Ceramic coat prep

Can I use dawn soap to prep paint for ceramic coating?

 

I know it's Friday but.... personally, I wouldn't put dish soap anywhere near a paint job I want to keep looking nice. It's not meant for cars at all, you can google the details, but basically it helps them to oxidate faster as it's more abrasive than you'd want.

Get yourself some decent automotive soap. Anything designed for cars without additives pretty much will work (Meguairs Gold Class, for example), but something like Clean Slate by CG works very well to remove any waxes or topcoats. Generally you will want to wash, clay bar, rewash, polish (however many steps/passes are needed to get the paint smooth with sharp reflections) and then apply your ceramic coat. Without the prep work, ceramic coating is pretty useless, IMO. If you don't want to put in the legwork for it, just stick to waxing every month or 2.

I generally apply a wax over my ceramic coats after they cure and use a wash n wax soap in between, repeating and reapplying the ceramic annually.

 

What ceramic coating have you been using and obviously if you’re sticking with the same brand you must be happy with it?

 

@gorram have a nice answer to a similar question the other day, check it out here https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/official-ask-a-detailer-thread.8957/page-231#post-28680320

Myself, I went from Adams ceramic spray to advanced ceramic coating, after having the spray on for about a year. I washed with chemical guys clean slate, clay barred, rinsed and dried, buffed/polished then sprayed isopropyl alcohol on each panes before I applied the ceramic coating.

 

1. Pre Foam.
2. Rinse
3. Foam.
4. Wash.
5. For heavy decontamination I add some all purpose cleaner into my foam cannon, it will help strip away whatever is left.
6. Chemical Decontamination (Iron Remover)
7. Physical Decontamination (Claybar)
8. Quick foam and wash.
9. Dry.

Now you're ready to either go all out with paint correction, or apply your paint protection of choice.

Do not bother with an actual ceramic coating if you're not polishing. Simply use a ceramic based spray. Gyeon gets my vote for those kind of products, but the market is catching up quick.

I've been putting off re-coating my truck for almost a year now due to several ankle surgeries, I've been happy with Gyeon wet coat once a month or so.

 

I've been using the CG HydroCharge. When prepped properly, it works pretty well and lasts about 10 months on my garage-kept vehicles. There are definitely nicer products available that last longer, but this applies very easily and works pretty decently for how inexpensive it is. Will start using something better once this giant bottle runs out, but I've applied 10+ times on multiple cars and am only ~1/4 thru this bottle.

Keeps my 2014 tC with 95k on it looking like a mirror.



The truck is shiny too, but the reflection isn't as deep on Super White.

 

That looks great.
What product are you thinking of using next?

 

Biggest thing I've found with actual coatings is the need for maintenance washes, re-applying toppers, and using the right soap to keep them active.

For 99% of people, it's going to be easier with something cheaper and easier to apply, even if it only gives you 3-6 months of protection.

I'd highly suggest keeping your maintenance washes as perfect as you can, there will be much less swirling/scratching and less work needing done in the long run.

My truck is going on 4 years old, kept outside half the time, and is washed every week or two. The ceramic coating has been dead for a year, but some topping products have kept me decently happy. There are few swirls and no major scratches in the paint, which means I can just one step polish the truck when I have a weekend free.

 

Off the top of my head, Adams Graphene and Gtechniq seem worth testing out. I have a while before I will need to buy anything else though.

 

Both Adams, top is the spray ceramic and bottom is the advanced graphene ceramic coating. The top was not polished or buffed before the spray.

 

That looks great .
Thanks to all for the heads up.

 

No, ish

That is what I did to my 21 and then immediately covered it with CQUK. 18 months later and a few topper sprays later and I think it's still working.

That said, dawn isn't a good product. Folks say it strips wax, which is why I used it, but I have seen some recent posts saying it leaves a residue which is bad.

Best bet is to wipe the truck with isopropyl alcohol prior to applying.

After that comes the real questions that nobody seems to be asking. New truck or used truck? What are your goals?

 

Old demonstration video with 2 different paint sealants and how Dawn does nothing to them. There are also other detailer videos showing round after round of harsh all purpose cleaners that barely break down sealants or spray coatings after several washes. As mentioned in this video and in the thread, polish is the most critical step to get whatever you plan to apply perform the best.

 

Used but new pint job
Keep paint new

 

If its a brand new paint job that has fully cured and is in perfect condition then just wipe it down with IPA and coat it. That will give you the protective coating of ceramic relatively easily. Folks harp on polishing but it is not a critical step to ceramic coating, it does however give you the MOST out of your coating. Me personally, if you are happy with the paint and want to keep it that way wipe it down and coat it