ceramic coating?

I did mine myself. Paint correction with Sonax Perfect Finish and Rupes white ultra fine pads. Adams swirl killer mini random orbital polisher. I prepped the panels with CarPro Eraser and coated them with Gtechniq CSL topped with Gtechniq ExoV5. Weekly washes with Koch Chemie gentle snow foam (gsf) and sprayed with P&S Beadmaker after drying.

I can dry the whole truck with a leaf blower and the ceramic works fantastic for paint protection. It only lasts about a year, but it's far superior to any off the shelf wax or paint sealant you can buy.

Professional ceramics are porous, so you really have to keep up with weekly washes or the coating goes to trash.

For the average car owner a bottle of meguiars car soap and a bottle of spray wax from Walmart works fine.

For those who are a little more obsessed I highly recommend a professional ceramic coating.

The Gtechniq CSL/ExoV5 combo is around $150. Add another $400 for pads, polish, microfibers, panel cleaners. Maybe a little more for the random orbital polisher. The thousand dollar prices are labor and profit markups.

Most people don't understand how clean the vehicle needs to be for a ceramic coating application and the work involved to polish the paint and prep the surfaces for the coatings. The coatings also have a working time in which they need to be leveled and then wiped off before permanently curing. Temperature and humidity are a factor in the process as well.

 

You got screwed. I have been detailing car for 40 years as my side business. I have used all the products over the years. Ceramic is great if done correctly and I see it lasting a few years and I use some of the best products. Yea don't fall for this 5 or 10 year bullshit, isn't happening. It works and last longer than regular waxes but the old Acrylic Teflon products were great. A good Ceramic job depending on the size, paint correction, full engine detail, interior detail, window coating and wheel coating I avg. between $800 to $1300 and my jobs take 2 days. Thats covers everything, its $200 worth of products and an avg. of about $50 an hour. I do new Suburbans for $1300 and a Tacoma or 4Runner is about $1000.

 

My truck has been ceramic coated since 2018, and the original coating is still there.
Water beads, and I can easily remove hard grime with a single pass of the pressure washer. It will stay that way for bout two months before having to wash it down again.

One other benefit I have notice is that my paint has not faded at all compared to other Quicksands I have came across.

 

One of the few advantages of getting older is you quit worrying about shit like how the paint looks on your vehicle. Run her through a Big Dan's car wash a few times a year and I am good to go.

That aside, I can't imagine spending $800 at a dealership just to have some pimple faced mouth breather wipe my truck down with some crap product the dealer bought at the local Walmart. I guarantee that is all you were getting for your money OP! If you insist on doing this ceramic thing, pay a professional detailer to do it.

 

I can’t remember which series I used, but that’s the brand I chose too. A bit pricey compared to the competition, (not the highest) but it gave me good results. My wife’s black RDX shines and sparkles like new, and washing is a simple chore. The Taco is due again after several years, but it’s a road warrior and spends some days outside.