MikeS6

I was just curious as to how those who have either Optic-Coat or any other high quality ceramic coatings, feel about them. Is it something that really adds a noticeable visual difference? Do you feel that it's so much better at resisting water, dirt, and a lot more scratch resistant? I hear repairing a ceramic coating after 24 or 30 months it's rather involved, as you can't simply buff out the small scratches or swirls, they must be wet sanded out, etc.

cwf13s6

I had ceramic pro applied two years ago to the GTR, and it's pretty amazing. The car is in a perpetual state of freshly waxed, it resists dirt quite well, and water beads up aggressively off all surfaces. After two years, I don't notice any degradation in the coating effectiveness, and it has a 5 year warranty (lifetime with annual maintenance). It even gives the paint a bit of extra shine.

The main difference between waxing and ceramic coating is that while wax tends to fade after a month or two, or a few washes, ceramic coating perennially has that just waxed feel. Its pricey of course, about 5-10x more than waxing ($1600-2000 depending on which package and which car, a fair bit of which for me went into paint prep before the coating), but IMHO the results are worth it, especially the longer you own the car.

It of course still gets dirty, and you have to take care of it like you would any nice paint job (brushless car washes seem to work ok for me). I'm not sure what the repair story would look like, i'm assuming that would fall into "annual maintenance", i should probably look into that having been two years now. Curious if folks have any anecdotes about this.

Make sure you get it applied as somewhere reputable, I went to this place, i'm sure folks on the forum could recommend local installers for you: https://www.apcautospa.com/ceramic-pro

kczach

I believe my wife had it applied to her A8. She's only had it for about 6 months so it's hard to tell how it's holding up. The car looks good when I get tired of seeing it dirty and get it washed! Frankly I think it depends on the color of your car on how dramatic it looks. I think a red or black car would look wonderful but it doesn't seem as noticeable on a champagne color on my wife's car. Just my two cents.

subterFUSE

I have XPel Ultimate film and Modesta coatings on my S6 and my S63 AMG.

The Modesta coatings are fantastic. I will have them done to every car I buy from now on.

subterFUSE

My detailer explains it to customers like this.....

A ceramic coating is not for everyone. Coatings create a very hard shell over your paint. The shell is very durable, but also very difficult to remove. You can scratch the coating, and the coating can still get swirl marks. But, unlike wax, if you swirl mark a coating.... you are stuck with those swirl marks unless you sand the coating off.

A car that has basic wax can be polished. You can repair fine swirl marks periodically.

Bottom line is that, if you have a coating then you need to be the type of person who will self-wash the car by hand. You can't take a coated car to the local car wash and run it through the automatic wash. Those auto washers will swirl mark the coating and you won't be able to just polish the swirls out.

But, if you are someone who takes care of your car, the coating is a fantastic product that gives you excellent protection from the environment.

cwf13s6

I haven't heard it explained this way, but it makes sense. I guess you just kind of assume anyone coating a car is going to be that kind of person who doesn't go to a wash, but it does explain why you wouldn't do it to every car out of the factory (other than price).

MikeS6

I'm trying to assess if a ceramic coating does several things that offset the $1250 that my Local ceramic coating shop is going to charge me to install/apply.

#1.) Does it protect the paintwork NOTICEABLE BETTER, than a quality wax, and paint sealant (turtle ice) definition of "protect" would be it repels water, dust, dirt, oils, NOTICEABLE BETTER than wax & sealant, it's easier to clean, and stays cleaner longer etc.

#2.) Does it make the car LOOK NOTICEABLE BETTER than a wash/wax/sealant?

#3.) Does it do both of these things BETTER and LONGER than a wash/wax/sealant every 2 weeks or so?

#4.) As the car ages, say gets to be 24+ Months old; does it still appear to have LIKE-NEW paintwork, or appears like it's brand new, etc.

If it does not really do all of these things, and you are the type of person to hand-wash your car, and wax & seal it often as in once a week or so, why bother getting a Ceramic Coating at all?

AMDG75

I have XPel Ultimate film and Opticoat Pro and after 4 years, water still beads up like it did when first applied. My car is far easier to clean than my cars without the coating, and it is satisfying to see no paint chips in the hood as I did when washing other cars. Count me satisfied.

MikeS6

So it also reduces paint chipping? I don't thing anyone has ever mentioned that or even hinted at that.

AMDG75

The Xpel ultimate reduces the chipping, not the coating.