or washed over a 12 month period. (Shame on me, I know but life and business has not allowed the time, sadly.) You will see via the photos there is a HEAVY accumulation of dust, dirt, some bird poop, fly poop… blah, blah, blah. It was FILTHY.
Now, I did NOT expect the Ultima product to clean the Chevelle's paint to perfection as the grime was truly nasty… but…I it was a test to really see just how much cleaning it could do.
B.) My ’03 Dodge Ram which had not been washed in over 1.5 months. Most of the truck is coated with all sorts of CarPro products but I leave the hood for testing traditional protection products or spray waxes, quick detailers, and items such as Ultima Acrylic Waterless Wash. The truck was parked outside, in the full sun, for testing the product for streaking. The full sun would also give me a good indication of any sort of marring that I would inflict with the waterless wash.
And onto the dirty Chevelle and the challenge it posed to Ultima Acrylic WW...
Some in process shots...
This front fender is after I dried off excess product with a dry MF towel.
With the Chevelle example, I found that UAWW did not address all surface debris. Don't get me wrong, it did remove all dust and dirt but it left behind a some fly/ bug poop. I don't think that is a deal breaker for the product because if I really wanted rid of such nastiness... I would have used Ultima Waterless or Meg's D114.
And now we turn our attention to a 'more normal' use of the product but with the different challenge of 'sun friendliness'.
Results of UAWW in full sun...
The product proved to be really effortless in full sun and didn't mind the 'heated' panel one bit. I used excess product to try to get it to streak and let it dwell for 1 min. This intentional improper use DID lead to some streaking and dried haziness from excess product. Reapplication removed it. In full sun, best to work in an intentional manner. I didn't find over application with prompt removal to be a problem... so that is nice since we are dealing with a waterless wash.
In the end, the product is EXTREMELY slick even when drying with a MF towel. The slickness does seem to dissipate after the surface is dry... but I can't exactly describe it. It remains slick after but just not as slick when cleaning or drying a treated section. By far, the level of glide of a MF towel in application and drying is beyond anything I have used. Ever.
I did not note any marring. I have not polished my truck in the past year so there are some light water spots but no major swirling to speak of. I varied my pressure from very light to very heavy (almost abusively) just to see what would happen defect wise.
The product does seem to add some gloss to the paint. Nothing off the charts but a definite improvement.
Protection... didn't test this but it does bead water and bead well. Not 'tight' beads but somewhere between a carnauba and polymer sealant.
Scent is very pleasant... have no idea what is smells like... maybe a mix of blue berries and fruit punch.
In the end, I am comfortable to recommend the product in the following areas:
-Quick Detailer (and probably a superior choice since it seems to be excellent at cleaning SAFELY)
- Light maintenance product (light dust, dirt, debris, etc.)
-Cleaner & Booster to polymer sealants
-Final wipe after polishing or machine applying a sealant
What I DO NOT recommend this product for:
-Waterless wash with a heavily soiled exterior
-Exterior wash with presence of bug soiling or heavy contamination.
And I believe my findings should fit neatly inside the box of which Ultima designed this product for.
