Cost: £12 for 500ml
Date of Review: 3rd February 2024
The Sales Pitch from Dat Wax:
Protective sealant spray which will provide durability and epic beading, whilst giving a hydrophobic shield to protect your automobile from bird poop, acid rain, bugs, salts and other elements. Can be applied over previous coatings to extend durability or straight onto freshly cleaned wet paintwork.
Source: https://datwaxuk.com/product/dat-wax-hydrophobic-protective-sealant/
What You Get:
Five hundred millilitres of clear product in a black bottle with an awesome label. The label has a texture a little like sand paper to help you grip the bottle. The label design also has a pretty neat holographic effect too.
The trigger on this product is great, offering spray or jet application, depending which way you twist it. The trigger doesn’t leak and provides a nice even mist.
Product Description:
A product that doesn’t have any real smell. The product can be applied over existing coatings as an additional barrier or sealant.
This is another addition to the spray on the wet car to give hydrophobic properties market. There are many to choose from on the market from all the big names and these products are sometimes called ‘ceramic’ spray or ‘SiO2’. The hype is that these ceramic coatings are the in-thing for vehicle detailing, potentially allowing you to wash your vehicle less because you have a protective layer applied.
One of the key advantages of these ceramic coatings is their remarkable durability. Once cured, the coatings should provide long-lasting protection against UV rays, oxidation, corrosion, chemicals, and other contaminants. This durability ensures that the vehicle’s paint remains protected and maintains its glossy finish for an extended period. This and all similar products aren’t to be confused with the professionally applied Ceramic (concentrated) coatings which last for years.
These spray on type products have a life span of around six months (more or less depending who you ask). The also need to be topped up on a regular basis.
Instructions:
The car needs to be cleaned properly and rinsed, the car should also remain wet preferably in an overcast or shady location. The product needs to dwell for around thirty seconds before a gentle jet wash to activate and remove the product.
The label also says “do not let dry”. If the product dries out, as I discovered while trying to take action photos, it will leave a water mark type effect. The marks were removed by a non wax quick detailer and a little bit of buffing.
Testing Environment:
A warm(ish) day and the sun made a showing now and again. The car was snow foamed, washed, and rinsed prior to application of the product.
Application:
The car hadn’t been washed for a while and I noticed the beading had turned into a very slow sheeting of the bonnet (hood) of the car and roof. If you look carefully you can see the water is just sitting there apart from the odd little patch.
I sprayed the product evenly onto the surface and immediately the water dissipated.
Removing:
A simple light jet wash to remove the product which turns a light white liquid to start with then runs clear, that’s it – you’re done.
Results:
Impressive. I had to spray and try and take a photo before the water ran straight off.
A close up of the beading is very impressive.
After rinsing the car I did dry the car with a drying towel. The paint felt slick and smooth and has a nice deep shine.
The results are similar to a high quality wax layer having just been applied, but this was with no effort, apart from the trigger pulling.
Rating: 9 out 10
It pains me to not give a full score here’s why.
There is a fine balance of dwell time and not allowing it to dry. If the product dries you are then left with removing the marks. Get the balance right and it’s an easy a 10 out of 10 product.
The application used around a quarter of the bottle on my large sized Honda CRV, which isn’t bad at all. But, you can go mad with the application and over use the product. However, as this product is cheaper than many others out there. For 500ml at £12 it’s a great product to have in your detailing arsenal.
Considering the amount of rain the beading is still good a couple of months later but not as tight as it was. I suspect that the life of the product is around four to five months. A little top up every three months would keep the product in tip top shape.
Ease of use – 9 out 10
Finish – 10 out 10
Conclusion:
A great and economical product for a great lasting result. For a daily driver this is a recommended product for sure. For my classic it will still use wax and a quality quick detailer only because the car isn’t subjected to rain, unless I get caught out at a car show that is.
This isn’t a product you apply every car wash, it’s a sealant that should protect the car. My advice is to wash and apply your wax of choice for gloss and protection. Then rinse the car and apply this sealant, rinse again and dry. Your waxed and glossy car will remain protected.
Even my wife said “The car looks clean” when we went to go out for the evening.
A quality product, you just need to get that dwell vs drying out balance right and you have a winner of a product.
Would I recommend it? Yes
Would I buy it again? Yes
Did you know?
Silicon is the second most abundant (after oxygen) on Earth by mass, making up over 27% of the crust. It’s commonly encountered in silicate minerals, such as quartz and sand, but only rarely occurs as a free element. It’s the 8th most abundant element in the universe, found at levels of about 650 parts per million. It’s the principal element in a type of meteorite called aerolites.
