To Ceramic Coat or not Ceramic Coat?

[Highland Dog]

Ladies and Gentlemen

I have searched the forum but can’t quite find an answer to this one.

I have just taken possession of a brand new van and am considering whether I should invest in having the vehicle ceramic coated professionally.

I live in the Scottish Highlands and in the winter time they do like to chuck an enormous amount of salt on the road.
I am looking to do the best I can to protect the van from our weather.
I have read both good and bad reviews of ceramic coating and whether it is worth it or not.

I would like to hear the experiences of others on the subject before making a decision.
essentially I am looking for views on durability of the product, The issue of water staining ( water spots ) is concerning given that I thought the coating was meant to prevent these type of issues.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[dubber36]

Personally I think it all depends on what your preferred cleaning regime is. Ceramic coating does take the hard work out of keeping a vehicle clean, but keeping on top of the job with regular safe washing and keeping a wax coating topped up will do the same. It depends how precious your time is.

It's really the underside of the vehicle that needs protection from road salt and the like. I'd consider having a product like Lanoguard applied.

 

[Highland Dog]

Thanks for the reply.

I have been reading through the posts about how others keep their vans washed and polished and am not averse to carrying out this type
of cleaning regime. I suppose the appeal of the coating is having to do less work in keeping the van clean but I wouldn’t want to spend that amount of money and find that I have problems with the paintwork down the line.

The van has just been Dinitrolled clear underneath so hopefully that area of concern has been covered.

 

[Crazymind]

Get the wheels and body ceramic coated. A lot easier to wash it when dirty. About undercarriage, unless you plan to keep it longer than 15 years I wouldn t bother.

 

[Highland Dog]

Thanks
Have you had your vehicle coated If so which one?
Has there ever been any issues with the water staining that I have heard about?

 

[Loz]

Discussed in here

PPF - Paint Protection Film

Well i had the first quote for clear PPF complete front end and rear bumper wrap today £1200!! I was not expecting that really. i have 2 more quotes to come next week, so it will be intersting to see if there's much difference. Anyone else had any prices on wraps ?

www.t6forum.com

 

[dubber36]

PPF is a good shout too. I had the vulnerable parts of the Tiguan done with a self healing film. 18 months on and it still looks brand new.

 

[Texxaco]

Personally I think it all depends on what your preferred cleaning regime is. Ceramic coating does take the hard work out of keeping a vehicle clean, but keeping on top of the job with regular safe washing and keeping a wax coating topped up will do the same. It depends how precious your time is.

It's really the underside of the vehicle that needs protection from road salt and the like. I'd consider having a product like Lanoguard applied.

I would agree with @dubber36 but I would also say that it depends on how long you plan to keep the van as it’s an expensive outlay.

Try Lanoguard for the underbody, easier to do whilst it’s new with no rust to concern yourself about.

 

[Texxaco]

I would agree with @dubber36 but I would also say that it depends on how long you plan to keep the van as it’s an expensive outlay.

Try Lanoguard for the underbody, easier to do whilst it’s new with no rust to concern yourself about.

Forgot to add, once you have chips in your bonnet it will become a more expensive option as they would need to be sorted prior to Cermamic coating being applied.

 

[Crazymind]

Thanks
Have you had your vehicle coated If so which one?
Has there ever been any issues with the water staining that I have heard about?

GuardX, did it myself. Painful, too big the van but years after the paint looked like new and cleans off easily just with water, even the worse deposit of Brake dust gets off almost immediately with my Karcher.
That was 40/50 quid for the kit. Professiona detailer asked 600 to do it… probably now they ask 800/1000 to do it. Took a couple of days to do it properly.

 

[Highland Dog]

I will need to think about this one, However, it is brand new and cost me an eye watering sum of money ( for me anyway) so perhaps either or both the ceramic and ppf would be a shrewd move.

The van’s already had a Dinitrol clear wax coating applied so at least that is sorted

 

[Highland Dog]

I did think about doing it myself but I am terrified I would make a mess of it so I would need to think seriously about that.
I did look at the gtechniq products but as I say, some serious thought needed.

 

[The Van Cave]

PPF is great for protecting your paintwork from chips and scrapes/scratches. I’ve seen some quite remarkable examples of ppf doing its job. I remember one example that @Loz shared on here that was amazing.

A ceramic coat will help protect your paintwork from wash induced swirl marks and it will also make cleaning the van a huge amount easier. Some of the best ceramics will work for up to 5 years.

One thing to consider before ceramic coating: It’s unlikely that the paintwork will be in perfect condition even on a brand new van. Speak to a good detailer about a “new car preparation/protection”. They’ll give it a proper deep clean, decontamination and preparation, correct any dealer induced imperfections and then add a ceramic coating.

If you go PPF and ceramic, you’ll need the PPF done before ceramic. Paint correction first, then PPF, then ceramic.

 

[Salty Spuds]

I had our van ceramic coated from new. 5+ years on, it still looks like new. Gets a good clean 3 or 4 times a year. Bugs & tar wash off easily. Water still beads off. It’s never been polished in its life. I had the wheels done too, clean up like new with a wash & rinse. I’d definitely do it again if/when I buy another van.

 

[Bav]

PPF is great for protecting your paintwork from chips and scrapes/scratches. I’ve seen some quite remarkable examples of ppf doing its job. I remember one example that @Loz shared on here that was amazing.

A ceramic coat will help protect your paintwork from wash induced swirl marks and it will also make cleaning the van a huge amount easier. Some of the best ceramics will work for up to 5 years.

One thing to consider before ceramic coating: It’s unlikely that the paintwork will be in perfect condition even on a brand new van. Speak to a good detailed about a “new car preparation/protection”. They’ll give it a proper deep clean, decontamination and preparation, correct any dealer induced imperfections and then add a ceramic coating.

If you go PPF and ceramic, you’ll need the PPF done before ceramic. Paint correction first, then PPF, then ceramic.

A couple of questions for you (or anyone else that can answer):

• Does a brand new van need paint correction? (heard that some vans have quite poor paintwork out of the factory)
• I'm planning on having PPF, ceramic coating and a stripe decal over the bonnet, roof and tailgate (@Insert Coin - imitation is the sincerest form of flattery mate ). Where would fitting the decal fit into the sequencing?

TIA

 

[The Van Cave]

A couple of questions for you (or anyone else that can answer):

• Does a brand new van need paint correction? (heard that some vans have quite poor paintwork out of the factory)
• I'm planning on having PPF, ceramic coating and a stripe decal over the bonnet, roof and tailgate (@Insert Coin - imitation is the sincerest form of flattery mate ). Where would fitting the decal fit into the sequencing?

TIA

A brand new van might need correction. It all depends how well it’s been treated on its way to the dealer and by the dealer. Even one wash with a sponge and grit bucket can cause imperfections that need correction.

I would go stripe, PPF, ceramic.

After ceramic coating, nothing will want to stick, so it’s always the last step in the process.

 

[The Van Cave]

A good detailer can correct all sorts of issues. Swirl marks from poor washing technique, buffer trails and holograms from poor machine polishing work, poor clear coat finish etc.

 

[Bav]

A brand new van might need correction. It all depends how well it’s been treated on its way to the dealer and by the dealer. Even one wash with a sponge and grit bucket can cause imperfections that need correction.

I would go stripe, PPF, ceramic.

After ceramic coating, nothing will want to stick, so it’s always the last step in the process.

Thanks @The Van Cave. Those questions have been on my mind for a while (overthinking things whilst waiting for my van ).

 

[Garv]

PPF and ceramic coat is an expensive layout had mine done a month after new purchase, but makes cleaning a damm site easier if you like the showroom look, PPF does what it says on the tin.
Had a big chunk of a brick hit my bonnet and bounced onto windscreen, saved the paint work and windscreen,
But need to have the bonnet re PPF'D again as the paint work was saved but mullered the PPF, cheaper than a respray and possible different shades of spray paint,
Not sure on having the windscreen done again, as any debris on wipers has left a scratched PPF on screen only had it done a couple of months, so don't fancy having redone several times in a year! or cleaning the wiper blades every time I get in the motor, on no not practical! the self healing process is for minor scratches... not had PPF on more than 6 months so the Jury is still out.....
Ceramic coat works really well on the alloy wheels so much easier to get the brake dust off.

 

[Bav]

PPF and ceramic coat is an expensive layout had mine done a month after new purchase, but makes cleaning a damm site easier if you like the showroom look, PPF does what it says on the tin.
Had a big chunk of a brick hit my bonnet and bounced onto windscreen, saved the paint work and windscreen,
But need to have the bonnet re PPF'D again as the paint work was saved but mullered the PPF, cheaper than a respray and possible different shades of spray paint,
Not sure on having the windscreen done again, as any debris on wipers has left a scratched PPF on screen only had it done a couple of months, so don't fancy having redone several times in a year! or cleaning the wiper blades every time I get in the motor, on no not practical! the self healing process is for minor scratches... not had PPF on more than 6 months so the Jury is still out.....
Ceramic coat works really well on the alloy wheels so much easier to get the brake dust off.

When you had your wheels ceramic coated, did you just have the front faces coated, or did you have them removed and coated on both faces?