Ceramic coating... Worth it or hype?

[Gareth]

I thought the beauty of fancy ceramic coatings was an end to swirl marks no matter how unfussy your washing technique was.

A common misunderstanding. If you think about it, the lacquer on your car is typically harder than any coating you apply and you can damage that, so, coating themselves are also prone to damage.

Professionally installed coatings and applicators will advise on how to correctly maintain the coating for future longevity. All the top brands will offer the products best needed to maintain your investment.

People who home apply coatings (any type really, waxes, sealants etc) tend to be very keen and mostly well informed, but obviously lack the experience of the professional/certified installers, and you would imagine they have made enough mistakes to learn from to ensure they have the safest washing and drying techniques.

There was something @big_pete had said to me before that's stuck with me, about doing stuff at home and compared it to a spray painter. Anyone can sand, paint, lacquer and polish a panel, but the skill comes down to knowledge and experience that can't be bought with all the 'best' products on the market.

 

[KevM]

Lots of contradiction on the subject.
And I can't seem to work out if, I'd be paying for a protection, and then protecting the protection, or protecting the paint that the protection is protecting?

And for that reason, I won't be investing.

I'm out!

 

[big_pete]

In a nutshell

- they make a car way way glossier than any wax or sealant will and that gloss is constant
- they are highly resistant to chemical contamination like bird droppings, tree sap, even concrete overspray etc
- they will keep a car cleaner for longer
- they will speed up your wash process (vs a 2bm wash on a non coated car)
- they don’t require constant attention

They are protection for the paintwork that enhances its visual appearance significantly. You don’t need to further protect that, you just occasionally keep it decontaminated, like exfoliating skin.

- They will not totally eliminate swirl marks if you don’t wash and dry it properly
- They will not mean you can just rinse your car clean lol

Simples lol

 

[MarkM]

- They will not mean you can just rinse your car clean lol

No coatings for me until the rinse clean one or drive over 100mph and the dirt slides off one, then I'm 100% thinking about it

 

[Chris100]

I enjoy washing my car, so it's no big deal for me to maintain the coating. As the wash process is how I would wash my car anyway. It certainly wouldn't ever be washed by anyone other than myself, or a person I knew was going to wash it properly as well.

 

[big_pete]

No coatings for me until the rinse clean one or drive over 100mph and the dirt slides off one, then I'm 100% thinking about it

we had actually developed one with a local manufacturer years ago, I put it on half the car and drove it home up country roads in the pissing rain, got out of the car and the coated half was bone dry and clean. I couldn’t believe it! The coated half stayed like that for about 2 weeks and literally rinsing with garden hose pressure water had all the flies and brake dust off and that’s as much as it needed until it degraded away.

It wasn’t a ceramic, the technology actually derived from stuff they use to transport dynamite We couldn’t get the durability up any longer than 6 months. The cost to manufacture it was mental because of one of the raw ingredients. That just deemed it not viable as it would have cost a customer about £600 per application back in 2014. I really pushed for it as if you could spend £1200 a year and have a totally clean car all the time I think it would be worth it they didn’t agree lol

 

[Burt2000]

Tell me Pete do you do offer any maintenance or a top up as such for cars you have coated? Or does that mean removing the coating and reapplying?

I had mine done about a year ago but would like to rejuvenate it if that’s possible and have it sitting like it was last year as it will be in a covered car port from now on so won’t be affected by rain, sun, bird poo etc anymore. There are a few fine swirls in it too when I look for them as I’m probably not being as fussy as I should when washing and drying plus I give it a coat of hybrid when I wash which I suppose is rubbing it more than I need to.

 

[big_pete]

We do indeed, send me a pm

 

[Woodcutter]

You mention “exfoliating” the coating @big_pete , what’s your advice on the best way to do it?

We have just recently brought in the new Gyeon Restart shampoo designed for coated cars, it’s got a fallout remover built in which is meant to help with decontamination of coatings.

I haven’t tried it yet though

Q²M RESTARTWASH - GYEON

Coating rejuvenating shampoo.

gyeonquartz.com

 

[KevM]

In a nutshell

- they make a car way way glossier than any wax or sealant will and that gloss is constant
- they are highly resistant to chemical contamination like bird droppings, tree sap, even concrete overspray etc
- they will keep a car cleaner for longer
- they will speed up your wash process (vs a 2bm wash on a non coated car)
- they don’t require constant attention

They are protection for the paintwork that enhances its visual appearance significantly. You don’t need to further protect that, you just occasionally keep it decontaminated, like exfoliating skin.

- They will not totally eliminate swirl marks if you don’t wash and dry it properly
- They will not mean you can just rinse your car clean lol

Simples lol

I am jesting Pete. I have no doubt it will enhance gloss and prolong the appeal and appearance of mint paintwork.

I'm just not that guy.
After 15+ years in the car trade, I just don't have the appetite. I enjoy driving good cars, a don't love going out of my way when caring for their appearance. I wash cars with a brush. They aren't typically with me long enough to worry about lasting paint damage. I have had 4 different company cars home in the past week!!

If I ever make my Goal-Car happen, Pete can ceramic coat it

 

[Paddy_R]

You mention “exfoliating” the coating @big_pete , what’s your advice on the best way to do it?

We have just recently brought in the new Gyeon Restart shampoo designed for coated cars, it’s got a fallout remover built in which is meant to help with decontamination of coatings.

I haven’t tried it yet though

Q²M RESTARTWASH - GYEON

Coating rejuvenating shampoo.

gyeonquartz.com

@Woodcutter from what @big_pete has said in the past Gyeon stuff does not work well with Gtechniq stuff as they use different approaches/technology re the coatings.

I've had 3 cars coated by Pete now (Golf R, long sold and my current 2 - E Class coupe and classic Impreza Turbo) and with the coating they're a joy to wash. I finish every other wash now with a spray of Anachem Citraclean and they are both beading the water well though the Scooby could do with a coat of C2v3 to get it back to top notch performing in this area (it's not had a top up coat in a few years now and the coating is circa 5 years old).

 

[big_pete]

You mention “exfoliating” the coating @big_pete , what’s your advice on the best way to do it?

We have just recently brought in the new Gyeon Restart shampoo designed for coated cars, it’s got a fallout remover built in which is meant to help with decontamination of coatings.

I haven’t tried it yet though

Q²M RESTARTWASH - GYEON

Coating rejuvenating shampoo.

gyeonquartz.com

Im not overly familiar with Gyeons latest stuff but in theory that will be an acid based shampoo with a fallout remover combined. You are best using the maintenance products based on the coating you have, or use a chemical that you are sure of it’s pure content. We use all anachem in the shop as it’s all designed to be pure with its intention.

Ceramics can tolerate acidity to declog them. Personally our routine is as follows. Always do this in the shade and with the paintwork cool to the touch.

- wash the vehicle as normal then dry the majority of the surface.
- remove tar deposits
- spray purge iron fallout on the vehicle and allow to dwell for 5-10mins
- lightly agitate with wash mitt and rinse off thoroughly
- dry the car loosely
- apply citriclean and allow to dwell for about 3-5mins and again agitate with a mitt
- very thorough rinse
- properly dry the vehicle and wipe down with C2V3

That’s the tried and tested method with Gtechniq. Other brands will be the same with the exception of the final wipe down with whatever that brands topper is.

The majority of time we see people that are disappointed with the performance of their coating, it’s that they have been using a detail spray or the likes of wet coat etc over the coating and that will kill its water behaviour pretty quickly, similarly as will a wash and wax type shampoo. It’s really frustrating as I can see them on Insta etc using all sorts then not getting that they have actually compromised the hydrophobic layer themselves lol

That’s as simple as the maintenance needs to be no more than an hour from start to finish and I would say on most daily driven vehicles that will be good practice once every 6 months. If you regularly park near the sea or in an industrial area you might need to do it more frequently but you will know yourself when the coatings hydrophobic nature starts to dip.

Last point I will make. If you have had a ceramic coating done professionally and you aren’t happy with it, get in contact with the detailer that done it. Personally speaking if someone feels that a product isn’t living up to their expectation I want to address those concerns and perhaps there could be a genuine issue with the coating bonding.

We have had cases where the coating has been defective and has needed reapplied, there is no way for us to tell at application stage of the chemical bonding is compromised. All it takes is the slightest bit of air at the bottling stage and it can compromise the integrity of the coating. The detailer won’t know, so feedback is always important and welcomed with open arms.

Also with the passing of time we are also learning the correct way to educate customers on maintenance too.

 

[Big Pimp]

Last point I will make. If you have had a ceramic coating done professionally and you aren’t happy with it, get in contact with the detailer

That is actually one of the most important points out of all.

I often have people message me on Instagram etc. asking me my thoughts on performance of a ceramic coating and what I would use as they sometimes aren’t happy

I always suggest the first port of call should be the detailer who done the original work. Sometimes their wash programme isn’t correct, sometimes the coating needs declogged, or the coating may not be performing as it should.

there seems to be an uneasiness in approaching the likes of Pete etc (or me for maintenance) if something isn’t doing what it should do. But it is the only way we can properly work though something.

I have often said that none of us are infallible and we can all make mistakes, but it is how we react to and deal with the mistakes which separate us from our competition.
There is nothing more disheartening to find out someone isn’t happy with any aspect of a service or product which we have provided and if you’re not happy with something give the original person a chance to discuss it with you.

 

[wibago]

Most of our customers are repeat customers and I think that speaks volumes.

It is absolutely worth it, as long as you are prepared to wash the car properly. It cuts down on the maintenance massively and all the maintenance that’s required is wash based.

If you aren’t going to wash the car at home yourself and take it to car washes etc it’s a waste of money.

A few misconceptions about coatings -

“My car won’t need washed, just rinsed”

That’s only true to the extent of how dirty the car gets. If you neglect the maintenance the hydrophobic nature of the coatings get clogged.

“My car won’t get any swirl marks”

Again untrue, coatings add a much much harder layer to the finish of the paint and will slow this process drastically but it still requires safe washing. The better you follow the proper wash technique the better the car stays.

The upside is it will make the car much easier to wash, even with the correct procedure 30mins will do it and the car keeps its awesome deep gloss!

Hello. I generally do my own car washes, detailing, and waxing and I feel I've gotten decent at it. For detailing, I'm currently using Meguairs products for rubbing, polishing, and waxing with an additional layer of ceramic wax mixed in for additional protection. This was all done on my FRS which didn't have PPF. With my GR86, I had the front of the car covered in PPF, Ceramic Pro Kavaca to be exact. I hear mixed messages on using a polisher on PPF. Some say you can, some say it'll ruin it. I plan on using a clay bar for the PPF at the bare minimum and maybe a heat gun as it's supposed to be self-healing, but after that.....should I polish it before applying ceramic? Maybe by hand? I'm not set on the Ceramic product either, I have Gyeon Q2 that I bought over a year ago but I'm not quite sure of the shelf life on that or how it survived the winter. Any tips would be appreciated!

 

[big_pete]

Hello. I generally do my own car washes, detailing, and waxing and I feel I've gotten decent at it. For detailing, I'm currently using Meguairs products for rubbing, polishing, and waxing with an additional layer of ceramic wax mixed in for additional protection. This was all done on my FRS which didn't have PPF. With my GR86, I had the front of the car covered in PPF, Ceramic Pro Kavaca to be exact. I hear mixed messages on using a polisher on PPF. Some say you can, some say it'll ruin it. I plan on using a clay bar for the PPF at the bare minimum and maybe a heat gun as it's supposed to be self-healing, but after that.....should I polish it before applying ceramic? Maybe by hand? I'm not set on the Ceramic product either, I have Gyeon Q2 that I bought over a year ago but I'm not quite sure of the shelf life on that or how it survived the winter. Any tips would be appreciated!

One of the goals with your protection is to avoid the need for constant polishing of the paintwork. Even a gentle polish is still an abrasive that is removing small amounts of clear coat every time so good protection (that is topped up when necessary)and the car kept decontaminated to maintain that protection.

Claying is also abrasive and as such is something that if you can maintain the contamination with chemicals is something to avoid too. Chemicals have improved so much that regular use of citrus based cleaners and iron fallout removers that you should be able to generally maintain without the need of a clay.

It is possible to lightly polish PPF. However you may remove the hydrophobic protection element from it while doing so, if you are planning on adding further protection though it’s not really an issue.

Regarding the Gyeon, it’s not a brand I use personally so can’t answer specifically but my gut says if it has been unopened and stored out of sunlight it should be ok. Some manufacturers will have a bottling date on the box and will advise a period of time that it is no longer good to use.

If you can see any crystallisation within the bottle then it is no longer effective and not safe to use.

 

[Rigger]

Just to add to the comments previously;

Had my last two cars ceramic coated with G-Techniq Crystal Serum followed by two coats of Exo v4. It's been a game changer for me. Expensive outlay, but it makes cleaning using 2bm so much easier, or just snowfoam during winter months.

If the hydrophobicity is reduced at all, then I was advised by Marc @Polished and Waxed to use a fall out remover. Before putting on the snowfoam then 2bm wash. This is done when needed, but usually every 4-6 months and the coating is revived. Also top off the coatings once washed and blown dry, with G-Techniq C2.

No need for claying, polishing and waxing every 6 months. Used to apply Bilt Hamber Double Speed wax, great deep gloss and decent life, but nothing like ceramic coating.

New wash method for me is basically as least contact as possible, but when doing a contact wash, then key for me is keeping that contact to a minimum.

Pressure rinse to get majority of crud off.
Fallout remover (if needed) and rinse.
Wheels and tyres (separate bucket with wheel and tyre cleaners with soft and hard brushes) and rinse.
Citris wash followed by snowfoam
Rinse.
Two bucket wash using lambswool mitt. SB3- Destroy really helps with water spotting.
Rinse.
Blow Dry
Apply C2 every 3 months or when required.

Sit back and enjoy the shine and deep gloss on a scratch free paint.

Considering a resin filter, but unsure if I really need one.

 

[Burt2000]

@big_pete could you post a quick bullet point of how to best wash the car once coated? I had this in my head…I use anachem products only now.

“articulate, snowfoam, power hose rinse, snowfoam again and wash with gleam and anachem ultra mitt and rinse and dry then a coat of Hybrid.

but unsure if it’s the best method and if I can use hydrid on it or will that clog the coating. Thanks

 

[big_pete]

@big_pete could you post a quick bullet point of how to best wash the car once coated? I had this in my head…I use anachem products only now.

“articulate, snowfoam, power hose rinse, snowfoam again and wash with gleam and anachem ultra mitt and rinse and dry then a coat of Hybrid.

but unsure if it’s the best method and if I can use hydrid on it or will that clog the coating. Thanks

All the above is correct but you don’t need the hybrid step.

We have a step by step video at the top of our Instagram page

 

[Gareth]

If the hydrophobicity is reduced at all, then I was advised by Marc @Polished and Waxed to use a fall out remover. Before putting on the snowfoam then 2bm wash.

Is it not better to go through the pre-wash and wash process then apply the fall-out? Surely it's best to get rid of as much of the 'normal' dirt before the stronger, chemical removal?

Kinda like the people who put fall-out on dirty wheels 'For the 'gram', it's best to wash first then apply it.

 

[Big Pimp]

Is it not better to go through the pre-wash and wash process then apply the fall-out? Surely it's best to get rid of as much of the 'normal' dirt before the stronger, chemical removal?

Kinda like the people who put fall-out on dirty wheels 'For the 'gram', it's best to wash first then apply it.

yep, get rid of all general dirt etc, then fallout, and give a snow foam after it.

@big_pete could you post a quick bullet point of how to best wash the car once coated? I had this in my head…I use anachem products only now.

“articulate, snowfoam, power hose rinse, snowfoam again and wash with gleam and anachem ultra mitt and rinse and dry then a coat of Hybrid.

but unsure if it’s the best method and if I can use hydrid on it or will that clog the coating. Thanks

your method is perfect, but no need for Hybrid after every wash - every couple of months if needed for a wee boost of gloss & water repellency

 

[Gaz]

I've never bought ceramic coating, but the M4 has had it done - and having had it for a few weeks now, I've been amazed how easy it is to just spray dirt off and barely any grime is left.

@big_pete I assume ceramic is only for paintwork and glass/rubbers etc would need to be done with their own appropriate products?

 

[big_pete]

I've never bought ceramic coating, but the M4 has had it done - and having had it for a few weeks now, I've been amazed how easy it is to just spray dirt off and barely any grime is left.

@big_pete I assume ceramic is only for paintwork and glass/rubbers etc would need to be done with their own appropriate products?

Yes, there are long term duration specific coatings for glass and rubbers too though so you can go all out

 

[Boydie]

I've never bought ceramic coating, but the M4 has had it done - and having had it for a few weeks now, I've been amazed how easy it is to just spray dirt off and barely any grime is left.

@big_pete I assume ceramic is only for paintwork and glass/rubbers etc would need to be done with their own appropriate products?

Gaz I would 100% recommend this stuff for the average joe blogs car washer, its fantastic, easy to use, wipe off and lasts ages

Ultra Glaco, liquid wiper, 70 ml

Among Soft99 liquid wipers, there is none more durable than Ultra Glaco. Ultra Glaco's technologically advanced formula guarantees 12 months of water repellency on car windows, reduced need for windscreen wipers and consistently excellent visibility when driving in difficult conditions. This not...

soft99store.co.uk

Can buy it locally from @Davey@Procar

 

[DreamTheater]

Gaz I would 100% recommend this stuff for the average joe blogs car washer, its fantastic, easy to use, wipe off and lasts ages

Ultra Glaco, liquid wiper, 70 ml

Among Soft99 liquid wipers, there is none more durable than Ultra Glaco. Ultra Glaco's technologically advanced formula guarantees 12 months of water repellency on car windows, reduced need for windscreen wipers and consistently excellent visibility when driving in difficult conditions. This not...

soft99store.co.uk

Can buy it locally from @Davey@Procar

Funny I was checking my windscreen coatings today in the rain to see how they are comparing. Driver side I have Ultra Glaco and is holding up well, and passenger side is still ok from another company that I am testing for. Glaco has smaller water bead run off compared to the other companies coating.
Both been on 4 months now.

 

[Dave..]

We had both our Minis coated and Christine’s non metallic really popped. The glass product that @big_pete uses is amazing.