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Ceramic Coating Worth it???

10SpeedDemon

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Im sorta tired of doing the glaze/sealant/wax method... just wondering if ceramic coating is worth the money. I’ve seen a couple of places near me that will do it for under $1000
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yote41

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Simply put,yes. Depends on budget though. I do all my own detailing and coating. I have my paint coated, my wheels insides and out as well as brake calipers and engine bay.
 

SAY WHAT

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If you are willing to spend the time to do it right your self, its worth it! I initially wanted a shop to do my car but they wanted about 1600. I spent around $400 on the supplies and paint corrected my own car then i coated it with cquarts uk.
 

Arknsawchuck

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I think it is worth it. Did it myself. If you can wax a car you can do ceramic. The real work is the prep. Of course that depends upon the state of your paint and how much correction is needed. My paint was in great shape, less than a year old and garage kept, so I just gave it a good washing, sprayed iron remover on it, clay bar then a good polish before ceramic coating it. I wouldnt pay $1000 to have it done. Not saying that I wouldnt charge that much to do it though. It is time consuming and a lot of work getting it prepped.
 

XeninWorX

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It is worth it. Almost everything comes right off the car with a quick rinse and wash. Car comes out much cleaner going through touchless car washes. I’ve wiped bird poop off my car by pouring a little water and wiping once with a paper towel.

Wouldn’t do the barrel of a wheel because the stick on weights wouldn’t adhere properly.

Under $1000 doesn’t sound right. Here in Canada, the shop I go to would charge $800-$1000 for 1 layer depending on which brand. If they’re doing 2-3 layers then under $1000 sounds right.
 

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Stage_3

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ABSOLUTELY WORTH IT!! lol

No more waxing, polishing or sealing. Plus,...better protection!! 100% worth the money.
 

drjeff

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I got a 2 layer ceramic coating done for $600. That included paint correction, etc. totally worth it- looks amazing and car is much easier to maintain. Shop around- some other shops were much higher priced.
 

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I asked two local detail shops for quotes. One said $1200 for a 2 year coating $1500 for 5 year and the other hasn't gotten back to me yet. Does that sound like a good price or is it too high?

I would prefer to use a local shop but the Ziebart and Tint World near me both have 4.5 star averages on google so it looks like they might be competent, I might get a quote from one of them if the second local shop doesn't get back to me.
 

NeedForGreen

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Is it worth it? If you can afford it sure. It makes washing a lot easier. Then again a lot of your hybrid ceramics can do almost all of the same thing these days and some can last a year now. Ceramic coatings can still get scratched, can still chip, etc.. so that's the downfall.
I haven't jumped on the ceramic train myself because of cost. I'm sure I could do it myself, but when I get asked if my car has ceramic on it all of the time when I just have hybrid I figure hey what I'm doing and using must working. My car is garage kept so it's a lot easier for me to keep it clean.
As far as cost, a local shop charges around 2k for ceramic pro. No idea if its 2 or 5 years. It really all depends on the brand the shop uses, how much paint correction needs to be done prior, how many coats, etc.. I've seen other places quote a lot less.
A lot of places are starting to use graphene coatings which I've seen to cost less yet claim to last even longer, but there's a lot of debate on it.
 

GP2017GT

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Totally worth it !! It gave my car a very deep shine that I could never achieve before. Washing my car is so much easier now. 900 dollars well spent.
 

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So what is it about the coating that is so great? What does it really do?

Easier to clean? So , to me, is a well waxed car or hybrid coated one.

If the coating lasts up to 5 years, is the money worth it? Not sure all of them do.

Sorry if I sound from the other side. It is often hard for me to part with that much money. Just want to understand and justify the cost to the accountant (wife).

I also hear that ceramic coatings do not prevent water spots, nor chips.

So is it just a apply once coat that just lasts a long time?

I have no problem washing my car weekly and waxing once a month. Using Turtle wax Hybrid Solutions Spray coating makes it so easy and it lasts a really long time. If I believe it lasts a year (with two coats), a bottle is only $15 give or take. Even if I use a bottle a year, which I don't, it is far cheaper over the 5 years.

What am I getting for $1000? Is it really just professional detailing and polishing with a coating so that I won't need another detailing for a couple years? Any car will look better, and with the right layer of protection, be easy to clean after a full detailing.

Is it not better to just get vinyl applied? that replaces your surface and prevents chips.

Need help guys to get the wife to give me the green light.
 

FreePenguin

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Vinyl doesn’t honestly protect paint from any impacts, PPF is better for front end. Ceramic I don’t know much about but friends have ceramic and there’s still rock pelts
 

NeedForGreen

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Maybe autos are different? But like Louk said, on our manuals, once you start the engine, and toggle it to 'MyMode', it stays there until you turn the engine off. Hopefully other auto owners will chime in soon.
So what is it about the coating that is so great? What does it really do?

Easier to clean? So , to me, is a well waxed car or hybrid coated one.

If the coating lasts up to 5 years, is the money worth it? Not sure all of them do.

Sorry if I sound from the other side. It is often hard for me to part with that much money. Just want to understand and justify the cost to the accountant (wife).

I also hear that ceramic coatings do not prevent water spots, nor chips.

So is it just a apply once coat that just lasts a long time?

I have no problem washing my car weekly and waxing once a month. Using Turtle wax Hybrid Solutions Spray coating makes it so easy and it lasts a really long time. If I believe it lasts a year (with two coats), a bottle is only $15 give or take. Even if I use a bottle a year, which I don't, it is far cheaper over the 5 years.

What am I getting for $1000? Is it really just professional detailing and polishing with a coating so that I won't need another detailing for a couple years? Any car will look better, and with the right layer of protection, be easy to clean after a full detailing.

Is it not better to just get vinyl applied? that replaces your surface and prevents chips.

Need help guys to get the wife to give me the green light.
See if this video helps.

The interesting thing is my neighbor has 2 coated cars. He's out every week spending a few hrs washing. I have hybrid and all I do is mostly use a detailer or do a quick wash. His cars are more glossy, but not by much.
 
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XS

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It's a preferential thing, to me honestly. My truck I coated, my Mustang I did not. I only need to wax my car once a year max - I use BWM 101 Hi-Temp Paste Wax. It honestly changed the game for me. With my truck I have to maintain the coating. It looked perfect for 1 year then after that I found I was using a ceramic coating topper to maintain that shine, almost every wash. You could tell the coating was still working, it just didn't have that same pop as before. The waxed Mustang I don't have to maintain with toppers. Plus the ceramic coat I used (Gyeon) was pricey, then the topper (also Gyeon) is pricey. The wax cost me $12, for a year of protection. It sheds water just as well as the Gyeon. It is not quite up to ceramic coat levels for shedding contamination, but it's certainly still good. I also think while ceramic coats gloss like crazy, it's actually the painstaking prep process that is really giving you that deep wet shine. If you do that prep before you apply any kind of protectant the car is going to look wet, shiny, mirror-like. I can't tell a gloss difference between my car and my truck using the same level of prep on both. That said, a wax/sealant is not going to give you the hardness a ceramic coat will. Also a wax/sealant tends to be positively charged, meaning it attracts dust. Ceramic coats aren't magic, but they do attract less dust. Lastly, no matter which route you go, don't fall for the gimmicks. Larry Kosilla of AMMO NYC has an interesting take on this new graphene craze, and actually went out to PhD chemists to get answers. While he didn't come right out and blatantly debunk it.... he pretty much debunked it. They're just adding graphite dust to the coating which isn't doing anything really.
 

GP2017GT

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So what is it about the coating that is so great? What does it really do?

Easier to clean? So , to me, is a well waxed car or hybrid coated one.

If the coating lasts up to 5 years, is the money worth it? Not sure all of them do.

Sorry if I sound from the other side. It is often hard for me to part with that much money. Just want to understand and justify the cost to the accountant (wife).

I also hear that ceramic coatings do not prevent water spots, nor chips.

So is it just a apply once coat that just lasts a long time?

I have no problem washing my car weekly and waxing once a month. Using Turtle wax Hybrid Solutions Spray coating makes it so easy and it lasts a really long time. If I believe it lasts a year (with two coats), a bottle is only $15 give or take. Even if I use a bottle a year, which I don't, it is far cheaper over the 5 years.

What am I getting for $1000? Is it really just professional detailing and polishing with a coating so that I won't need another detailing for a couple years? Any car will look better, and with the right layer of protection, be easy to clean after a full detailing.

Is it not better to just get vinyl applied? that replaces your surface and prevents chips.

Need help guys to get the wife to give me the green light.
If you have to ask if you can afford it, you probably can't. It was worth it to me. I can tell the difference on my car. I'm only speaking for myself. You do what you need to do. Cheers mate.
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