Coatings worthwhile?

[Daniel]

A benefit from ceramic coating is ease of cleaning.

I did paint correction + cquartz UK 3.0 on my car and my current method of cleaning is:

1.pressure wash with water
2.foam gun
3.Pressure rinse
4.Leaf blower/compressed air to dry

I've found aslong as you don't wait too long between washes, dirt will come right off without having to 'scrub' the car with a wash mitt. The coating allows the water to bead right off the car with a leaf blower thus swirls are kept to a minimum with this method. Anytime something touches the surface of your car, there is a chance of getting swirls, even a microfiber towel or well lubricated wash mitt. I ceramic coated my wheels and even when I run track pads, the brake dust comes right off with high pressure water.

I still use a microfiber for non 'cosmetic' surfaces i.e door jambs, underneath hood, trunk, etc.

It was a lot of time doing paint correction and ceramic but I think it's worth it.

[Mspir3d]

I used opticoat several years ago and it's still holding strong. It's topped with Zymol carbon wax once a year. I don't normally need to use a wash mit however the car sits in the garage most of the time. I've been thinking of using CQ quartz on my daily driver but haven't been able to find the time to do it. I do believe a lot has to do with the paint preparation though. I color sanded and polished before applying so the finish was super smooth.

[ghostofsenna]

I like to detail my cars and fortunately it lives in a garage, so I don't do coatings since you can't polish or correct. I do firmly believe in coating the wheels.

[mrgizmo04]

For me the jury is out on these. I still don't quite get the application cycles. As stated in one of the posts above, if I have to re-apply or rejuvenate it every few months then what's the point. Some of the prices for some of the kits are pretty hefty, nano this nano that.

[Slideways]

Cool what reasonings do you have the cars in the elements are better suited with coatings than garaged cars? Just trying to see if you have a pro con that I haven’t thought of yet.

The application process is the whole entire reason that lead me down this path. 15 mins of application vs hours just seems so much better if beading and looks are comparable. Every 6 months and to me it’s a no brainer.

I don't really see a major downside of coating a car that gets garaged other than the prep and cost of the coatings. For me, it would probably take about two or three days to do a full correction and then coat the car. Since the original paint on my E46M is still in very good condition from the last detail 5+ years ago, I just stick to proper washing technique and easy to apply spray sealant. If it sees more than a few days a week of use, I might try out a coating.

[Brian N]

I been slowly accumulating the right products to maintain a coated car over the last year or so. Pressure washer, foam canon, brushes, mitts, towels, shampoo, cleaners, etc. It can be a lot to figure out and I think you have to at least like aspects of cleaning/detailing a car; it's not for everyone. With this COVID-19 pandemic, I am using it as an opportunity to finally do a 2-step paint correction and coating.

There are many benefits of a coating from what I gathered over a year of research:

• Protect the many hours of work to paint correct a car
• Keeps it looking good for longer
• Stays clean longer between washes (assuming b/c its slick and harder for grime to adhere to the surface)
• Easier to wash grime off
• Easier to apply than wax

If you're not interested in paint correcting your car, Meguiar's Ceramic Spray is a good easy-to-use alternative.

Yup totally understand being a little bored these days.

A lot on your list is from my personal experience not quite the results I get.

It does not protect the many hours worth of work polishing. The car will still swirl. Coating protecting against swirling has largely been debunked.

It does keep it looking good for longer. However it me only worth it if it doesn’t require extra toppers maintenance on top. Some people who coat and leave it on their cars without all the extra stuff. That can deal without polishing or claying I get. To me I can get these self cleaning properties and looks from other products that are much easier. Even if only 1/4 the durability.

As mentioned above good spray coatings have awesome beading self cleaning characteristics and even darkening the paint for richness

I don’t know what wax you’re using but real show carnaubas are a breeze to apply compared to a coating. If your talking about the amount of reapplication totally get it. A coating every 3 years for people is attractive.

[Brian N]

You’ve only dealt with Cquartz UK? I feel like UK wears super fast specially if you DD the vehicle. I’ve used other coating and UK seems like it always gives me way more swirls.

No I have dealt with Kamikaze, a number of CQuartz products, Gyeon, 22ple. Along with testing my neighbors in beta stages professional Megs coating coming out next year.

Like I mention earlier. I just don’t understand the logic all these companies are trying to sell everyone one now. Like most want you to coat and do toppings to maintain the coating or “rejuvenate” it. If I am spraying in a topper every month or every other month. Then for me screw it. If I get a really capable one I don’t need the hassle of the coating underneath.

So I am testing my two cars. One with NV car care spray coatings in it vs. UK 3.0 just to comparing beading and self cleaning characteristics. If it can hang for 5-6 months. I think I would have found the ideal solution at least for myself.

[Brian N]

I had Modesta BC-04 installed on my E92 M3, the gloss and wet look was amazing. It is garage kept and has held up well for the past 3 years. It makes cleaning easier, even rubber marks from the track come off pretty easily. The installer gave me some detail spray which I use after every few washes, I am only now starting to run out, I plan to use CarPro Reload from now on.

Does seem like that much of a pain to maintain it, at-least for me. Just a few different products I now use.

I paint corrected and coated my E38 with Avalon King's coating and it's decent, car is silver so it's hard to tell much of an improvement in gloss. It stays outside and doesn't get treated as well as the M3, it's not bad but didn't cost much.

I did use the left over coating on a new set of track wheels, and after my first track day on them I was surprised at how easy it was to clean the wheels normally the dust from my track pads made cleaning my old apex a pita but with the new coated wheels, a pressure wash blast and quick wipe down and they were looking great again. I would say it was definitely worth coating my track wheels.

Yes coatings are awesome if you are a set and forget it kinda person. I guess I have a little OCD and swirls bother the crap out of me. So having a coating for 2-3 years is hard. Pretty much you gotta deal with mildly swirled paint if your good at washing for the duration of the coating. Otherwise what’s the point of coating if your gonna polish at a yearly interval.

My main gripe comes from what you describe earlier. The topper in your case the reload. The coating takes the attributes of the reload while it’s on top. The “sacrificial” layer as they describe it. My goal is just to get a single step where I do that exact same process. However no coating underneath but the same beading and good protection. I want something that can last about half a year. This way if I apply every 3 months let’s say I have all the benefits of a coating without having to coat. If that makes sense. I don’t see what I would be loosing at that point.

[Brian N]

Very worth it. Especially on wheels it makes cleaning them so much easier. Its honestly all in the prep as well make sure that paint is clean and apply even light coats. I have had good experience with the kamakazi line

Yup coatings in wheels are awesome. This is the one area that to me you get the most bang for your buck. I am still trying a spray coating as a test. Then later this year NV is coming out with a more extreme wheel spray coating that might be interesting. If it lasts a year might go with that.

Kamikaze is great stuff. Like I said tired of the whole coating process. Dealing with coating toppers. Then if you need to recoat your bottle might be expired.

I want to get rid of the middle man and just have an awesome sprayable ceramic “topper” step you have to do anyways.

[Brian N]

The coatings seem to be worth it for cars that get parked out in the elements frequently. The application process is what I dislike most about coatings. For a garaged car, I think a sprayable wax or sealant is the way to go.

Cool what reasonings do you have the cars in the elements are better suited with coatings than garaged cars? Just trying to see if you have a pro con that I haven’t thought of yet.

The application process is the whole entire reason that lead me down this path. 15 mins of application vs hours just seems so much better if beading and looks are comparable. Every 6 months and to me it’s a no brainer.

[Lip]

I been slowly accumulating the right products to maintain a coated car over the last year or so. Pressure washer, foam canon, brushes, mitts, towels, shampoo, cleaners, etc. It can be a lot to figure out and I think you have to at least like aspects of cleaning/detailing a car; it's not for everyone. With this COVID-19 pandemic, I am using it as an opportunity to finally do a 2-step paint correction and coating.

There are many benefits of a coating from what I gathered over a year of research:

• Protect the many hours of work to paint correct a car
• Keeps it looking good for longer
• Stays clean longer between washes (assuming b/c its slick and harder for grime to adhere to the surface)
• Easier to wash grime off
• Easier to apply than wax

If you're not interested in paint correcting your car, Meguiar's Ceramic Spray is a good easy-to-use alternative.

[COVID-19]

You’ve only dealt with Cquartz UK? I feel like UK wears super fast specially if you DD the vehicle. I’ve used other coating and UK seems like it always gives me way more swirls.

[tdott]

I had Modesta BC-04 installed on my E92 M3, the gloss and wet look was amazing. It is garage kept and has held up well for the past 3 years. It makes cleaning easier, even rubber marks from the track come off pretty easily. The installer gave me some detail spray which I use after every few washes, I am only now starting to run out, I plan to use CarPro Reload from now on.

Does seem like that much of a pain to maintain it, at-least for me. Just a few different products I now use.

I paint corrected and coated my E38 with Avalon King's coating and it's decent, car is silver so it's hard to tell much of an improvement in gloss. It stays outside and doesn't get treated as well as the M3, it's not bad but didn't cost much.

I did use the left over coating on a new set of track wheels, and after my first track day on them I was surprised at how easy it was to clean the wheels normally the dust from my track pads made cleaning my old apex a pita but with the new coated wheels, a pressure wash blast and quick wipe down and they were looking great again. I would say it was definitely worth coating my track wheels.

[Grke46m3]

Very worth it. Especially on wheels it makes cleaning them so much easier. Its honestly all in the prep as well make sure that paint is clean and apply even light coats. I have had good experience with the kamakazi line

[Slideways]

The coatings seem to be worth it for cars that get parked out in the elements frequently. The application process is what I dislike most about coatings. For a garaged car, I think a sprayable wax or sealant is the way to go.