Question on Ceramic Coating

[Fred42]

I watched You Tube videos where people spoke about the importance of regular car washes after ceramic coating (or PPF) is applied. Is the point that you need to wash it even though it has ceramic coating? Or is there a greater need for regular washes if it has ceramic coating?

Thanks for responses.

 

[tomas]

I’ve had it for 5 years. Ceramic coating does not require you to wash car more often. However, it makes washing car very easy... dirt slides right off with proper technique. And it looks so great afterwards, you may WANT to wash it more often. I use waterless wash system and can wash my S or 3 in about 20 minutes. Less time than it takes to drive to a car wash. And far less $. So I do it weekly. Every 2 or 3 weeks I also do interior and more thorough job on wheels.

 

[VifferFun]

How long does the ceramic coating last? I'll be buying a 2015 P85DL that had the ceramic coating done when it was purchased new four years ago. Thanks!

 

[tomas]

Depends on which one you got. Ranges from 1 year to 8. If you cannot find out, you should consider reapplying. Good news is that if it was applied over good paint, then it just needs to be thoroughly cleaned and new coat applied, you should not need paint correction. See your local detailer

 

[jebinc]

Depends on which one you got. Ranges from 1 year to 8. If you cannot find out, you should consider reapplying. Good news is that if it was applied over good paint, then it just needs to be thoroughly cleaned and new coat applied, you should not need paint correction. See your local detailer

I second this recommendation. I would add that you may consider a DYI ceramic coating, like CarPro cQuartz. For $50, and a couple of coats, it will last for a couple of years and will look great. Better than paying a detailer $1500!

 

[VifferFun]

Thanks! I'm not sure where my neighbours had the car ceramic coated four years ago, but they picked up the car from Tesla on their delivery day and immediately drove it to the ceramic coater, so it should have been applied over factory-fresh paint The service certainly wasn't cheap -- it was in the range of $2000 - $2500 CAD -- so hopefully it should last a long time. They believe it to be a "lifetime" coating; however, from what I've read online, the coating is never permanent. I'll find out where they had the coating done -- they'll be having their new P100DL coated at the same place on delivery day as well.

 

[jebinc]

Thanks! I'm not sure where my neighbours had the car ceramic coated four years ago, but they picked up the car from Tesla on their delivery day and immediately drove it to the ceramic coater, so it should have been applied over factory-fresh paint The service certainly wasn't cheap -- it was in the range of $2000 - $2500 CAD -- so hopefully it should last a long time. They believe it to be a "lifetime" coating; however, from what I've read online, the coating is never permanent. I'll find out where they had the coating done -- they'll be having their new P100DL coated at the same place on delivery day as well.

Even these advertised professionally installed 5 year coatings require annual toppers, in order to maintain the guarantee - and those aren't cheap either! As noted above, I strongly recommend the DIY ceramic coating. There are several brands to chose frim; I chose cQuartz for $50 OtD

.

 

[VifferFun]

Even these advertised professionally installed 5 year coatings require annual toppers, in order to maintain the guarantee - and those aren't cheap either! As noted above, I strongly recommend the DIY ceramic coating. There are several brands to chose frim; I chose cQuartz for $50 OtD.

Your car is so shiny -- looking good! How long did it take you to complete the DIY? Is it similar to waxing a car? The car I'm getting is black, so it might be extra finicky.

 

[jebinc]

Your car is so shiny -- looking good! How long did it take you to complete the DIY? Is it similar to waxing a car? The car I'm getting is black, so it might be extra finicky.

I found it much easier to apply than wax - so much so that I coated it four times over two days - until my $50 bottle of cQuartz was spent!!!

Edit: Took less than half the time it takes me to put KLAS twins on my other cars. Will be switching to cQuartz coating (from KLAS sealant).

 

[Geek190]

@jebinc
I'm also going to go with cQuartz, but wasn't sure how far it goes. There is a 30ml and 50ml bottle. Which one did you buy, and did you get 4 costs out of that one bottle or did you have to buy another?
I was also thinking I'd top with Gliss... Anybody here try the CQ with Gliss?

 

[jebinc]

@jebinc
I'm also going to go with cQuartz, but wasn't sure how far it goes. There is a 30ml and 50ml bottle. Which one did you buy, and did you get 4 costs out of that one bottle or did you have to buy another?
I was also thinking I'd top with Gliss... Anybody here try the CQ with Gliss?

I got four coats, including roof glass, out of the smaller $30ml bottle. Got it on Amazon for something like $50. I didn't want the UK version, as it is reported as not lasting as long as the original formula (which I bought). I hear UK formulation is more for extreme cold.

 

[Simon21]

Try bead maker. Just spray on and wipe off. Can't get any easier. Takes about 10 minutes after a car wash. It's not so expensive but you have to do it every couple of months

 

[jebinc]

Try bead maker. Just spray on and wipe off. Can't get any easier. Takes about 10 minutes after a car wash. It's not so expensive but you have to do it every couple of months

I use Beadmaker on top of the ceramic coating, every other wash. It's so inexpensive and makes everything slick. Doesn't offer any real protection, like the ceramic coating will.

 

[SoCal Buzz]

I had Opti-Coat Pro on my first car for 5 years, and now Feynlab on my second. From my experience, the coatings last 2 ~ 3 years and then require tune-ups. Most of the work (and expense) up front was color correction and cleaning up Tesla's less than stellar finishes. I've been happy the the paint protection in general. It's easier to remove surface stains, and when some polishing is required it's essentially buffing the ceramic. Overall, it's less work than maintaining wax coating multiple times per year, but a bit more expensive in the long-run.

 

[Simon21]

Does it take away from the self healing of ppf?

 

[Saxgod]

DPC Shield - Ceramic Coating

 

[jdw]

Does it take away from the self healing of ppf?

No, not at all.

 

[tomas]

My (limited) experience with ceramic coating is that they work great in certain conditions: if your car doesn't get rained frequently and is garaged I could see them being very helpful. In my case I have 2 cars outside 24x7 that are driven in rain 7-8 months out of the year.

Huh? Wouldn’t it be even more useful to protect from the elements?