The Pros and Cons of Ceramic Paint Protectant.

[Paladin06]

I don't allow Dawn in my house.

 

[DavidKFla]

I don't allow Dawn in my house.

How about Joy? She's a hot number.

 

[Paladin06]

How about Joy? She's a hot number.

Oh hell yeah!!

 

[Speedy!]

The Panel Wipe product removes everything as well, so doing all this out of the sun hopefully goes without saying. Panel Wipe is mostly alcohol and solvents that won't hurt clear coat. It works well.

 

[DavidKFla]

Oh hell yeah!!

Joy brings joy to the world!!

 

[MikeD1]

Joy brings joy to the world!!

Sometimes she gets your ass into big trouble .............................

https://www.tampafp.com/florida-man...ex-truck-while-his-passenger-was-gettin-busy/

 

[DavidKFla]

Sometimes she gets your ass into big trouble .............................

https://www.tampafp.com/florida-man...ex-truck-while-his-passenger-was-gettin-busy/

Joy is a biter.

 

[Paladin06]

Joy is a biter.

Now you're teasing me...

 

[DavidKFla]

Now you're teasing me...

It's between you and her.

 

[1971demon]

I don't allow Dawn in my house.

meet her down the street eh..

 

[1971demon]

meet her down the street eh..

You got a peculiar wife...she is willing to shell out a hundred large for you to get yer dream car..(vintage charger)...but wont let that bimbo dawn down the street past the front door...

 

[Speedy!]

These might help as well. Sorry it's on the old Camaro

I'm also starting to do some research on the touchless I use to see what the soap might be. It's a "Laser" brand and is at a local Shell station not far from the house. Some info I've found says it's a low Ph soap but I need to dig a little deeper.

 

[1971demon]

Joy brings joy to the world!!

And the clap...

 

[parttimer]

From a detailer who doesn't rely on detailing for full time income, here is my thoughts on it. My background, i have been detailing part time since 2013 and doing coatings since 2015. I do regular details but try to stick with coatings, I do about 5 per month. I've gone through 6 different vendors or manufacturers, whatever you want to call them. I currently use IGL and Pearl Nano, I've used Gtech, SPS, Feynlab to name a few others. I stick with these two based on my testing, a pickup that delivers travel trailers across the US, averaging about 200,000 miles per year. I coated his tailgate last year and check it about 4 months I think it was. He had driven 80,000 miles and 3 of the coatings were working very well still, a few ok, and some just sucked. The truck had been to Alaska, New Mexico, California and Canada so it saw all the weather. When i say "working" the coating was still dispersing water very well compared to others, showing some protection was still available.

Is a coating worth it, it depends. Some people love to wash and wax their cars. For these people no, it's not, you should not wax over a coating. In fact, when it comes to care, you should only wash with a "car wash soap" that contains no glossifer or wax. These products will fill the microscopic pores of the coating reducing effectiveness until the wax or sealant wears off.
The second person it doesn't really offer anything to, the garage queen. The one that sees no rain, gets driven to a car show and back, basically sees no time out. For these cars, a great show car wax is the way to go.
The daily driver or car that sees the elopements is more where a coating, IN MY OPINION, belongs. All of our cars are coated, I have a Jaguar F-Pace that basically is for winter use and long trips with lots of cargo or people. The Hellcat sees spring to fall, with some winter in Ohio when our roads don't suck. Cleaning a coated car is a breeze, between a leaf blower and a twisted fiber drying towel, you end up with a great looking car after every wash for a few years.

Every car I coat sees a chemical and mechanical decontamination. Since I do a mechanical decontamination you need to follow that with a polish. Are there guys out there that will clay a car and coat it, yep, they will say they leave no marring, sure,. ok, however many instructors will tell you that is false.
The next thing you will hear is "maintenance" for coatings. I've never had a car come back for "maintenance" since starting coatings. My opinion, it's how detailers make more money. Some will wash your vehicle then apply a top coat to it to boost the performance, not really needed but does restore the high beading affect. I provide my customers with a care pack, a drying towel, 2 microfiber towels and a small bottle of each of the things they need to keep their car in good shape, Some sort of quick detailer to remove bugs or bird crap, both of which will eat through a coating if left, tire dressing ,interior cleaner, interior dressing and window cleaner.
The other question is graphene. Is it worth it, is it better. Eh, graphene looks good, really good, I haven't seen any of the benefits they tout for it. It acts just like the other coatings I use. I did notice graphene did not last as long compared to the other coatings I used to test with. For some, maybe it will last longer, but in my test, it didn't
So, I hope that helps with some coating questions people may have.

 

[PaVaSteeler]

Read this to be an informed consumer:
https://www.detailedimage.com/Ask-a-Pro/the-truth-behind-wild-coating-claims/

Watch this video from a Rupes Advanced Training seminar. Around the 10:47 mark they start discussing coatings vs wax, with the consensus being the more valuable the car, the less appropriate to put a coating on it (watch video for context). TL;DR - the group collectively agrees putting coatings on dailys/beaters to make cleaning easier....that's it.

I agree with @Speedy! that if are a DIY'er, there are now products on the market you can apply yourself that cost far, FAR, less than having a detailer do it.

I bought Gyeon MOHS (combined with the Boost) and applied it three years ago and water beads/sheets as if it were yesterday. Dried bugs and bird poo wipe off with a little detail spray and no pressure on towel. Bought the 50ml and did my wheels inside and out; makes cleaning brake dust so much easier. Also used their ceramic for my matte vinyl. Total cost was around $200

Tricky thing is application. You have to trust your process, as it is a clear thin liquid that is hard to see once laid down. Plan out your application sections and steps and stick to it.

 

[Speedy!]

From a detailer who doesn't rely on detailing for full time income, here is my thoughts on it. My background, i have been detailing part time since 2013 and doing coatings since 2015. I do regular details but try to stick with coatings, I do about 5 per month. I've gone through 6 different vendors or manufacturers, whatever you want to call them. I currently use IGL and Pearl Nano, I've used Gtech, SPS, Feynlab to name a few others. I stick with these two based on my testing, a pickup that delivers travel trailers across the US, averaging about 200,000 miles per year. I coated his tailgate last year and check it about 4 months I think it was. He had driven 80,000 miles and 3 of the coatings were working very well still, a few ok, and some just sucked. The truck had been to Alaska, New Mexico, California and Canada so it saw all the weather. When i say "working" the coating was still dispersing water very well compared to others, showing some protection was still available.

I missed a detail on the tail gate test you did. Which coatings did you test and how did they fare?

The guy who did my Ceramic did half his company van and not the other half. It was a pretty cool demonstration.

 

[MiHiHemi]

From a detailer who doesn't rely on detailing for full time income, here is my thoughts on it. My background, i have been detailing part time since 2013 and doing coatings since 2015. I do regular details but try to stick with coatings, I do about 5 per month. I've gone through 6 different vendors or manufacturers, whatever you want to call them. I currently use IGL and Pearl Nano, I've used Gtech, SPS, Feynlab to name a few others. I stick with these two based on my testing, a pickup that delivers travel trailers across the US, averaging about 200,000 miles per year. I coated his tailgate last year and check it about 4 months I think it was. He had driven 80,000 miles and 3 of the coatings were working very well still, a few ok, and some just sucked. The truck had been to Alaska, New Mexico, California and Canada so it saw all the weather. When i say "working" the coating was still dispersing water very well compared to others, showing some protection was still available.

Is a coating worth it, it depends. Some people love to wash and wax their cars. For these people no, it's not, you should not wax over a coating. In fact, when it comes to care, you should only wash with a "car wash soap" that contains no glossifer or wax. These products will fill the microscopic pores of the coating reducing effectiveness until the wax or sealant wears off.
The second person it doesn't really offer anything to, the garage queen. The one that sees no rain, gets driven to a car show and back, basically sees no time out. For these cars, a great show car wax is the way to go.
The daily driver or car that sees the elopements is more where a coating, IN MY OPINION, belongs. All of our cars are coated, I have a Jaguar F-Pace that basically is for winter use and long trips with lots of cargo or people. The Hellcat sees spring to fall, with some winter in Ohio when our roads don't suck. Cleaning a coated car is a breeze, between a leaf blower and a twisted fiber drying towel, you end up with a great looking car after every wash for a few years.

Every car I coat sees a chemical and mechanical decontamination. Since I do a mechanical decontamination you need to follow that with a polish. Are there guys out there that will clay a car and coat it, yep, they will say they leave no marring, sure,. ok, however many instructors will tell you that is false.
The next thing you will hear is "maintenance" for coatings. I've never had a car come back for "maintenance" since starting coatings. My opinion, it's how detailers make more money. Some will wash your vehicle then apply a top coat to it to boost the performance, not really needed but does restore the high beading affect. I provide my customers with a care pack, a drying towel, 2 microfiber towels and a small bottle of each of the things they need to keep their car in good shape, Some sort of quick detailer to remove bugs or bird crap, both of which will eat through a coating if left, tire dressing ,interior cleaner, interior dressing and window cleaner.
The other question is graphene. Is it worth it, is it better. Eh, graphene looks good, really good, I haven't seen any of the benefits they tout for it. It acts just like the other coatings I use. I did notice graphene did not last as long compared to the other coatings I used to test with. For some, maybe it will last longer, but in my test, it didn't
So, I hope that helps with some coating questions people may have.

What would your recommend for a quick refresh detail spray?

 

[DavidKFla]

What would your recommend for a quick refresh detail spray?

It depends if you're giving it a wipe down or a refresh. I use reload after washing and while drying the car. Quick detailer when doing a spritz.

 

[parttimer]

I did IGL Kenzo, both the original and the new graphene added one, IGL Quartz, Pearl Nano X, graphene and EZ and SPS Metal Oxide and Graphene. The original version of Kenzo actually fared better than the new, but both were still good.

For a topper I use Pearl Nano spray ceramic or IGL Premier. IGL Premier is probably one of the best spray and wipe toppers on the market.

I missed a detail on the tail gate test you did. Which coatings did you test and how did they fare?

The guy who did my Ceramic did half his company van and not the other half. It was a pretty cool demonstration.

What would your recommend for a quick refresh detail spray?

 

[Speedy!]

Wow, IGL Premier had better be good. It's $69 for 16 oz!

I've been pretty happy with the Ech20 but it's more of a spot detailer than a "topper".

GTechniq customer service has been great. They've answered my questions and made recommendations that so far have worked. I'm going to have to clay bar the horizontal surface of the Hellcat to remove something that got on there and they suggested I put EXO back on top after claying. He said claying a ceramic coating is fine, they just try to avoid it because there is a chance you'll get micro scratches from the clay, that would then require a light polish. I tested my hood last night and no scratches but I'm being super carfeul.