DIY Ceramic Coating

[Airmousam]

I had cquartz done professionally on 3 black Mercedes and it held up awesome! I've now learned I don't keep my vehicles long enough to make it worth it lol

 

[OnTheReel]

Anybody go the graphene route?

I did. Adam’s. Really pleased with how easy it was to apply and how easy the truck is to clean.

 

[enve46]

I've heard good things about the cquartz as well from what I read. Probably will go with one of the 2. Maybe cquartz if it's easier to apply and this will be my first time.

don’t be intimidated by Gtechniq, just pay attention and have good lighting. Cquartz is good but not as good as Gtechniq. Much more prone to it getting etching, like bird droppings and sprinkler water. Oh and go to Costco and buy a large packet of microfibers for removal. Toss when you’re done.

Where are you located?

 

[Phillytrx]

Anybody go the graphene route?

That’s what I’m doing. I’m going with the Ethos graphene. Just ordered today along with six new pads and new microfiber towels.

 

[Jxm8669]

don’t be intimidated by Gtechniq, just pay attention and have good lighting. Cquartz is good but not as good as Gtechniq. Much more prone to it getting etching, like bird droppings and sprinkler water. Oh and go to Costco and buy a large packet of microfibers for removal. Toss when you’re done.

Where are you located?

Yeah if it takes a little bit more time, effort, patience then I'm willing to go with whatever will hold up better.

I'm in "upstate" NY, Hudson Valley region. Poughkeepsie is the bigger town that people have usually heard of.

 

[Dragonman]

My brother and his wife bought a Bronco sport a few months ago and thought it would be a fun Saturday project and some good husband/wife time… by the time they were done they hated every second of it and were both sore the next few days (lawyers… sheesh…). They figured out it was just a couple billable ours to pay a professional and be done with it…. I’m going to end up switching it up with some wraps or partial wraps over the next couple years for business purposes so I’m skipping it.

 

[Plasticsdoc]

I have done it a couple times on my vehicles and about to do my TRX. Research on auto geek and YouTube and then do it. Easier than I expected.

Even with buying all the supplies it is drastically cheaper. Get a good swirl finder light. Take your time, prep paint, and go. Have only used ceramic and has held up nicely over the couple years I keep them. My main reason to do it is the ease of cleaning a monster vehicle.

I did a ton of research and used pinnacle black label ceramic and Wolfgang profi and liked both.

 

[enve46]

Yeah if it takes a little bit more time, effort, patience then I'm willing to go with whatever will hold up better.

I'm in "upstate" NY, Hudson Valley region. Poughkeepsie is the bigger town that people have usually heard of.

I know where that is, I’m originally from Binghamton. You’ll be good with Exo, just use lots of rags and alternate frequently on a clean side. Also, good lighting is key. Since it’s cooler right now, allow it to flash long enough so it wiped off easier.

 

[Bgrant0209]

Has anyone done ceramic coating themselves? I know you can buy some pretty high quality coatings, but just curious how tough the application is. I have done some light paint correction in the past that came out pretty good, so is this doable? I imagine it's just a lot of prep work and time consuming, otherwise fairly straightforward?

Granted I don't have a truck yet but just planning. Have a hard time justifying full cost to have a shop do it.

Opinions?

I actually own to shops. I do not tell anyone this but I am in a good mood. Get good product and go to you tube and watch some videos. If you feel comfortable then do it if not just pay the money but price around we do it cheaper than the dealerships do. I recommend one of these.
CERAMIC SPRAY by TORQUE DETAIL
STREET by R1 COATINGS
RECHARGE by HYDROSILEX
SYSTEM-X by ELEMENT 119

 

[Ben3]

I use Torque Detail products on all my cars, trucks & motorcycles.

 

[Ben3]

more pics

 

[cobrar97]

I've been detailing for quite some time. I've used many different waxes, that evolved into sealants, and then evolved into the coating of today.
All of the recommendations already made have been good. I do have an alternative if you have any concern at all.
The brand is called Polish Angel, and they make a coating product called GlassCoat. It's hands-down, the most user friendly coating available, and it looks outstanding. Most Polish Angel products are top-shelf.
The GlassCoat product is virtually impossible to mess up, it's very forgiving, and the results are spectacular. NOW...the longevity of the coating is going to top-out at 2 years. For me, this has never been a problem, because they make a compatible coating maintenance product that lasts about 6 months on it own. Since my vehicle has to always look it's best, I tend to use the maintenance spray at least once a month (which many would call a waste of money). But doing so ensures that I never have to reapply the base-coating again.
Having a vehicle for 4-5 years, and the original coating is just like day 1.

If you don't intend to maintain it, and want 3-5 years, then some of the other recommended products would do better at that. I question if they look as well, and I KNOW they are not as easy to apply (for a first-timer anyone).

If I was recommending the next step-up product in terms of learning curve, but still quite easy, I'd recommend the new Gyeon EVO products...and in most cases the MOHS EVO.

As stated, you will be sealing in whatever finish you start with. Even from the dealer, you'll want to do a paint "decon" and possibly a light buffing to make it close to perfect before coating.
There are many companies that make the IRON and TAR decon products (Gyeon Iron and Tar, CarPro Iron and Tar, Iron-X and Tar-X). These are also the decon products you can use after each winter to remove contamination from your vehicle without affecting the coating at all. Everything is made to work together.

 

[Jeffro2912]

I've been detailing for quite some time. I've used many different waxes, that evolved into sealants, and then evolved into the coating of today.
All of the recommendations already made have been good. I do have an alternative if you have any concern at all.
The brand is called Polish Angel, and they make a coating product called GlassCoat. It's hands-down, the most user friendly coating available, and it looks outstanding. Most Polish Angel products are top-shelf.
The GlassCoat product is virtually impossible to mess up, it's very forgiving, and the results are spectacular. NOW...the longevity of the coating is going to top-out at 2 years. For me, this has never been a problem, because they make a compatible coating maintenance product that lasts about 6 months on it own. Since my vehicle has to always look it's best, I tend to use the maintenance spray at least once a month (which many would call a waste of money). But doing so ensures that I never have to reapply the base-coating again.
Having a vehicle for 4-5 years, and the original coating is just like day 1.

If you don't intend to maintain it, and want 3-5 years, then some of the other recommended products would do better at that. I question if they look as well, and I KNOW they are not as easy to apply (for a first-timer anyone).

If I was recommending the next step-up product in terms of learning curve, but still quite easy, I'd recommend the new Gyeon EVO products...and in most cases the MOHS EVO.

As stated, you will be sealing in whatever finish you start with. Even from the dealer, you'll want to do a paint "decon" and possibly a light buffing to make it close to perfect before coating.
There are many companies that make the IRON and TAR decon products (Gyeon Iron and Tar, CarPro Iron and Tar, Iron-X and Tar-X). These are also the decon products you can use after each winter to remove contamination from your vehicle without affecting the coating at all. Everything is made to work together.

Thanks for this! I was watching some application videos for the MOHS the other day and the “sweating” feature seems like it would really help in the application and leveling process. I’ll have to check out the Polish Angel products, as I had not seen these until now!

 

[NFARVW]

It's really all in the paint correction. If you don't plan on doing PPF then you must have the paint perfect prior to applying the ceramic. I'll go through my image shack pics online and see what I can drum up over past ceramic work on my cars.

My wife's Benz post Ceramic Pro Install (5 coats)

My black 2014 Ferrari Cali30 Handling Speciale I sold awhile ago that was a one owner car with auto car wash paint damage. My detailer (who became a great friend of mine) spent 36hours correcting the paint prior to the ceramic install. The end result is the best I've seen on a non-metallic gloss black car to this day.

Emblems were removed for the paint correction and re-installed after ceramic.

insane paint correction job

The 2019 Mclaren 570S was new so only required a light paint correction and ceramic. The paint was a green metallic pearl so it shimmered but didn't really reflect like gloss black. Much easier install job.

key illustrating the unique paint qualities

The 2017 Lamborghini Huracan 580-2 had a matte grey paint that he installed stealth PPF on top and then ceramic coated. Since it was matte it required no paint correction and even if it was gloss/metallic grey, the PPF would negate that step. The ceramic once applied to the PPF didn't really change the sheen of the appearance. It just made washing the car easier like the others.

All of those cars were done with Ceramic Pro. He uses other brands now and I've yet to see any real difference as far as shine, depth, etc.

Our most recent car to get done was my wife's 2021 Volvo XC90 T8

That was done with IGL Kenzo. The paint only needed a light paint correction as it was new. I couldn't tell a difference in sheen/depth from the Ceramic Pro.

My advice is to just let a professional do it. Prices will be anywhere from $1000-$1500 depending on your location and their reputation as an installer. See if you can find previous examples of their work and go from there. As for DIY, time is money but if you want to try it just spend more time on the paint correction than the ceramic install and don't coat it until you are 100% satisfied with the paint correction. Good luck!

 

[Hawks]

I've been doing paint correction/ polishing for 38 years. I owned a Auto Detail Shop for 10 years, long before there was Ceramic! If I could give one piece of advice it's all in the prep ! The final step/Ceramic is the easier part. Just remember whatever you put it over you will see in the end results ! I use Cquartz most of the time. I find it works well on Black paint. You can watch YouTube videos to learn polishing but sometimes it's easier to pay a professional. Most new vehicles I see need some type of paint protection.



































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































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[Pumphry Bigelow]

I am dropping mine off with a professional on Monday. It is more than I want to get involved with, and this dealer (With the package I am getting) will go over everything every 6 months with a sacrificial layer. I am getting the lifetime coating. Money well spent in my eyes.

 

[NateTRX]

Lookup Apex Detail on YouTube.

You can learn how to do paint correction, ceramic coating, ect all through his channel. He’s super detailed and really good at explaining things.

 

[wiredsol]

Has anyone done ceramic coating themselves? I know you can buy some pretty high quality coatings, but just curious how tough the application is. I have done some light paint correction in the past that came out pretty good, so is this doable? I imagine it's just a lot of prep work and time consuming, otherwise fairly straightforward?

Granted I don't have a truck yet but just planning. Have a hard time justifying full cost to have a shop do it.

Opinions?

Thoroughly wash and dry the vehicle. Clay bar the entire vehicle gently. Rinse and dry again. Apply your ceramic product as directed. do your windows, headlights, everything. Every step has to be done well. Have an eye for detail. You 'gotta want it! It turns out beautifully! Something you can be proud to say that you did it.

 

[wiredsol]

Thanks for all the input fellas! I think it's really gonna come down to what kind of condition the paint is in when the truck shows up. If it's not too bad I may give it a shot myself.

I'd still recommend a simple clay bar routine no matter how good it looks. Cheap and easy. You might be surprised with what you will see in the clay!

 

[Jxm8669]

I didn't expect such a great response from the group. Thanks to everyone for your input. Definitely gonna do some more research and see what kind of condition my paint shows up in when I get the truck. If I wind up doing it myself I will definitely post some progress pics, end results, wnd what I used!