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Thinking about going with a ceramic "finish" on my 2019 E53. Is there any consensus on here about the value of it - or is a high quality wax/polish sufficient?
Any pointers or experiences are welcomed.
Thanks!!
I had a ceramic coating put on an SL550 with paint correction to take out micro scratches and some minor swirling in the finish. It is a great looking result. The paint color is lunar blue and now looks like a mirror. It is so much easier to keep up than comparing to the Zymol wax I used previously. Hydrosilex recharge spray goes on easy and comes off with almost no elbow grease using thick microfiber towels. Water sheds off the paint as quickly as it hits and unless left out in the sun afterwards leaves no water spots. For me, it was well worth the cost and glad we did it. I will say to check around for someone that is highly recommended to do the application. Can't imagine you'll be disappointed. I might add that we are OCD about keeping our cars shiny and new looking and this makes it very easy.
I had paint correction, ceramic coating and then had the entire car wrapped. 24,000 miles, still looks brand new. Had it done on my GT, NSX and wife's X1, cars are easier to keep looking great!!!!
I had paint correction, ceramic coating and then had the entire car wrapped. 24,000 miles, still looks brand new. Had it done on my GT, NSX and wife's X1, cars are easier to keep looking great!!!!
It's a big spend but your car will look perfect forever.
You ceramic coated then did the wrap? What about wrap then coat? Wouldn’t that be better? I’m looking at doing the same but was told to coat over the ppf.
2022 AMG SL63, 992 GT3, Taycan Turbo, 1966 Shelby Cobra, Ford Raptor, KTM 1290 Super Duke R Evo
Detailing is a hobby for me, now that I'm mostly retired. While it takes some time to learn the techniques (lots of good videos online, especially the Autogeek ones), it can be rewarding. The first time applying a ceramic sealant can be a little nerve-wracking: if you leave it on too long it can solidify in uneven lumps and need to be aggressively polished out. But there are "non-pro" ceramics that have a longer flash time, reducing that fear. Initial equipment and supplies run about $500, and then the incremental cost of washing, claying, polishing, and ceramic coating a car is about $50. In the photos below, I used the BlackFire Ceramic Coating Black Edition (who comes up with these names?), which was $100 for a tiny 50ml bottle that I've used on three cars and there's more than half of it left. It takes me about 7 hours -- a 5 hour session and a 2 hour session the next day -- per car.
The photos below are of my 2020 E63S, and the (slightly raised) carbon hood of my GT3RS. Carbon fiber can be a bear to polish: the hood is very light and thin and the clear coat on the Porsche is also very thin, so I couldn't correct too much. The hood is $26,000 so care is called for :-).
Is your E63 lunar blue? It looks great. Have been waiting on a 2021 in lunar blue since early November. I too am retired and love detailing our cars. Can spend the entire day in the garage alone working on them and be quite happy.
My car was corrected, PPF'd and then coated. It looks clean even when it's dirty, like it is right now. It's hard now to pull the wash buckets off the shelf with two kids under two.
2022 AMG SL63, 992 GT3, Taycan Turbo, 1966 Shelby Cobra, Ford Raptor, KTM 1290 Super Duke R Evo
Originally Posted by Sunbeltgolfer11
Is your E63 lunar blue? It looks great. Have been waiting on a 2021 in lunar blue since early November. I too am retired and love detailing our cars. Can spend the entire day in the garage alone working on them and be quite happy.
Thank you! Yes, it's Lunar Blue Metallic. My other cars ('66 Shelby Cobra, Porsche GT3RS, Porsche Taycan, McLaren 570 Spider) are all high profile. especially the Lizard Green GT3RS. I wanted a fun stealth car, and the E63S is debadged, no bright colors, and 39% tinted glass. The only change that I need to make is to replace the dealer-installed tint on the front windows because it's legal in NC, which requires 35% or lighter all around, while VA requires 50% or lighter on the fronts, and the car is perfect for a drive up to DC.
And, indeed, a day of detailing in the garage with a good audio book can be quite relaxing, except for the back. A four-post lift ameliorates that issue if you move the car up and down to avoid crouching.
Last edited by FlyingBear; Mar 25, 2021 at 11:16 AM.
Our SL550 is lunar blue and we love the color. Always gets a compliment or two when we are out cruising. I use a speedmaster rolling detailers cart for the lower areas of the car and it saves my back from all the bending. You're just a few hours East of us. If you haven't been over to the mountains in the Summer to avoid the heat and take advantage of great scenic rides you should consider it. At the higher elevations like Beech Mountain we run nearly 20* cooler most Summer days from what you get in the flat lands. The only problem I see is deciding which car to bring.
Thanks for all the replies.
What kind of price range are you seeing out there? I am afraid that the price that my detailer's price is too low. ( Not that low is ever a bad thing - just be wary of is my experience) All their other work has been top notch. $ 250.
2022 AMG SL63, 992 GT3, Taycan Turbo, 1966 Shelby Cobra, Ford Raptor, KTM 1290 Super Duke R Evo
$250 is very inexpensive. A full wash, clay bar, inspection, polish/correction, and ceramic is at least a 5 hour job. I’d expect to pay $500-$1000 depending on region. If the car already had full PPF or truly doesn’t need correction, it could be as little as $250 I guess. Also, there’s ceramic and there’s ceramic. A spray on SiO2 coating is “ceramic” but a real, hard coating is more the real deal. I’d ask your detailer their process and what products they use.
$250 is very inexpensive. A full wash, clay bar, inspection, polish/correction, and ceramic is at least a 5 hour job. I’d expect to pay $500-$1000 depending on region. If the car already had full PPF or truly doesn’t need correction, it could be as little as $250 I guess. Also, there’s ceramic and there’s ceramic. A spray on SiO2 coating is “ceramic” but a real, hard coating is more the real deal. I’d ask your detailer their process and what products they use.
What products are used in quality, pro-level jobs? This would be good to know when shopping around.
2022 AMG SL63, 992 GT3, Taycan Turbo, 1966 Shelby Cobra, Ford Raptor, KTM 1290 Super Duke R Evo
Originally Posted by Drewsky00
What products are used in quality, pro-level jobs? This would be good to know when shopping around.
This topic makes discussions about sports, religion, and politics look mild :-). It's even worse than discussions about hi-end audio systems!
There are countless brands that detailers swear by. One way to get more-or-less informed opinions is to look at www.autogeek.net, or its sister site, www.autopia-carcare.com; they're the same company, it seems, with quite different web sites. Griot's Garage has high quality products, especially their rotary polishers and pads, but I suspect they their chemicals are too pricey for most professional detailers. Brands that surface a lot are Chemical Guys, Mother's, Meguiar's, BlackFire, Wolfgang, Pinnacle, Sonax, Klasse, P21S, ....
Like almost any area of human endeavor, the closer you look the more complex it becomes. Many detailers will use different brands for their microfiber (a major religious discussion just there), for their wheel cleaner, etc. In general, the car wash, polish/corrector/sealant/ceramic from one vendor is a safe choice, as the products are designed to work together.
There's a fair amount of snake oil, or at least apparent snake oil, in this area: a lot of talk of nanotechnology
There's also real magic. I used about 10ml of ceramic coating on the E63S, which means that the coating is, on average. about 2 microns thick. A good wax is about a hundredth of that, i.e. 0,02 microns.You use a lot more wax on a car, but you wipe most of it off.
My suggestion is to ask your detailer what products they use, and check them out on Autogeek and its forum. But the real differentiator is the skill and perseverance of the detailer. Really good paint correction is a learned art and skill.
You ceramic coated then did the wrap? What about wrap then coat? Wouldn’t that be better? I’m looking at doing the same but was told to coat over the ppf.
You are absolutely correct, all the cars were wrapped in Expel, and then ceramic coated on top of the wrap!!!
To have our SL550 done with paint correction and a five year warranty from Ceramic Pro was $1500.00. It was done by Scott at The Shine Shop in Greensboro, NC. He did an incredible and I am really picjy about the our cars. Couldn't be happier with the outcome. It's been done for two years now and still looks as good as the day we picked it up.
I've had both Ceramic Pro and C Quartz both professional and finest, I prefer the Ceramic Pro. $1500.00 for the Silver package is about right with a minor correction.
I detail my own cars and have personally coated three of my cars with Gtechniq Crystal Serum Light. Great results! I'm done with polishes except for paint corrections.
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