03-18-2019, 02:36 PM | #1 |
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Ceramic coating or other ways of protecting your paint?
Having bought the X7 in carbon black -- probably the most difficult paint to keep swirl free and looking good, though when it looks good, it's amazing -- I'm wondering what can be done to protect my paint. I went to a brushless hand wash the other night, and already spotted a couple swirls in my paint when looking at certain angles.
I started reading that ceramic is all the rage now and wax is on the way out. I ended up after a little web research picking up this Avalon King ceramic coating DIY kit: https://avalonking.com/ I liked the idea that one application supposedly lasts 3-5 years, and it'll have your car shining and looking better than wax or anything else. What are thoughts on these ceramic coatings? As good as advertised? Anyone have any other techniques for keeping the carbon black and other dark paint jobs looking their best? (Note: as a younger man, I washed and polished my cars myself; these days, a busy job and young family don't afford me the time for that kind of thing anymore... so, hopefully some options that are not overly timing consuming!) Thanks! |
03-18-2019, 07:03 PM | #2 | |
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03-18-2019, 07:09 PM | #3 |
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03-18-2019, 07:19 PM | #4 | |
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03-19-2019, 08:25 AM | #5 | |
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its been 3 years and my car looks better than new. Its only hand washed and never went through a auto wash though. the coating is holding up great with annual maint. My buddy is a detailer located in Huntington and certified with different Coating brands, Precision Auto Detail. They have a lot of experience and popular with the Porsche and Ferrari community. Let me know if you're interested and i'll PM you his number, mention my name and they will take care of you. Patrick T |
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03-19-2019, 10:43 AM | #6 |
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We had ceramic coating and paint correction done on our Carbon Black X5 and it was night and day. You should do it right away and get rid of the contaminants in your paint.
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03-19-2019, 11:00 AM | #8 | |
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I spoke to a local guy today who told me that the ceramic won’t prevent swirls and the like. Seemed strange to me. He quoted about $2k-$2500 for the ceramic coating, and upwards of $5k for a clear film on the whole car (which he said is self healing in the sun, and will prevent swirls etc.). That feels like a steep investment, but if it keeps my car looking new 5 years from now, I dunno, maybe it’s worth it after all. Has anyone done a full car film (not just the bra), and any thoughts on that? |
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03-19-2019, 11:05 AM | #9 |
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03-19-2019, 04:11 PM | #10 | |
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I'm waiting for my new M40i Z4 to arrive and you can bet that I will be putting the Xpel treatment on it as well. |
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03-19-2019, 07:27 PM | #11 | |
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03-19-2019, 09:49 PM | #12 |
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Beautiful, greentrbo!
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Cross-continent road trip journal from BMW PCD to Alaska in new X7 M50i in this thread HERE!
New EVEN BIGGER road trip in X5 from BMW PCD to Alaska NOW ONGOING LIVE IN THIS THREAD! Wilderness road trip journal to Eastern Alaska in this thread And road trip journal to Denali and the Arctic Circle here in this thread! |
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03-22-2019, 05:28 PM | #13 | |
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Most recently returned: New '18 M5 SG / Black Current: '21 X5 M50i Black / Black |
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03-24-2019, 07:09 AM | #14 |
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Highly recommend Ceramic Pro Coating. Just have it done and I'm thoroughly impressed. Deep gloss is amazing and water repulsion is crazy. It's gotta be even more amazing on a dark car because the difference on the black trim and wheels is wild. I'll have to report back on if it stands the test of time, but five year warranty (as long as you don't bring it through an auto "touch " car wash)
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03-24-2019, 08:15 AM | #16 |
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PIPE_DR, looks fantastic. What did this cost you? And how long did they keep your car for?
I purchased a do-it-yourself ceramic coating kit that seems to get really great reviews, but I'm tempted to just let a professional do this for me. I submitted a message into the Ceramic Pro site seeking a quote, may as well explore. Thanks.
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03-24-2019, 09:10 AM | #17 |
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$1000 cash. He spent over 12 hours doing the whole process. Dropped off on Monday evening and picked up Thursday morn. Starts w/ steam wash, paint correction(minimal), layer of 9h, heat lamp dry, polish, layer of light(2nd coat of ceramic), heat lamp dry and buff. All glass coated, wheels taken off and cleaned completely and coated, as well as calipers & rotors. All leather seats and dash/doors. Carpets and mats treated. He showed me 2- tiny little bubbles on roof on factory paint that couldn't be completely corrected that id never notice unless he pointed it out. 5 year warranty- with a $100 yearly inspection and touch up included. PPF was just too much for me and Its not a $300k Ferrari. I felt this had the best value for the money. You can prob do some ppf on certain sections for more protection but we don't do much highway driving.
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03-24-2019, 09:54 AM | #19 |
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Connecticut, Sorry. Both Ceramic Pro installers I got quotes from were the same price. The only other coating I considered was Gtechniq but the guy around here that does it, had no reviews at all. It was similar price point though. Im sure it'll help with white seats, It makes cleaning easier and protect from staining.
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03-27-2019, 11:20 PM | #21 |
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I did two coating of the below Ceramic Coating two days ago on my week old X7. Its Metallic Black and had several swirls already that were hard to catch at the time of delivery.
https://www.opticoat.com/product/opt...oss-coat-20cc/ The car looks pretty clean and clear but man its very hard to avoid it catching the dust to matter what you do. Black is beautiful but hard to maintain and this is my first Black car. I have also ordered the following items to protect Door Handle cups and the dorr edging. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 If you do one panel at a time, I dont think its hard to do ceramic coating but Pro is Pro. They have all the tools and experience. Lets see how long it lasts. I am planning to put a couple of pics soon. |
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