Ceramic Coating, is it worth it??

[usdmej]

I just made an appointment to get the LEVEL 2 GYEON QUARTZ
CERAMIC COATING SYSTEM - running about $1500. Glad to hear you had a good experience with it.

yikes, $1500 is what they're charging for a ceramic coat these days??

i would strongly recommend you set aside a full day and attempt to DIY this. It's not that much more difficult than waxing your car assuming you know how to prep/polish a car. imo it's not worth spending four figures on considering the ceramic coat itself costs ~$100 for a bottle that can do 1-2 cars.

 

[Anonymous4Runner]

I am a proud owner of a 2020 4Runner Premium, and wanted to pose the question on here to see what experience is out there. I traded my 07 a few weeks ago, and am really happy with my new 2020. I am looking into getting this white model and to make it easier in the long run to take care of the exterior.
I have a local Auto Spa that can apply the ceramic coat and I am not totally familiar with the dynamics (other than what they have told me) and needed to get a better clue to see if it is truly worth it.
1) Does it really help the look in the long run? 2) does it really cut down on the exterior keep up? 3) will it help to keep the surface cleaner (bird crap, guts etc) by making it easier to clean?
While it is expensive, if it helps the upkeep in the long run, THAT is what I am looking for. I am also looking into just having the windshield done as well to help with that aspect, and long term water deflection.
As previously stated, experienced help would be a plus on here.
Thanks.....

HELL YES, it is worth it. Never mind these folks who's saying, 'no it's not worth it.', 'no it's cheaper to do it yourself', 'ceramic coating isn't worth the cost"

I just looked up where you lived - you are close to Forth Worth. If you're serious about having it coated professionally - you're better off going with a certified Modesta installer.

MODESTA - WORLDWIDE NATIONAL DISTRIBUTORS

I'm forever thankful to have come across Modesta at this local shop that performs Modesta coating on all of exotic cars that's sent to them from dealerships including Ferrari, Bentley's, Maserati and your brands such as Ford, Toyota, etc. Long story short...there's a reason why dealerships send over new cars to have them do the work, including ones that's an hour out from where the shop is located. They're the best at what they do and it isn't easy to be certified by Modesta. My shop is extremely good at what they do and they stand by their work performed on any vehicles that rolls through their shop. Modesta Coating is king and if I could do it all over again, I'd do it in a heartbeat.

I paid for long-term Modesta coating including the wheels and interior seat coating and I'm extremely happy with the results afterwards. It hasn't been a year and I barely put effort into cleaning because of the coating itself. Even the seats feel crisp from the coating and I'm a fat guy All of these things you mention in regard to weather elements, birds and insects leaving traces on the body, yes it is absolutely effortless to clean if it's been coated with Modesta. As long you don't take it a car wash for your washes and do hand washes only, you would be extremely happy with how long the coating keeps up over the years with proper maintenance and your annual Modesta inspection.

No disrespect to others but I don't think anyone's ever had experience with Modesta and probably had CCeramic Pro or whatever inferior brands they went with to save costs if they DIY'd or paid a non-certified installer to apply coating for said brand so they shit on ceramic coating in general. Long story short, take a trip out to Fort Worth area and visit one of the certified installers in your area.

 

[Anonymous4Runner]

I just made an appointment to get the LEVEL 2 GYEON QUARTZ
CERAMIC COATING SYSTEM - running about $1500. Glad to hear you had a good experience with it.

Dude. Cancel this appointment and look at my other post about Modesta. You're making a mistake here with this "GYEON QUARTZ CERAMIC COATING SYSTEM" product. Or at the very least look into it before you have it done.

 

[biggestmexi]

Had mine done and for me it was a huge difference. I am going to hold onto my truck longterm and it was an investment but glad the paint is protected now. I believe upkeep is important. It might be extreme but I use the CarPro reload after every wash.

That is not extreme at all. That is the bare minimum requirements for having a good ceramic coating last.

 

[biggestmexi]

Why You Shouldn't Get A Ceramic Coating - YouTube

Here is a good video.

This guy makes money from detailing and selling this stuff, so with him telling you it isn't a good idea if you don't have commitment is something.

 

[Inv4drZm]

Easy maintenance, but also spraying on a reload/top coat after every wash or every couple months sort of defeats the original purpose of trying to reduce the effort/time to wash your car.

I ceramic coated mine myself, and reduced vehicle washing labor is not worth ~$500 a year to me; if I were to have it professionally done.

 

[miket92]

I think graphene is too new for any kind of long term test, but from what youtubers like waxmode, apex, papasmurf and others have said, it seems like the real deal. Supposed to be a 5+ year coating, easier to apply then sio2, usually only requires 1 layer.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using Tapatalk

Makes sense. From the infallible info on google, it is supposed to be much better than ceramic - I have not met anyone who has done it yet though.

From the posts on here it seems the jury is still split on even just ceramic coating....lol

 

[usdmej]

Easy maintenance, but also spraying on a reload/top coat after every wash or every couple months sort of defeats the original purpose of trying to reduce the effort/time to wash your car.

for the Gyeon system anyways, you can do it as part of the drying process. ie. you can spray it on a still damp car and use a microfiber to wipe it dry. it didn't add any time or steps at all for me since my drying process is usually go over the car with a large drying towel, and then do a final wipedown with a microfiber

 

[cb1111]

There is so much misinformation floating around about "ceramic" that it boggles the mind.

There are a zillion products that pass themselves off as "ceramic" and, quite simply, it is impossible to keep track of what's what.

When I did ceramic on my car in 2013 (dark gray Acura TSX), there were two major true ceramics out there - Opti-Coat and Aquartz. Now, 7 years later, the car still looks like new and a good rain washes off most of the daily dirt.

I'm not sure that ceramic actually make bird dropping much easier to remove, but it will keep the bird crap from damaging your paint - assume you take it off fairly soon.

My wife has a 2013 Civic (silver) that was also ceramic coated. In 2016, she was detailed to the Hill and was assigned a parking spot under a huge tree. She was told "you might want to pay for parking because that tree is evil - between the birds and the sap, everybody who parked there ended up paying (the $400 a month) to park in the parking garage.

It was awful and after the first week it looked like it had been in the Hitchcock movie "The Birds". That Saturday I pulled out the foam cannon and was surprised at how easily it all came off. Not a speck in sight. I washed it about once a week thereafter. In bad weather, I ran it through the touchless car wash.

Now, also 7 years later, the car also looks like new and we saved $4800 on parking for that year.

While I was the cars about once a month, in reality a good drive in the rain usually suffices unless you are really anal.

Every car from here on forward will have ceramic coating. If you're into heavy duty detailing, then you can do it yourself as long as you follow the instructions - to keep from getting streaks.

The trick is preparation and that is what costs money in labor.

My detailer does PPF, ceramic (Opti-Coat Pro) and tint. If you do it all at one time then it gets cheaper as they only need to do the paint correction once.

Is it worth it? You bet.

 

[Easydistracted]

OK, I should have mentioned that this 3 year (coating) job I am looking at having installed on my 2020 along with the front windshield will be around $700. The coat is FEYNLAB and from what I have seen and researched it is tops.
I know the folks at the spa that will do it.
Prior to trading my 07 4Runner, they detailed the exterior, and did a super job! SO, the quality is there, as I am still trying to see if it is worth it. The 4runner being brand new, I would think the benefits would outweigh the cons when it comes to getting this done........

 

[Easydistracted]

HELL YES, it is worth it. Never mind these folks who's saying, 'no it's not worth it.', 'no it's cheaper to do it yourself', 'ceramic coating isn't worth the cost"

I just looked up where you lived - you are close to Forth Worth. If you're serious about having it coated professionally - you're better off going with a certified Modesta installer.

MODESTA - WORLDWIDE NATIONAL DISTRIBUTORS

I'm forever thankful to have come across Modesta at this local shop that performs Modesta coating on all of exotic cars that's sent to them from dealerships including Ferrari, Bentley's, Maserati and your brands such as Ford, Toyota, etc. Long story short...there's a reason why dealerships send over new cars to have them do the work, including ones that's an hour out from where the shop is located. They're the best at what they do and it isn't easy to be certified by Modesta. My shop is extremely good at what they do and they stand by their work performed on any vehicles that rolls through their shop. Modesta Coating is king and if I could do it all over again, I'd do it in a heartbeat.

I paid for long-term Modesta coating including the wheels and interior seat coating and I'm extremely happy with the results afterwards. It hasn't been a year and I barely put effort into cleaning because of the coating itself. Even the seats feel crisp from the coating and I'm a fat guy All of these things you mention in regard to weather elements, birds and insects leaving traces on the body, yes it is absolutely effortless to clean if it's been coated with Modesta. As long you don't take it a car wash for your washes and do hand washes only, you would be extremely happy with how long the coating keeps up over the years with proper maintenance and your annual Modesta inspection.

No disrespect to others but I don't think anyone's ever had experience with Modesta and probably had CCeramic Pro or whatever inferior brands they went with to save costs if they DIY'd or paid a non-certified installer to apply coating for said brand so they shit on ceramic coating in general. Long story short, take a trip out to Fort Worth area and visit one of the certified installers in your area.

OK, so, I will not be going with Modesta, as I have my own, local detail shop that will accomplish it, and they are also top of the line detailers. I don't think that the cost of what you are talking about is anywhere near what I am going to spend on this. I replied to a post below and my cost is nothing like I am seeing on here. Perhaps because I am getting a discount, and a SUPER rate at that!

 

[Charlievee]

Prices will be drastically different depending on how much correction needs to be done, type of product/s used and what is being coated. I coated everything but the tires when i applied mine, after removing wax and decontamination of everything being coated. Paint, trim, glass,head and tail lights, "predator" steps, mudflaps and rims. Roof rails and wiper arms also.

 

[BaddaBing]

No

Ceramic coating is not worth the expense. Paint shields and fabric guards are all profit centers. Wax your 4Runner twice a year and it will look great.
Good luck.

 

[TRDHULK]

if you’re the type of person that keeps their truck dirty, goes through drive thru car washes, and sets coffee cups on the hood, then ceramic coating is probably not for you.

I wanted my paint to shine better than factory. I wanted to protect the paint from swirls and the light off-roading I do. I hand wash my 4Runner. It stays cleaner and shinier longer in between washes, which is great for me since I work over 60 hours per week. For me, ceramic coating was totally worth it.

I’m very happy with the results. I even got some pretty gnarly pin stripes from a tree that came out pretty easily since the coating took the majority of the blow, according to my detailer.

With all of that being said, getting a good deal is important also. I got the hook up and only paid $500, and tipped on top of that. I have a 3 year coating. If I had to pay $1200+, I may not have done it.

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[TRD PANTHER]

I have to agree with HULK. I had to have it done mainly for the paint correction. I bought mine off the showroom floor and the dealer wash jobs are terrible, combined with soft clear, left the vehicle spiderwebbed all over. It’s black. I thought I would just have it clay-bard and that would take care of it. My local detailer told me there was no way to remove all the scratches without paint correction.

I went to a certified Ceramic Pro shop for a special 5 year warranty price of $1300 for everything two years ago. They had it all week and I was able to get $500 from the Toyota dealership due to the scratches. Came out amazing. I don’t wash my cars and I don’t get it washed very often. Once every 2-5 months and it comes out like a newly detailed vehicle. Had everything done including the wheels. The wheels clean up and look better than stock. Very happy with it, considering my total outlay was $800.

 

[Easydistracted]

Between your pics and the green hulk pics, I am sold on going ahead with this. The shallow fellows that made negative remarks about me going by "forum" comments were right, in that I do listen to people on here, and thats why you have a forum comment section. NOT so you can base your thoughts and opinions on a bunch of you tube videos (although they can be helpful too).
The pics are very helpful, and I am not paying the top dollar as so many are to have this done.

 

[JoshDub]

FWIW the pictures don't really show the benefits of a ceramic coating. What you're seeing is primarily the paint correction. You can get the same depth/gloss from any typical combination of quality glazes, sealants, and waxes.

Those results come down to prep. If the paint isn't perfect or the detailer doesn't do a phenomenal paint correction then you aren't going to get those results regardless of what products you put on top.

 

[Easydistracted]

FWIW the pictures don't really show the benefits of a ceramic coating. What you're seeing is primarily the paint correction. You can get the same depth/gloss from any typical combination of quality glazes, sealants, and waxes.

Those results come down to prep. If the paint isn't perfect or the detailer doesn't do a phenomenal paint correction then you aren't going to get those results regardless of what products you put on top.

I already had the paint looked at. It IS perfect, and I was told that it needs no paint correction. I do not have the time or energy to detail this vehicle as with my age comes a bit of turbulence with it!
I would much rather go without the time and trouble to pain stakingly detail.

 

[TRD PANTHER]

FWIW the pictures don't really show the benefits of a ceramic coating. What you're seeing is primarily the paint correction. You can get the same depth/gloss from any typical combination of quality glazes, sealants, and waxes.

Those results come down to prep. If the paint isn't perfect or the detailer doesn't do a phenomenal paint correction then you aren't going to get those results regardless of what products you put on top.

I already had the paint looked at. It IS perfect, and I was told that it needs no paint correction. I do not have the time or energy to detail this vehicle as with my age comes a bit of turbulence with it!
I would much rather go without the time and trouble to pain stakingly detail.

Paint correction is key. Then proper application of the coating is very important. I had all my windows, wheels, etc. done. You must be conscientious about removing, bird dung, pine sap, etc. as soon as possible, although, I have noticed that the ceramic coating holds up better to these elements than wax. Maintenance, in the form of washing the vehicle requires the proper products and cleaners. Don’t ever take it to a regular wash or wash with regulars cleaners. It cost me $50 to have it washed and detailed inside and out at a place that does Ceramic washing. Worth it, since the highest frequency I have it done is every two months. I will wash it myself at a self wash facility after driving trails. No mud yet for me yet. Only snow, rain and dirt. Anywhere from $5-10 to spray it down with the hot water rinse, followed by the spot free rinse and then the air dry.

 

[cb1111]

Ceramic coating is not worth the expense. Paint shields and fabric guards are all profit centers. Wax your 4Runner twice a year and it will look great.
Good luck.

Methinks you don't have any experience with a real ceramic coating. You seem to be thinking of that $900 crap that dealers try to foist on you - those ARE an unbelievable waste of money as it costs the dealer $25 in product and an hour for the lot boy to slop it on - hopefully washing the car before he puts it on.

The cost of the real ceramic is a bit in the product ($50 plus another $50 in other consumables), but the real cost lies in the preparation - at least a full day for a new car.