wmo168
Senior Member
- First Name
- Mr M
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2017
- Threads
- 18
- Messages
- 292
- Reaction score
- 97
- Location
- South Florida
- Vehicle(s)
- Geo Metro
Gtechniq CSL. I did it on all my car. Add Exo on it 2 coats and it will be perfect
Sponsored
Ceramic coating quote
- Thread starter WindJunkie
- Start date
- Watchers 12
Telly
Senior Member
- Joined
- Mar 23, 2020
- Threads
- 7
- Messages
- 89
- Reaction score
- 72
- Location
- Chester County, PA
- Vehicle(s)
- 2018 Civic EX Hatch
If you own a DA polisher I’d suggest just dedicating a weekend to doing it yourself and saving hundreds of $.
I did a full 2-step paint correction and application of Adam’s graphene ceramic by myself in two days. Could have been one day, but I got sidetracked and worn out. It’s a really gratifying experience. It’ll have you standing out in the rain watching the beads roll off for fun.
Also, a ceramic coat isn’t a magic cure. It takes work to maintain it. If you aren’t willing to put in the work to maintain it, consider a sealant/wax combo.
I did a full 2-step paint correction and application of Adam’s graphene ceramic by myself in two days. Could have been one day, but I got sidetracked and worn out. It’s a really gratifying experience. It’ll have you standing out in the rain watching the beads roll off for fun.
Also, a ceramic coat isn’t a magic cure. It takes work to maintain it. If you aren’t willing to put in the work to maintain it, consider a sealant/wax combo.
jrow3
Senior Member
- First Name
- John
- Joined
- May 20, 2019
- Threads
- 3
- Messages
- 181
- Reaction score
- 179
- Location
- Fremont, CA
- Vehicle(s)
- 2019 Civic Type R, 2003 4Runner
Any coating is broken down into two costs. The actual coating being applied which is usually $80-$200 depending on what your getting, number of layers applied, etc etc. Go with whichever coating you like the results of. Ceramic Pro has the pros of the warranty, however it's hard to mantain that warranty, and is not the actual best coating on the market (see Lust's suggestions for other coatings that perform better).
The other cost, the costs every trys to say "is worth it" is the paint correction/application. That will run you $1000-$2000 depending on the level of correction needed, coats applied, etc etc. If you are semi well versed in car detailing you are able to avoid this cost with a DIY (most of the coatings you are not doing anything fancy it's just labor). It really comes down to what do you consider a fair labor rate for that work. If you can (and want) to do it, then go the DIY route and avoid this cost entirely. If you want someone else to, you'll have to evaluate what the labor rate you want to pay for it is.
The other cost, the costs every trys to say "is worth it" is the paint correction/application. That will run you $1000-$2000 depending on the level of correction needed, coats applied, etc etc. If you are semi well versed in car detailing you are able to avoid this cost with a DIY (most of the coatings you are not doing anything fancy it's just labor). It really comes down to what do you consider a fair labor rate for that work. If you can (and want) to do it, then go the DIY route and avoid this cost entirely. If you want someone else to, you'll have to evaluate what the labor rate you want to pay for it is.
juang1985
Member
- First Name
- Juan
- Joined
- May 4, 2021
- Threads
- 1
- Messages
- 31
- Reaction score
- 7
- Location
- Los Angels California
- Vehicle(s)
- GOLF R MK7
My CTR is currently at the shop right now.
They will do Xpel FUSION (since I am also getting PPF Xpel Ultimate plus)
I went with Fusion because its made to go on top of the PPF.
They will do Xpel Fusion on full exterior and Xpel Fusion Wheels & Calipers on Wheels inside and out and Brake Calipers for 1200$
Fusion comes with 4 year warranty.
I hope fusion will work well for me.
Has anyone here tried the Xpel Fusion Ceramic?
They will do Xpel FUSION (since I am also getting PPF Xpel Ultimate plus)
I went with Fusion because its made to go on top of the PPF.
They will do Xpel Fusion on full exterior and Xpel Fusion Wheels & Calipers on Wheels inside and out and Brake Calipers for 1200$
Fusion comes with 4 year warranty.
I hope fusion will work well for me.
Has anyone here tried the Xpel Fusion Ceramic?
Last edited:
evlsmurf
Senior Member
- Joined
- May 18, 2017
- Threads
- 22
- Messages
- 246
- Reaction score
- 117
- Location
- NY
- Vehicle(s)
- 2016 Subaru Impreza Sport
I was quoted $750 to do full paint correction, detail, and ceramic coating to include wheels and glass. The biggest key to me was the paint correction, as there are some serious scratches that came with the car and another from my wife running her heel on the side skirt when getting in. I was going to have the dealer figure out the scratches that came with the car, but I think their solution is going to be a repaint of the hood... which I will never do. So, if this place works some magic, I think $750 is worth it.
ManitobaSI
Senior Member
- First Name
- Scott
- Joined
- Jun 29, 2018
- Threads
- 21
- Messages
- 1,270
- Reaction score
- 2,420
- Location
- Manitoba, Canada
- Vehicle(s)
- 2017 Civic SI
- Vehicle Showcase
- 1
That price is a good price. Just check some of their previous work and do some due diligence. I have ceramic pro silver. I love it.
CanadaCivic
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2017
- Threads
- 8
- Messages
- 184
- Reaction score
- 163
- Location
- Canada
- Vehicle(s)
- 2020 Honda Civic Type R (CW)
I am a detailer and I don't recommend anyone pay for "professional" ceramic coatings anymore. The market is trending towards Graphene coatings now anyway. It used to be the case where it was difficult to find good ceramic products over the counter and application wasn't user friendly. Surface prep is still important but that's very easy to do yourself unless you also want a multi-stage polish which often isn't necessary especially on newer vehicles.
Most people do not take care of their ceramic coatings well though to make them last anywhere near their (often outlandish) multiple year claims. None of the coatings have actually been tested for 7 years or what some of them claim - they simulate accelerated wear and make best case scenario claims based off of that. So don't read too much into things like "5 year coating" which might cost you double that of a 2 year coating and not perform any different in the real world. Take any claims beyond a year or so with a grain of salt, especially if you live somewhere with harsher winter weather. The effort to properly maintain an expensive coating is about the same as simply refreshing a cheaper coating, with the advantage of zero risk of ruining an expensive coating.
There are now a ton of over the counter products that easily last 6-12 months and are dead simple to apply via spray bottle & microfiber cloth. This is made even easier with maintenance products that can be used a drying aids, so you simply spray a couple sprays per panel when you dry your car after washing it, and just like that you have refreshed your coating for another several months. If you want to be even lazier, you can buy coatings that are activated by high pressure water, so you simply spray them on and pressure wash them off, and you will still get a couple weeks or more of protection (Geyon WetCoat, Carpro HydrO2, etc.) I like those products for wheels or cars with a lot of annoying grooves (like 10th gen Civics LOL). Where I am going with all this is there is essentially no reason anymore to actually pay $500+++ to have someone install a ceramic coating for you. The over the counter products are so good and so easy that as long as you plan on washing your car every now and then (which you need to do often and meticulously if you want your expensive ceramic coating to perform like new), you can always maintain a strong coating on your vehicle's surface.
What I suggest for most people is put on a coating like Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions Ceramic Coating and use their Ceramic Wet Wax as a maintenance product. The ceramic coating itself gives you a genuine 9-12 months of protection if you prep the surface and the wet wax is something you spray on the car before drying it as normal, so no real extra effort, and it restores the ceramic coating every time you wash the car. In theory, the coating will last indefinitely with the base coat + refreshers every time you wash the car anyway. It's dead simple, very affordable, and you barely have to change your normal washing routine. Both products don't cost more than $15-20 in the USA or $25-30 in Canada. They also have a new Graphene spray coating that works much the same, and has real Graphene in it rather than cheaper graphene oxide which is a rarity even among the premium/expensive products.
As for surface prep, for most people all you need to do is give the car a good wash with some car soap, spray it down with an iron remover (Car Pro Iron X, 3D BDX, etc.), clay it to remove any remaining contaminants (I like nano clay towels, $20 or so on Amazon), and then finally if you want you can wipe the car down with a 10% isopropyl alcohol mix to remove any residues. Now you have virgin paint and you can apply your spray coating. Even if you don't do those steps (they were listed in order of importance), or skip some of them, your coating will still work, it just won't last as long. If you are maintaining it as described above with every wash, longevity of the coating is irrelevant beyond a few weeks or a month as you are constantly refreshing it with virtually no extra effort. If you do need paint correction, a stage one is very easy to do yourself with ~$150 of equipment and a few YouTube tutorials, but if you want to go further than that I would suggest paying a professional.
tldr: Paying for ceramic coatings isn't worth it anymore due to major advancements in over-the-counter products. If you want to pay for something, pay for paint correction (if needed) or put the money towards a full PPF wrap. Alternatively, consider just paying for just the prep and do the coating yourself.
Most people do not take care of their ceramic coatings well though to make them last anywhere near their (often outlandish) multiple year claims. None of the coatings have actually been tested for 7 years or what some of them claim - they simulate accelerated wear and make best case scenario claims based off of that. So don't read too much into things like "5 year coating" which might cost you double that of a 2 year coating and not perform any different in the real world. Take any claims beyond a year or so with a grain of salt, especially if you live somewhere with harsher winter weather. The effort to properly maintain an expensive coating is about the same as simply refreshing a cheaper coating, with the advantage of zero risk of ruining an expensive coating.
There are now a ton of over the counter products that easily last 6-12 months and are dead simple to apply via spray bottle & microfiber cloth. This is made even easier with maintenance products that can be used a drying aids, so you simply spray a couple sprays per panel when you dry your car after washing it, and just like that you have refreshed your coating for another several months. If you want to be even lazier, you can buy coatings that are activated by high pressure water, so you simply spray them on and pressure wash them off, and you will still get a couple weeks or more of protection (Geyon WetCoat, Carpro HydrO2, etc.) I like those products for wheels or cars with a lot of annoying grooves (like 10th gen Civics LOL). Where I am going with all this is there is essentially no reason anymore to actually pay $500+++ to have someone install a ceramic coating for you. The over the counter products are so good and so easy that as long as you plan on washing your car every now and then (which you need to do often and meticulously if you want your expensive ceramic coating to perform like new), you can always maintain a strong coating on your vehicle's surface.
What I suggest for most people is put on a coating like Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions Ceramic Coating and use their Ceramic Wet Wax as a maintenance product. The ceramic coating itself gives you a genuine 9-12 months of protection if you prep the surface and the wet wax is something you spray on the car before drying it as normal, so no real extra effort, and it restores the ceramic coating every time you wash the car. In theory, the coating will last indefinitely with the base coat + refreshers every time you wash the car anyway. It's dead simple, very affordable, and you barely have to change your normal washing routine. Both products don't cost more than $15-20 in the USA or $25-30 in Canada. They also have a new Graphene spray coating that works much the same, and has real Graphene in it rather than cheaper graphene oxide which is a rarity even among the premium/expensive products.
As for surface prep, for most people all you need to do is give the car a good wash with some car soap, spray it down with an iron remover (Car Pro Iron X, 3D BDX, etc.), clay it to remove any remaining contaminants (I like nano clay towels, $20 or so on Amazon), and then finally if you want you can wipe the car down with a 10% isopropyl alcohol mix to remove any residues. Now you have virgin paint and you can apply your spray coating. Even if you don't do those steps (they were listed in order of importance), or skip some of them, your coating will still work, it just won't last as long. If you are maintaining it as described above with every wash, longevity of the coating is irrelevant beyond a few weeks or a month as you are constantly refreshing it with virtually no extra effort. If you do need paint correction, a stage one is very easy to do yourself with ~$150 of equipment and a few YouTube tutorials, but if you want to go further than that I would suggest paying a professional.
tldr: Paying for ceramic coatings isn't worth it anymore due to major advancements in over-the-counter products. If you want to pay for something, pay for paint correction (if needed) or put the money towards a full PPF wrap. Alternatively, consider just paying for just the prep and do the coating yourself.
Last edited:
ManitobaSI
Senior Member
- First Name
- Scott
- Joined
- Jun 29, 2018
- Threads
- 21
- Messages
- 1,270
- Reaction score
- 2,420
- Location
- Manitoba, Canada
- Vehicle(s)
- 2017 Civic SI
- Vehicle Showcase
- 1
My ceramic coating is two years old and the car looks better than new. If you have OCD then ceramic will keep your sanity.
OP
OP
WindJunkie
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jan 14, 2016
- Threads
- 47
- Messages
- 799
- Reaction score
- 744
- Location
- St Augustine, Florida
- Vehicle(s)
- 2021 CTR LE USA-367, 2011 Civic Si (FA5)
- Thread starter
- #26
Thanks all for the feedback.
The only reputable shop I found that I felt comfortable going with is across the state from where I live. They quoted me $2k for a complete paint correction and multi year ceramic coat including wheels off coating. Between the cost and the inconvenience of distance from a reputable shop, I decided to invest in a DA polisher and CQuartz UK 3.0 and CQuartz SiC. I used stripping soap + Iron X to decontaminate, then a medium cut polish pad over the entire car with Meguiars Polish. On 4 different spots, I used Meguiars Compound to get out more deeper defects, but I was afraid to chase some of them to perfection so some spots remain imperfect but enhanced after a compound/polish and would be hard to spot for someone other than me.
I did 1 coat of each ceramic product to the entire care, I'm thoroughly impressed. I finished with SiC and I've never felt paint texture so soft, it feels like felt. I'm doing my wheels tomorrow. I recorded a lot of video and plan to put together a video for DIY Ceramic Coat from a complete noob perspective.
The only reputable shop I found that I felt comfortable going with is across the state from where I live. They quoted me $2k for a complete paint correction and multi year ceramic coat including wheels off coating. Between the cost and the inconvenience of distance from a reputable shop, I decided to invest in a DA polisher and CQuartz UK 3.0 and CQuartz SiC. I used stripping soap + Iron X to decontaminate, then a medium cut polish pad over the entire car with Meguiars Polish. On 4 different spots, I used Meguiars Compound to get out more deeper defects, but I was afraid to chase some of them to perfection so some spots remain imperfect but enhanced after a compound/polish and would be hard to spot for someone other than me.
I did 1 coat of each ceramic product to the entire care, I'm thoroughly impressed. I finished with SiC and I've never felt paint texture so soft, it feels like felt. I'm doing my wheels tomorrow. I recorded a lot of video and plan to put together a video for DIY Ceramic Coat from a complete noob perspective.
CWNole95
Senior Member
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2018
- Threads
- 25
- Messages
- 429
- Reaction score
- 354
- Location
- USA
- Vehicle(s)
- '23 CW FL5 #775, '23 SGP FL5 #10771, 2005 NFR S2K
Justin? Looks awesome and enjoyed conversing with you on FB about the coating/prep. Well done and glad you’re happy with the combo!Thanks all for the feedback.
The only reputable shop I found that I felt comfortable going with is across the state from where I live. They quoted me $2k for a complete paint correction and multi year ceramic coat including wheels off coating. Between the cost and the inconvenience of distance from a reputable shop, I decided to invest in a DA polisher and CQuartz UK 3.0 and CQuartz SiC. I used stripping soap + Iron X to decontaminate, then a medium cut polish pad over the entire car with Meguiars Polish. On 4 different spots, I used Meguiars Compound to get out more deeper defects, but I was afraid to chase some of them to perfection so some spots remain imperfect but enhanced after a compound/polish and would be hard to spot for someone other than me.
I did 1 coat of each ceramic product to the entire care, I'm thoroughly impressed. I finished with SiC and I've never felt paint texture so soft, it feels like felt. I'm doing my wheels tomorrow. I recorded a lot of video and plan to put together a video for DIY Ceramic Coat from a complete noob perspective.
OP
OP
WindJunkie
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jan 14, 2016
- Threads
- 47
- Messages
- 799
- Reaction score
- 744
- Location
- St Augustine, Florida
- Vehicle(s)
- 2021 CTR LE USA-367, 2011 Civic Si (FA5)
- Thread starter
- #28
Hey Jason, yes this is Justin! Thanks for the advice for applying the 1 and 1 coat combo, it came out incredible. I'm actually sitting in my garage right now drinking a beer just looking at the car. I can't wait to finish the wheels tomorrow, I'll share some more photos once that's done.
CanadaCivic
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2017
- Threads
- 8
- Messages
- 184
- Reaction score
- 163
- Location
- Canada
- Vehicle(s)
- 2020 Honda Civic Type R (CW)
If you guys like really slick paint, try a Graphene coating - they are even slicker than ceramic. They also dissipate heat better if you live in a warm climate, and are better at preventing dust from sticking to the paint. No need to pay for the really fancy stuff, the ingredients in most detailing products are more/less the same.
The slickness/hydrophobicity on all these coatings though has to be maintained with careful washes and decontaminations, and doing so is often more effort than simply refreshing the coating. Those properties degrade pretty quick, especially if you have Winter where you live.
The biggest advantage of any coating is making maintenance washes easier (less dirt sticks, and dirt washes off easier), and environmental resistance (eg. bird poop sitting on a good coating will not damage your paint). Things like tree sap also come off way easier. They offer zero protection to physical damage like rocks, hail, or a car key but I think most people know that.
The slickness/hydrophobicity on all these coatings though has to be maintained with careful washes and decontaminations, and doing so is often more effort than simply refreshing the coating. Those properties degrade pretty quick, especially if you have Winter where you live.
The biggest advantage of any coating is making maintenance washes easier (less dirt sticks, and dirt washes off easier), and environmental resistance (eg. bird poop sitting on a good coating will not damage your paint). Things like tree sap also come off way easier. They offer zero protection to physical damage like rocks, hail, or a car key but I think most people know that.
Sponsored
