ceramic coating.

[jasons]

hi a local valeting company is offering a deal on a 2 year ceramic coating is it worth having the ceramic coating what are the advantages of having it done I wash my car weekly and always use a quick detailing spray after washing and drying the car had the star guard treatment when I bought the car is this the same as the ceramic coating ?.

 

[LeeJV]

Hey Jason
Ceramic coatings are very beneficial, but not all are equal, and despite popular belief, they still need to maintained with correctly.

The main benefit from Pro only coatings Are that they Re vwry resistant to chemical, greatly reduce bonded contaminants from the paintwork resulting in easier cleaning and maintenance.

Not all coatings are created equal. Many suffer with water spotting, apart from the likes of Kamikaze and Modesta that I know of, and depending on what you want from the coating will also depend on what you go for.

As with all coatings, they will only perform and last well if the preparation done before hand has been done to a high standard,

What type of Ceramic coating has been offered to you and is the company accredited by any brands? Many Pro only coating manufacturers insist of the company being fully trained in order to give you a warranty... and to endure that the product works correctly.

I could ramble on for an age buddy, so I'll stop here for now.
But in short yes. They are worth every penny IMO.

 

[V6GBJ]

hi a local valeting company is offering a deal on a 2 year ceramic coating is it worth having the ceramic coating what are the advantages of having it done I wash my car weekly and always use a quick detailing spray after washing and drying the car had the star guard treatment when I bought the car is this the same as the ceramic coating ?.

My SL was coated when new in 2016 and still gleams. It was Starguard coating which is actually Supaguard. MB used their own new name when promoting it as an option on new cars. Lee will know but I think Supaguard is used by many professional detailers.

 

[LeeJV]

Supaguard/ starguard is initially a polymer based paint sealant. And will work relatively well, depending on the preparation before hand, it usually comes with a maintenance kit that you wash it with to help prolong the life.

However, even if applied in house by a trained tech, if the paintwork isn't absolutely flawless and prepped correctly it wont last that long.

If however your paintwork is looking a little tired with wash marring, and swirls then a full paint correction will do it the world of good, so then it would be the ideal time to put a good quality coating on it.
Once applied your Detailer will give you advice on how to safely wash and maintain the paintwork, and in many cases recommended products that work well with the coating applied.

 

[Yex]

As stated by Lee above you need to ensure your paintwork is is "as new" condition or will come back to that level with a good level detail being completed before any ceramic coating is applied.

If you do go down the ceramic route pick an experienced car detailer who knows their stuff and has been trained on the application process by the manufacturer.

This guy is local to me and is rather good at what he does:

Car Detailing Essex | Professional Car Detailer

Car Detailers in Essex- Professional car detailing services in Essex since 2003 Paint correction, new car detailing and ceramic coatings a speciality. Gyeon Quartz Certified.

www.gleammachine.net

If you can find someone similar local to you take your car along and they will tell you what it will cost to prepare the car and apply the ceramic coating, or if your car is not suitable due to age of paint, imperfections etc. Remember a good detailer can so no if he doesn't think the work will be worth it.

 

[James Copeland]

+1 for Kamikaze.

 

[jasons]

Hey Jason
Ceramic coatings are very beneficial, but not all are equal, and despite popular belief, they still need to maintained with correctly.

The main benefit from Pro only coatings Are that they Re vwry resistant to chemical, greatly reduce bonded contaminants from the paintwork resulting in easier cleaning and maintenance.

Not all coatings are created equal. Many suffer with water spotting, apart from the likes of Kamikaze and Modesta that I know of, and depending on what you want from the coating will also depend on what you go for.

As with all coatings, they will only perform and last well if the preparation done before hand has been done to a high standard,

What type of Ceramic coating has been offered to you and is the company accredited by any brands? Many Pro only coating manufacturers insist of the company being fully trained in order to give you a warranty... and to endure that the product works correctly.

I could ramble on for an age buddy, so I'll stop here for now.
But in short yes. They are worth every penny IMO.

many thanks for your opinion and advice the product that is on offer is called auto bead I am not unto date with all the various products etc my car is a 2012 and the paint work looks ok to the naked eye but I guess it will have contaminants on it that you can't see.

 

[LeeJV]

Hey bud, Autobead are relatively new to the ceramic coating, and from what I can see the 2 year coating is a consumer grade, meaning anyone can use it or buy it. And it's very cheap to buy, almost half the price of other entry level coatings.
But again, bo matter what you go with, your paint will have to be contaminated, with chemical and clay, after that it will have to be machine polished to remove the marring caused from the decon and clay process. Then once done a good coating and a safe wash method will then maintain that finish for far longer.

How much are they offering the coating for, and have they aslo said that they would do a paint correction prior to applying it.?

I want comment on the quality of Autobead as I have no experiences with it., but it all depends on your budget and how much you want to invest into it

 

[ShaunB]

hi a local valeting company is offering a deal on a 2 year ceramic coating is it worth having the ceramic coating what are the advantages of having it done I wash my car weekly and always use a quick detailing spray after washing and drying the car had the star guard treatment when I bought the car is this the same as the ceramic coating ?.

Star guard is rubbish in my opinion, but I suppose maybe better than nothing.

Ceramic coatings are great, but I'd be weary of something that only lasts two years.
Find a detailer that does gtechniq for example, I've had it applied to my own car, and recently my wife's new Mazda 3.
I went for the crystal serum light, as I figured I don't need a 7 year guarantee as both cars will be gone in probably 3 years.

Its definitely the best thing I've done, just wash the car, no more polishing, just a regular wash.
I do give the cars spray of gyeon wetcoat every month or so, and a gtechniq citrus foam every 6 or 7 months under advice from the detailer himself.

 

[Germgh0st]

I had mine done locally using GTecniq products for just under £1200, this included a two stage polish beforehand, crystal serum ultra, and treatments for windows, tyres and interior. Guaranteed for 9 years as long as it goes back for annual check up and maintenance which is about £150. The results are excellent, takes very little to keep the car clean and glossy looking.

 

[liamt]

Star guard is rubbish in my opinion, but I suppose maybe better than nothing.

I've never really found this to be the case, Supaguard (rebranded as Star Guard for MB) is a well known product. I think the problem is not with the product itself but how it is applied by certain dealers and how it is maintained. I've had three cars from the same MB dealer, the latest car picked up up just a few weeks ago. All of them had Supaguard applied correctly and have stood the test of time. We also have a 2014 W204 in the family bought new from the same dealer and applied with Supaguard and regularly maintained with the supplied kit. The car is now six years old and still looks good.

 

[jasons]

Hey bud, Autobead are relatively new to the ceramic coating, and from what I can see the 2 year coating is a consumer grade, meaning anyone can use it or buy it. And it's very cheap to buy, almost half the price of other entry level coatings.
But again, bo matter what you go with, your paint will have to be contaminated, with chemical and clay, after that it will have to be machine polished to remove the marring caused from the decon and clay process. Then once done a good coating and a safe wash method will then maintain that finish for far longer.

How much are they offering the coating for, and have they aslo said that they would do a paint correction prior to applying it.?

I want comment on the quality of Autobead as I have no experiences with it., but it all depends on your budget and how much you want to invest into it

the price quoted is £165 down from £250 in a black Friday sale but seeing what some people pay both prices seem really cheap and maybe not as good as I thought.

 

[Will]

I think the cachet of ‘ceramic coating’ has cashed in a bit on the keen detailing market, in that there will be such a wide range of products (and varying skill levels of said detailer) on offer you need to do your research before parting with your cash and letting anyone loose on your pride and joy.

I had a relatively entry level ceramic coating from a recognised/premium manufacturer and applied by an experienced/approved detailer to one of my cars earlier this year. It’s from Kamikaze and the detailer spent pretty much a whole week preparing the car before applying the coating.

I have only washed the car a handful of times since it was applied but it repels dirt and water noticeably, most dust and light amounts of dirt come off in a rain shower. The wheels still get quite dusty but are very easy to clean.

It was money well spent.

I guess you get what you pay for but £165 is too cheap and I would question what prep (if anything other than a wash etc) you would be getting for that sort of money.

As with most stuff, it’s the preparation that takes time - the actual coating is the quick and easy part by comparison!

 

[Deleted member 65149]

I've never really found this to be the case, Supaguard (rebranded as Star Guard for MB) is a well known product. I think the problem is not with the product itself but how it is applied by certain dealers and how it is maintained. I've had three cars from the same MB dealer, the latest car picked up up just a few weeks ago. All of them had Supaguard applied correctly and have stood the test of time. We also have a 2014 W204 in the family bought new from the same dealer and applied with Supaguard and regularly maintained with the supplied kit. The car is now six years old and still looks good.

I have a 2012 W204 bought new and never given any ceramic or other specialist protective treatment. The car is now eight years old and still looks good. I always wash it with a normal wash-n-wax and dry off with microfibre cloths. About five years ago I did go over it with a clay bar followed by carnauba wax, but just that once. My intentions to do it again keep failing, but with the car still looking like new it's hard to justify the effort. I guess the main advantage would be that dirt slides off faster.

Edit: I'm still thinking about getting it ceramic coated though!

 

[C43AMG]

As above I have had my last two cars ceramic coated with Kamikaze by the same detailer ( Divine Detail ) as Will, on both occasions he had the car for a week.

The first was my CL four years ago and it still is looking great and the second the Bentley a couple of months ago,that car was three years old when i bought it and although it had been looked after the difference after Dave had finished doing his magic was incredible.

Highly recommended.

 

[vijilants]

Rather than a ceramic coating, a friend of mine went for paint protection film on his Aston DB9. Again this cost £1200 but it also protects from stone chips.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Rather than a ceramic coating, a friend of mine went for paint protection film on his Aston DB9. Again this cost £1200 but it also protects from stone chips.

Whole body?! That's cheap!

 

[vijilants]

Whole body?! That's cheap!

My mistake...£1600 inc stage 1 detail and polish ... front half of the body ...Mint Condition UK | Paint Protection Film

They do Freearis etc down there.

 

[Germgh0st]

£165 is definitely too cheap. My car had 200 miles on it when I had the coating done, and that was mainly my drive home from the dealer (28 on it when I collected it). It still needed a two stage polish to ensure the paintwork was in a good enough condition to apply the ceramic coat. If you don't get the paintwork properly finished then the coating won't stick or last plus you're sealing in contaminents etc.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

My mistake...£1600 inc stage 1 detail and polish ... front half of the body ...Mint Condition UK | Paint Protection Film

They do Freearis etc down there.

Even so that's incredibly cheap.