Ceramic coating by Toyota...Thoughts?

I just picked up my new truck after a 6 month wait (TRD PRO...the manual transmission didn't help, but I'm not going to call it a unicorn). I digress. My dealership offers ceramic coating as part of their clear care elite plan, which also includes paintless dent repair and wheel repair, as needed. Seems the extra $14 a month is worth it for the ceramic coating alone, but what do I know? That's why I'm turning to y'all....thoughts?

 

Normally I'd say never buy any upgrade from a dealer.

$14 a month isn't enough money for labor for anyone qualified to do any of those services. So how is a dealer that wouldn't give away anything more than they had to making money off this plus paying for the materials?

 

Is that 14 a month from built in to your financing? Honestly, if that is the case, ceramic coating, if it’s a high end brand used might not be bad for the extra 800/1000 if your saying $14.00 @60/72 months.

 

Yah, they don't disclose the brand used, but it's a 36-month plan. I park in a hospital parking lot and downtown regularly, so I figured it could be worth that alone to help rid all those damn door dings I'm likely to get. I've seen the work they do with those (on my wife's rav4) and it's quite impressive.

 

You're my kind of people - forever a skeptic. Still, we have to remember that the person isn't making $14 an hour. I'd like to assume it's much like a gym membership - they make money off the people who don't show up. It's also not offered at other toyota dealerships in the area, so it could be an incentive to get people in.

 

Thats not really that bad then. I’d agree and usually never take a dealer on add ons but adding in the ceramic coating might not be bad.
You could also get sliders and hope the doors hit that before your truck.

 

Oh, I'm definitely in the market for sliders (for off roading, not shopping carts and cars). Thing is, I'm not convinced they actually provide much protection from doors because of how low they are, except maybe if they are 0 degrees?

 

Nice! Once you lift your truck that’ll help put the sliders at door height

I’ve just seen people say the sliders help with that. I’m waiting for mine to ship so I don’t know first hand…

 

I’m all about careless people self-inflicting harm on their vehicles via mine, it’s why I keep my hitch ball on when I have no plans to tow anything any time soon! As for the lift, don’t mention lifting a pro in these parts unless you want to turn this thread into everyone telling me how to spend my money

 

i, like you recently purchased new. i got a 2020 in November of 2019. my thinking was that anything the dealer was offering as far as drivetrain, paint protection, undercoat was worth it to me be because i could take it to one place and let the dealer "deal" with it or at least be given the peace of mind that anything done was not going to void a warranty. what i dont know is how often ceramic coatings need done. so if its any quality product at possibly two applications might be worth it.

 

what you need is a hitch skid too… @WarFab Armor should have them for sale again soon…

 

I did graphene coating b/c my truck sits outside always (bird droppings, etc.). Worth it IMO. Better than ceramic as it doesn't streak when wet. I would never buy from a dealer - just have it done aftermarket if you want to. Was told coatings typically last 2-3 years.

 

Brilliant!

 

Good advice - I'll look into it. I also park outside in the PNW. What price point is reasonable?

 

I live in California (so nothing is reasonable....) but I think paid between $600 - $800. I think ceramic was on the low end and graphene on the high end of that, but I didn't shop it much as I didn't have time. I did a year ago and water still rolls off the truck. Kind of nuts how much things have changed from "nu finish". I'd like to have my other vehicles done as well, but haven't had the time to take them.

 

Confused here. Ceramic coating will not help with door dings at all if that is what you are saying.

 

No sir, a component of the plan is paintless dent repair. Some jackass got my wife’s door real good and now it’s like it never happened.

 

If they will share the brand it might be worth looking into the coating.

 

Somewhere in the $1500 range. It's tempting to go the dealer route, but without knowing who is doing it and what they're using, I'd bypass. Generally, you'll get better results in the aftermarket. The folks there doing it will perform a paint correction (dealer installed swirls are standard) and apply the coating. These guys should be well-experienced, high-end detailers that know what they're doing. Dealership? Who knows? And depending on the coating used, you may have more longevity.

Expensive? Yes. Worth it? Absolutely. I've had a few cars done and I love it. After every wash I'd have people asking me what kind of wax I just used or how long I spent. And it was just a soap and water wash. Just the time saved in my book made it worthwhile.

 

Coming from a detailer, never go the dealer route. I have worked on customers cars that had been claimed to be coated by the dealership just to find out there was no coating on the vehicle. The customer had no idea and it always sucks having to explain to them that they dealership scammed them with a spray on coating that wore off in a couple weeks or no coating at all. My advice is if you want to get your vehicle coated, go to a professional detailer. You wouldn't ask a detailer to sell you a car, so why ask the dealership to detail a car.