top of page

SEARCH RESULTS

68 items found for ""

  • What Is The Average Cost Of Ceramic Coating?

    Who else doesn't want a car that looks great for a long time? However, maintaining your car is a tedious task. But if you opt for a ceramic coating on your car, keeping your car looking fresh will be much easier. A ceramic coating is a solution that protects the exterior of your car from external paint damage. This solution can bond with your car's paint and give it an extra layer of hydrophobic protection. Sounds interesting, doesn't it? Now you're ready to protect your vehicle with the ceramic coating, but you may be wondering about the average cost of ceramic coating. Stop worrying anymore because here is the answer. Several factors influence the price of ceramic coating. These factors are as follows: The condition of the paintwork: When applying a ceramic coating, a protective layer is added over the current paint, putting the paint in perfect condition. So if you have recently painted your car or if your car is brand new, the process will be easier. Therefore, you will benefit from comparatively lower labor rates. The size of your car: Obviously, the size of your car matters a lot. The bigger your vehicle is, the higher the charges will be. Depending on the size of the car, one bottle ( typically 50ml ) will not be enough to cover the whole vehicle. You will expend a significantly larger amount of other material in the preparation process. And, there is time. To some time is the most expensive currency and that is usually the one factor that can be a deal-breaker depending on the size of the vehicle. The type of ceramic coating you choose: There are two different types of ceramic coatings available in the market: commercial-grade and professional-grade ceramic coating. Depending on these factors, the average cost of a ceramic coating can be anywhere between $15 and $3,000. That may seem like quite the range but it really isn't that simple. If you would like to learn more about why that pricing can vary so greatly we suggest you read this article, where we explain what determines the price of ceramic coating in detail. But we still need to give at least a short explanation. The reason is that the commercial-grade Ceramic Coatings that anyone can buy cure differently than most professional-grade coatings. Namely, most professional-grade coatings require special UV lamps that activate the coating and enable it to cure properly. Those coatings tend to be thicker and harder than commercial ones. That is the main reason that makes them very expensive. If you would like to get your car ceramic coated by a professional, then we suggest typing"ceramic coating near me" into Google and checking your local area for a certified shop with a good reputation. Now the other reason that determines the pricepoint is the equipment needed to coat a car properly. Again, if you want a clear view of what the whole ceramic coating process looks like from start to finish and all the different tools you need to perform it, you can read this article. But, for a shorter explanation, the main equipment is the UV lamps ( if we are talking about the professional-grade coatings ), and they are huge and expensive. And in some cases, you would need several to speed up the process. The other equipment you would need is all the microfiber towels, great quality cleaning equipment to prepare the car for the coating, degreasers, a dual-action polishing machine, or an orbital buffer ( depending on your preference, because they do the same job in a slightly different way ), all the polishing and compounding liquids that are used to detail the car to a gloss finish. All the attachments that are used in the polishing process cost a lot of money. You could say, "Well, I will just get a pack of microfiber applicators off Amazon and I'll do it by hand!". Well if you have tried polishing a car by hand only once, you would never say something like that because you'd know that even on a small-sized vehicle it would take several hours and your hand would fall off. To be honest, if you did the polishing process by hand, it would most likely be a two-day job, at least. Not everyone can afford to work 24/7. And the most expensive thing that you need is - shelter. A garage or anything of that sort would ensure the car is not affected by the elements. The sun, rain, heck, even a slight breeze could ruin a Ceramic Coating job. And you need a steady supply of water. Again, some people suggest that you could take your car to a friend's house, or one of those automatic car washes. But... This whole process, even with all the tools and even when you know what you are doing, will take you several hours. If the paintwork prior to the coating is in bad condition, you are looking for days. Preparation is key, and every detail is important. Every detailer knows that. It is not called car detailing for no reason. If you want to go for the cheaper solution, you can buy one of the do-it-yourself ceramic coating kits. Before using these kits, however, keep in mind that they will not be as effective as a professional coating. Not only that, but you will likely never be able to do a job as a professional would. Since with those you'd be the one doing all the work the cost is less, of course. You can get great quality DIY ceramic coatings for around 75$ up to 100$. There are even more expensive ones than that, of course. If you want to learn which do-it-yourself ceramic coatings we suggest, you can read this article here. Just keep in mind that if you opt to do it yourself, you will also need all the tools and conditions we've mentioned above. Even though we do recommend DIY ceramic coating products and we encourage our readers to use them - you simply will need some practical experience before you can do a perfect job as will all things in life, we suppose! So, stop wasting your money and time and leave your car to the ceramic coat experts. You can blindly trust us for exceptional results because we are professionals and exceed your expectations. Cheers!

  • How Many Layers Of Ceramic Coating Does a Car Require?

    One of the most common ways to safeguard an automobile from ordinary wear and tear is to apply a ceramic coating to it. The particular material ensures that your investment in your metallic buddy, as well as any cosmetic upgrades you have made to it, is protected. Even though it is a regular operation, the ceramic coating is generally unknown to the average car owner. Because the job is usually carried out by specialists, it might be difficult to understand all of the precise aspects of what it entails and how it is carried out. For example, how many layers of ceramic coating does a car need? The most common question in this context concerns the number of ceramic coating layers, which is mostly determined by specified packages and their accompanying costs. One layer of ceramic coating is frequently included in the beginning kit. It also comes with a second layer of topcoat. Some of the most costly kits, on the other hand, include roughly 5 ceramic coating layers. This is frequently used to retain a topcoat. One layer of Ceramic Coating is usually between 1 and 2 microns thick. However, other companies go over and above, offering 6, 7, or even 10 ceramic coating layers with a topcoat thrown in for good measure. This might easily leave you perplexed as to the real amount of layers necessary for the best protection. Here is a fast explanation of the process of ceramic coating and the number of layers your car should have to help you cut through the haze and find a solution to this issue. There is such a thing as too much ceramic coating on a car, yes! Most experts advise applying many layers of protective coating to your vehicle. They do, however, approach the availability of these jackets in terms of the above-mentioned specified bundles. The reason for this strategy is straightforward. Additional ceramic coating layers simply result in a higher bill. This means that the majority of suppliers merely put layer after layer of ceramic coat in order to extract a significant sum of money from your wallet. This is especially true for those companies that go above and above the minimum requirements, such as CarPro CQuartz, and give 8-10 applications of ceramic coating. Ceramic coating is made up of nanoparticles that have a ceramic foundation. The substance comes in the form of a liquid, but when applied, it hardens into a hard, transparent, and glass-like barrier. Adding coat after coat doesn't offer much to the shield's defense. In reality, it merely increases the size of your future auto body repair payment. This is why you should work with an experienced supplier and take a simple strategy. Choosing a seasoned auto body contractor means that your automobile receives simply the number of coatings it needs, not the number of layers the supplier desires. Multiple layers are effective, but they should be used sparingly When correctly applied to a car's auto body or on top of its vinyl wrap or a PPF, a ceramic coat layer can offer complete coverage in just two coats. In most cases, two ceramic coating layers and a topcoat layer are all that is required. It provides the scratch and abrasion resistance you need, as well as UV (ultraviolet) radiation protection and paint chip resistance. Between layers, you should wait an hour. So, whether you're applying two coats of CarPro CQuartz or not, it's up to you. Perhaps you're laying on a CarPro CQuartz base layer. CarPro CQuartz Reload is a top layer of it, and this is a highly common combination. a video explaining the application of multiple layers of ceramic coating This number of layers is also sufficient to highlight the ceramic coating's hydrophobic qualities. You can simply keep dirt stains, dust particles, and other impurities at bay with this easy procedure. This method of applying ceramic layers also helps you to obtain the treatment's trademark gloss and provides your automobile with a fresh-from-the-showroom appearance that is unique to ceramic coating. To put it another way, you don't need to apply more coats to achieve a high gloss finish. All you have to do now is wait for the coating to settle thoroughly. You may see the outcomes for yourself this way. However, for an even application and a smooth finish, another layer or two of the ceramic coating may be required. But that's all there is to it. If your selected specialist can't obtain a four-layer seamless coating, it's a sign that the issue isn't with the coating itself but with how it's applied. Ceramic Coating for Your Car Doesn't Require Any Additional Treatments You normally don't need any more treatments other than the top layer coat itself, regardless of the type of ceramic coating. This topcoat brings the treatment's characteristic shine to the foreground, in addition to the ceramic substance. Any additional treatments applied on top will simply detract from the overall benefits of your ceramic coat. This is especially true when it comes to waxing your car. While you may be tempted to use wax to add gloss to your ceramic coating, doing so will simply destroy the hydrophobic properties of the coating. Your ceramic layer will become unable to repel water and other liquids if you apply a thick coating of wax on top that is practically rubbed into the ceramic substance itself. As a consequence, your gleaming automobile may become a breeding ground for toxins. As a result, the coating's basic properties are rendered useless. With this in mind, make sure that you only use a small amount of your ceramic coating. Avoid any external therapies that are more harmful than beneficial at all costs. Ceramic coatings can last for a few years before needing to be reapplied Two coats of ceramic coating and a single layer of topcoat are usually sufficient to last 3-5 years on a daily driver. This factor is also influenced by your driving circumstances, maintenance of the ceramic coating, and frequency of use. However, it is also depending on how well you maintain your metallic friend in general. The longer you take care of your car's basic maintenance, the longer the ceramic coating will last. Once the coating has worn off, you may have it reapplied by a professional vehicle detailer. However, it's worth noting that some of the more expensive packages, which include a lot of coats, also come with a lifetime warranty. This guarantee is conditional, and coverage may be limited to select providers, but it has been shown to be worthwhile in some situations. This is why it's critical to speak with your car body or car paint specialist about the specifics of such warranties. This gives you time to think about your selections before proceeding with your ceramic coating procedure. Cheers!

  • Should Ceramic Coating be Hydrophobic or Hydrophilic?

    Admittedly, a bit of a strange question if you already know what both terms mean. But stick with it for a few minutes and give us a chance to clarify. If you know anything about ceramic coatings, then you know that one of its strong spots is its ability to repel water from the surface of the car. A hydrophobic ceramic coating is pretty much the norm. But how or why that happens is sometimes not exactly clear. Well, let us start this one by first explaining what both terms 'hydrophobic' and 'hydrophilic' mean and how both terms became accustomed to ceramic coatings in general. Contents: What does Hydrophobic mean? What does Hydrophilic mean? Is there a hydrophilic ceramic coating? What is water beading? What is water sheeting? Sliding angle. What is it? What does Hydrophobic mean? The term comes from two words meaning water and fear. Well, fear of water is an excellent way of explaining how water behaves on a hydrophobic surface. When water comes in contact with a hydrophobic surface, it looks as if the water doesn't want to stay on it and wants to escape as soon as possible with the path of least resistance. You probably saw that effect many times in nature on various types of leaves. It would rain and you would see water just pouring from the leaves without the leaves actually getting wet. Even when the rain stops you would still see little water droplets of water on top of the leaves. Those droplets we call water beads. And we will come back to them soon. What does Hydrophilic mean? Naturally, it would be the exact opposite of the above. Think of your shirt getting wet. It would most likely darken a bit, absorb the water, and get heavy and, well, what else - wet! An example of a very hydrophilic material that you have most likely encountered many times is a sponge. Water would pour over it and it would just dring all of it up instantly. So instead of repelling water, it absorbs it. Ok great, so now you know what both terms mean. And now you might have an eyebrow raised a little bit thinking of why the term hydrophilic would be used in conjunction with ceramic coatings. What?! Is there a hydrophilic ceramic coating? No. Well, not that we would know of. And if there is one, it sure is interesting to think about why that would ever be helpful when it comes to paint protection. It probably got mixed up with ceramic coatings because people mistake it for ceramics. For instance, if you take a ceramic plate ( the standard one you would use at home for meals ) and you break it. You would notice the texture is not glossy and fine on the inside of the material, but the glossy material that you usually see when you think of ceramic plates is only a shell on the outside. The inside material - while still ceramics, is very hydrophilic. When you pour water on it, it will absorb the water, much like concrete would. All ceramic coatings are not only hydrophobic. They are sometimes even referred to as super-hydrophobic. Ok, great, now you know, but why are we making an article about this then? Well, talking to a lot of customers and seeing what people think in general regarding this topic made us decide to write a simple and all-in-one explanation on the subject and clarify all this confusion for anyone that was looking for some straight answers. Remember the term 'water beads' we mentioned earlier? What is water beading? Well, as you probably have seen, when you pour water on a ceramic-coated car, the water looks as if it is trying to escape from the surface, leaving it dry. But as with before mentioned leaves - after the chaos dissipates, sometimes, more often than not, you are left with water beads on the surface of the car. On the other hand, sometimes you would see the water behave completely differently. What is water sheeting? Instead of water trying to escape the ceramic-coated surface in an erratic manner as if it was escaping for dear life, leaving stragglers ( water beads ) behind when water is introduced - the whole surface gets completely wet, and then the whole water that is on the car would form one unified body that would drag all of the water from the surface of the car leaving no water beads. This effect is called 'water sheeting'. So great for now we have learned that all ceramic coatings are hydrophobic, and none of them are hydrophilic. And now we have two new terms that compete with each other - water beading and water sheeting. Which of those two effects would you want more in a ceramic coating? Short answer - You want a ceramic coating that sheets more than it beads. Why? Let us jump straight to the long answer to explain - When it comes to water beads, you might think, 'What is the big deal? The beads are just standing there. They are not making the car wet or dirty. Why would I care?' Well, you shouldn't care, at least not immediately. But once those water beads start to evaporate they would leave all the minerals that were in the water baked onto the surface of the ceramic coating. Those white marks that are leftover we call water spots. You can learn how to remove water spots from your car here. If the rain was acidic ( depending on where you live or the current weather conditions ) what you would be left with are called etch marks, and they are more aggressively damaging to the ceramic coating that you worked so hard to install on your beauty. And while you can avoid all of that by removing the water beads from the car with various methods. You could use a microfiber towel, you could use a leaf blower, or even a hairdryer to blow the beads off the vehicle. Or you could take the car for a quick drive around the block to get all the beads from the car. It is not hard to do, that is true. But it IS tedious! You have to do it! Or else risk water spots or etch marks. Unfortunately, distilled water doesn't rain down from the sky to avoid those problems. And also, sometimes you simply won't be able to remove it in time. Perhaps it is a sunny day, and a raincloud passes by while you are stuck at work, or you are at home but simply haven't noticed your neighbors' water sprinkler spraying your car. When you think about it, there could be thousands of reasons why you could end up with a potentially damaged ceramic coating or a the very least a dirty one until you have cleaned the problem away. This is where water sheeting shines! Because of how it works, it usually leaves a very low amount of water beads on the car. And if the water sheeting effect is strong enough, it will leave no water beads at all, leaving the car completely dry no matter how wet it gets! Sometimes you would see people use the term water sheeting when performing hydrophobicity tests on various materials and testing the durability of coatings while they damage when with different chemicals and such. They would say that The water is starting to sheet more than it was beading as the coating loses its structure, and thus its hydrophobic properties weaken. This is misleading and probably a misuse of the term that leads to confusion. This is the reason why people usually aren't looking for water sheeting in ceramic coatings. So, what determines if the ceramic coating will have water beading or water sheeting properties? This is what is called the sliding angle. Sliding angle. What is it? The sliding angle is the tilt at which a water bead of a specific weight starts to slip off your automobile. A bead will roll off more readily if the angle is lower. As previously stated, contact angle alone cannot tell you how high or low a sliding angle is. There are several variables at play, including the droplet's weight, breadth, and gravitational acceleration, to name a few. As we mentioned before, water beads left on your finish might cause harm to your finish. When beads have a low sliding angle, however, they simply glide off your automobile before causing any damage. With this in mind, the sliding angle of a coating's hydrophobicity soon becomes an essential factor. When you consider the variables we outlined previously, the sliding angle becomes much more critical. Because of the principles of gravity, the sliding angle tends to decrease as a body of water becomes larger and heavier. That's why water seems to jet off of your finish when you hit it with a pressure hose or why rain rolls off your automobile easily in a deluge. Small beads, such as those from light rain or a nearby sprinkler, have the most difficult time sliding off your finish since gravity isn't on their side. So, if a bead of water doesn't have a significant gravitational pull behind it, how can you reduce its sliding angle? You must meticulously re-engineer the car's transparent coat, changing its structure on a nanoscopic level. In that manner, you may produce a surface that is so smooth that practically nothing can attach to it, not even the smallest water bead. And some ceramic coatings have the ability to do just that! They usually come with a price tag attached. But if you want a top-quality ceramic coating that you will be very happy with for a very long time, then you might just start thinking about adding a few more of those greens instead of paying for the cheap stuff. Not that cheaper coatings are automatically bad, or vice-versa. We have proven that by testing various ceramic coating products. If you want to check our top list of ceramic coatings that we have personally tested and reviewed, you can read this article here. We hope you find the best ceramic coating product that will satisfy your needs and that you will be happy with. Also, just to throw this in here. Because water sheeting does such a great job in removing almost all water from a coated surface and because ceramic coatings are super-hydrophobic, some people believe that it is a good idea to ceramic coat your windshield, so you do not have to worry about rain or dirt anymore! You can read this article here to get our opinion on whether you should ceramic coat your windshield or not! Cheers!

  • Review: Nexgen Ceramic Spray

    When it comes to Ceramic Coating Sprays, such as the one we have on the testing table today - Nexgen Ceramic Spray - it's reasonable to assume that the product won't be as strong as a true Ceramic Coating. This isn't because they're knockoffs or because they're less expensive; it's because they were designed to be used quickly and readily with little to no preparation or training. All you actually need is a clean automobile, and we recommend decontaminating the surface of the car by claying, compounding, and polishing it. Even while Ceramic Spray Coating may not stay as long as their liquid counterparts, or big brothers, they will generally last for a reasonable period of time. If properly maintained, it can last up to a year. That's not terrible for a quick and easy application, especially given the product's price! A Spray Ceramic Coating will very certainly surpass a Car Wax or a Polymer Sealant of comparable grade, and it applies in a similar manner. Contents: Nexgen Ceramic Spray Specifications How to apply Nexgen Ceramic Spray Coating? Final thoughts on Nexgen Ceramic Spray Coating? Just to clarify - we are not sponsored by Nexgen or any other manufacturer of Paint Protection products, and we will test and review the product as it is in real-world conditions. We will follow the manufacturer's instructions during the application process and we will prepare the surface to ensure the best finish and best adhesion possible. We are leaving an affiliate link to all our review products but in case the product turns out to be of low quality or not as all as advertised, we leave a warning to all our readers, and the quality of the product will always be reflected in the grade we assign to it at the end of every review. So if you do not want to sit through all of this text, you can scroll down to the Average Grade and read our Final Thoughts to get a general idea of what the product is all about. Here we have Nexgen Ceramic Spray SiO2 - Ceramic Coating Spray for Cars up for review: Get your Nexgen Ceramic Spray Coating on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3CQptnw We were asked a number of times as to why we leave Amazon links for our readers in case they want to purchase the product instead of leaving a direct link to the supplier in question. The simple reasons are availability and logistics. What that means is that we have readers from all around the globe ( no offense to any flat-earthers ) and delivery of certain products anywhere in the world oftentimes comes up as a major issue. See, most of the high-end detailing products are made in the USA. There are some that are amazing and are not American-produced but again the same problem tends to show up - they do not deliver worldwide. Or the cost of delivery is simply ridiculous. And while you might say "Yeah, I'm from the US, I do not care.", there are simply a lot of people that do not have that courtesy and have no realistic way to get a product they might be interested in. This is why we chose Amazon because they do deliver worldwide and the pricing doesn't skyrocket if you choose to purchase from a more secluded location, should that be the case. And that is pretty much the whole reason. Let us continue onto Nexgen Ceramic Coating! Nexgen has been in business for about two decades, and its product range has proven to be quite outstanding. You'll have a 16-ounce spray bottle sent to your home if you buy this one. It will include what we think to be one of the best Ceramic Spray Coatings we have ever tested. Let's look at some specs now: a professional-grade sealant that protects your vehicle's surface user-friendly versatile ceramic spray for all vehicles protects against environmental contaminants enough product to coat your car up to ten times produced in the USA Let's take a look at each one, line by line, to understand what they all imply and what our experience was with the product. A professional-grade sealant that protects your vehicle's surface Nexgen premium ceramic coating spray coats your vehicle's exterior with an impenetrable layer of protection. You may substantially limit the potential of outside elements to smear, scratch, and deteriorate your clear coat and car paint by using the highest grade of Silicon Dioxide (SiO2), while also generating a mirror-like gloss. There are a couple of issues here. Premium? We don't know, but this is one of those fancy words that companies like to slap onto a product to make it stand out, to make it seem like it is better than other similar products. So, the testing will show whether it actually is premium or not. Second, it says impenetrable. Mighty word, but even without any testing we can straight away tell you that it is not impenetrable. That is a lie. No Ceramic Coating, no matter how high quality, is impenetrable. They claim to be using the highest grade of Silicon Dioxide which is just a sophisticated way of saying "highest quality Ceramic Coating". For now, we have a lot of self-praise. Now, is it a trap or will the product live up to the hype that Nexgen is leading us to believe? User-friendly Being user-friendly is always great. But to be fair - Ceramic Spray Coatings were created to simplify the application process of a ceramic coating at the cost of product performance and durability. So user-friendly is probably what you'd expect. To the application process that they indicate, we would add another step before the three that were mentioned - and that is preparation. You want your car at least clean, dry, and degreased before application to ensure the best possible result. Versatile ceramic spray for all vehicles Nexgen Ceramic Coating can be applied to any surface your car may have, and that is great. This includes metal, paint, glass, plastic, rubber, vinyl, aluminum wheels, powder-coated wheels, leather, tires, chrome, and more. Definitely a big plus. If you want a dedicated ceramic coating for leather then read our article about them here. Protects against environmental contaminants Nexgen Ceramic Spray is designed to repel dirt, mud, salt, snow, pollen, smog, acid rain, water spots, bird droppings, insect guts, and regular road filth off any solid exterior surface. The hydrophobic formulation forms a glass-like surface that repels water and other pollutants, preserving and prolonging the life of your car's delicate clear coat. Well, that is pretty much what you would expect from Ceramic Coating. We would add UV protection, but they already mentioned that previously. Enough product to coat your car up to ten times A 16-ounce bottle contains enough product to coat a mid-size sedan 8-10 times, a large truck 6-8 times, or a motorcycle up to 20 times. Compared to other Ceramic Spray products, those are favorable numbers that work well in the consumers' favor - considering you do not pay too much for the product! Produced in the USA Well, this one is just there. Some may like this, and some may not, but as we have said before, most of the best products we use in the Car Detailing Industry are made in the USA, and that is just the way it is. How to apply Nexgen Ceramic Spray Coating? First, as always - read the instructions! When using it, make sure your car is clean and free of impurities that might be embedded in the clear coat layer of the paint. If you have no idea what we are talking about, you can click here to learn how to properly prepare the paint of your car for ceramic coating and paint protection in general. Once the car's surface has been cleaned and degreased of any grease, oils, or polishing residue, all you have to do now is choose a panel and mentally split it into portions to get started. Shake the container and spray once per working area (e.g., 2-3 sprays per hood of a regular-sized car should be enough), then buff the liquid into the paint with a clean microfiber cloth. Allow a minute for it to dry before buffing it off with another microfiber cloth. Here is a video uploaded by Nexgen directly that explains what to avoid during the application process when handling their product. Make sure both towels are dry and clean before using them. Use one to apply the coating and the other to rub it off after it's dry. If the buffer towel becomes wet, replace it with a dry, clean one. Buff it to a lustrous sheen. There should be no streaking! If there is any streaking, moisten the area with the applicator cloth (or spray the area again) and continue the process. All streaking should be gone now. That's all there is to it. Work on the entire car's surface in the same way. Also, while buffing off the coating from rough plastic panels, use particular measures. If there is any haziness or streaking, simply use the same approach as before to correct it. Our verdict on this product: product life time when applied: D resistance to elements: E resistance to damage: E resistance to chemicals: C application difficulty: A hydrophobic properties: C gloss / shine: C Average grade: C Cost: 2.75$ / 1 fl oz 0.09$ / 1 ml Final thoughts on Nexgen Ceramic Spray Coating? If you want to know how we torture test products for our reviews, you can follow the link and learn about all the steps we go through to ensure a fair and realistic, and unbiased result for each product tested. Honestly, this one surprised us a bit. We've heard so much about it from other people and naturally, our interest and expectations were perhaps a bit high. Another thing that was also high was the price tag. Among Ceramic Spray Coating products, this one stands close to the top of the hill. And as far as we are concerned, that is probably its only flaw. Some of our new readers might be wondering why a product that scored this poorly is being praised at all. And that has to do with Ceramic Coating Sprays in general as opposed to their big brothers - Standard Ceramic Coatings which are of much higher quality and simply perform so much better. Spray coatings tend to get an easy A or B in the application department because that is why they exist. But you cannot expect them to score high in other categories, and that is the trade-off you accept when opting to use one of these. They are not a scam. They are a simple way of you paying less, getting more product content, and having amazing ease of use. We haven't used Nexgen products before. We cannot currently say anything about other products in their line, but this one, well, it is not just all show! Is it amazing? Well, no, not really. There are numerous products that we would recommend over it. But, there is a but. The price is always hard to justify, regardless of the quantity you get. There are simply too many competitors to compare to. And some of them have truly amazing products. Nexgen Ceramic Coating is definitely not to be dismissed that easily though. It won't function as well as a normal Ceramic Coating, but given how simple it is to apply, how little it costs, how little time it takes to cover the entire car and the fact that you don't need any prior training or expertise to use it, it's a good compromise. If you want a more durable and long-lasting solution, read our evaluations or search through our top lists to discover a normal Ceramic Coating that fulfills your needs and expectations, but if that isn't the case, then this is the one for you. Get your Nexgen Ceramic Spray Coating on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3CQptnw

  • Review: The Last Coat Premium Ceramic Spray Coating

    The Last Coat. An American Car Detailing Company gave us our latest test subject! Another Ceramic Spray Coating that people seem to like a lot - The Last Coat Ceramic Spray Coating. Well as it usually is with tastes - everyone has their own, and we cannot resist but to test this one ourselves and reap the results that it gives - no matter how good or bad they might be. The Last Coat has all kinds of car detailing products in its range but today we will specifically be looking at this Ceramic Spray that seems to be their flagship and their other products seem to be built around it. Seems only logical to test it out and review it. Contents: The Last Coat Ceramic Spray Specifications Time to test this product! Our final thoughts The Last Coat Ceramic Spray Coating? Just to clarify - we are not sponsored by The Last Coat or any other manufacturer of Paint Protection products, and we will test and review the product as it is in real-world conditions. We will follow the manufacturer's instructions during the application process and we will prepare the surface to ensure the best finish and best adhesion possible. We are leaving an affiliate link to all our review products but in case the product turns out to be of low quality or not as all as advertised, we leave a warning to all our readers, and the quality of the product will always be reflected in the grade we assign to it at the end of every review. So if you do not want to sit through all of this text, you can scroll down to the Average Grade and read our Final Thoughts to get a general idea of what the product is all about. The Last Coat Ceramic Spray Get your The Last Coat Ceramic Spray on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3qndGIp Ever since Ceramic Coatings came out people were looking at ways to make that expensive, time-consuming, and let's face it - the hard process of coating a car much, much easier. And faster. And, well, less expensive. This is how Ceramic Spray Coatings came to be. They are to regular Ceramic Coatings what a phone battery would be to a car battery. They both perform the same task, except the latter is simply better... in every way. And that comes with a cost. We had countless people tell us how Ceramic Coatings are a scam after they had been disappointed by a Ceramic Spray Coating. The similarity in the product name is also not helping. But, to be fair - it is Ceramic Coating. Well, a Ceramic Spray that is. This doesn't mean Ceramic Spray coatings are a scam. Because they aren't. And that also doesn't mean that they do not have a place in the car detailing industry, because they do. But, once you, the consumer, know these things, you will know what you are getting for the money you are paying. A Ceramic Spray Coating will give you pretty much all things that you would want in a Ceramic Coating: hydrophobic properties resistance to chemicals gloss UV resistance It will just be much less effective at all those things as opposed to regular Ceramic Coating. You pay much less, you get much more and the marketing that is sometimes wrapped around these products is sometimes very misleading with bloated claims and a lot of ambiguity. So, after our little rant about Ceramic Sprays, you would probably be asking yourself why we even cover them on our website. Well, the truth is that not all of them are bad. And at the same time, not all regular Ceramic Coatings are automatically good. We are here simply to look past the marketing and the promises and place those Ceramic Coating products into a real-world environment and see how they would truly perform. Let's start! First, we'll prepare the entire car's surface. Even if going to such efforts may be a bit excessive, we want to give each product we examine the best chance of succeeding. If you wish to learn more about how we prepare the surface of a car for paint protection products, you can click the link and read all about it. Next, we will read the instructions that came with The Last Coat Ceramic Spray to ensure we apply the product as intended. Remember that every paint protection product might have a different set of instructions. So make sure to always read them before you start working with the product. We're ready to start after the car's surface has been adequately prepped. The coating will be applied indoors in a well-ventilated garage. The temperature is carefully controlled so that it is neither too chilly nor too hot to create any problems. Before using the product, we will give it a good shake. Unless otherwise specified, do this with every liquid paint protection product. After the car's surface is clean and dry, and we have shaken the spray bottle with the product, we are instructed to spray some of the product directly onto a microfiber towel, pick a segment of the care to work on, and start spreading the coating over the car. In our experience, doing this with spray coatings will conserve how much of the product you will end up using. So definitely stick to that technique when handling a ceramic spray coating. This microfiber towel will be the one you will be using to spread the product onto the vehicle. Use a different one that is clean and completely dry to buff the excess coating off the surface of the car. Make sure that the first towel is not too wet, if it becomes, change it for a fresh one, and make sure that the one you are using for buffing is dry enough. So same thing, swap it for a fresh dry one if it gets too moist. This is why preparation is always key to anything you are doing in life. Make sure you have at least 4-5 clean and dry microfiber towels before you even start and it is a great idea, that we always recommend, using latex gloves. This is because you might not think much of it, but no matter how clean our hands are, they have grease and oil in them that collects dirt and can contaminate the surface of the car making it so that the Ceramic Coating will not bond properly onto the paint. If you have buffed well you should have a shiny, streak-free Ceramic Coated car before you! Time to test this product! If you would like to learn the full process of how we torture test products, you can click here and see it all in full detail. See below for our ratings in several categories that we think are significant when it comes to Ceramic Coating Sprays, the product's price per fluid ounce in terms of what you receive for the money you pay, and our final views on how it performed in the test. Let's see how The Last Coat Ceramic Spray performed: product life time when applied: C resistance to elements: D resistance to damage: F resistance to chemicals: D application difficulty: B hydrophobic properties: D gloss / shine: C Average grade: D Cost: 2.23$ / 1 fl oz 0.08$ / 1 ml Our final thoughts The Last Coat Ceramic Spray Coating? Is this a Ceramic Coating product? No. Ceramic Spray Coating is what it is. At best, it functioned as a Car Wax or a Polymer Sealant. It had acceptable hydrophobic capabilities until it was added to ordinary vehicle shampoo for the first time. It soon deteriorated, and once a stronger detergent was employed, it completely lost its hydrophobic qualities. You get a decent amount of the product, a whopping 16 ounces. It also comes in an 8 fl oz package and a crazy 128 fl ounce one! Unless you want to Ceramic Coat your whole neighborhood, we suggest staying away from that one! Even though we get a promised lifetime of up to 6 months, the catch is already in those words "up to" 6 months. No one promised that you will get the full 6 months. And under ideal conditions, you might even get there. But you live in the real world, and we both know that conditions are more often than not far from the idea. Extremely high and extremely low temperatures, bird droppings, tree sap, acidic rain, water spots, dust, grime, and bugs. The list is endless. And if you decide to use any stronger chemical or take your car into the local car wash, you will most likely have to recoat the whole car. This is where regular ceramic coatings shine as they are far more resistant to those types of damage, especially chemical damage. Would we recommend The Last Coat Ceramic Coating Spray? Depends on who is asking. Suppose you want a quick and handy way to get a shine onto your car and some nice protection for your paint. If some decent hydrophobic properties are added to the mix, then we would suggest this product! It certainly isn't the best ceramic spray we have tested. But also considering how much you pay for it and considering the fact that not everyone can be bothered to spend 8 hours ceramic coating a car properly - it is a great deal. It is also, in some way a gateway product into some more serious paint protection and car detailing. If you like it, you just might be bothered to check out the real deal one day. Cheers! Get your The Last Coat Ceramic Spray on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3qndGIp

  • Review: 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating

    303! We haven't made an official review of their products yet, but we are long-term fans of most of their products which range all the way from prep products and UV protection products to paint protection coatings. And let us tell you, they are amazing! 303 has been around for about 40 years now, and they have built quite a reputation for itself. Contents: 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating Specifications Let's see how 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating performed! Test results Our final thoughts on 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating Today we have one of their Ceramic Spray products on the chopping block - 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating. Will it hold up, or will it fail spectacularly? Grab that nice hot cup of coffee and read on to find out! We did say Ceramic Spray Coating, but 303 named their product Graphene Nano Spray Coating. Does that mean that it is based on graphene, the wonder material that has better conductivity than most materials and that can arrange its molecules in such a way that it becomes harder than steel while having only a fraction of its eight? Well.... we are afraid it is not that simple. If you want to learn more about Graphene Coatings, and a full in-depth review on that subject, you can read this here. But long story short, 303 claims their product is made using Graphene Oxide. And we aren't scientists to prove that it isn't, so we will just stick with it. But the question comes up whether graphene brings more to the story than regular SiO2 that ceramic coatings are made from. Well, it would appear that it doesn't. While graphene is a real thing, and its amazing application versatility is also real, our current technology doesn't allow us to utilize those benefits in ceramic coatings.... yet. So, it is a scam; Are graphene coatings a hoax? Well... we wouldn't go so far as calling it a scam, but when you see 'graphene coating', just read 'ceramic coating' because it is a ceramic coating that is infused with added graphene. Just to clarify - we are not sponsored by 303 or any other manufacturer of Paint Protection products, and we will test and review the product as it is in real-world conditions. We will follow the manufacturer's instructions during the application process, and we will prepare the surface to ensure the best finish and best adhesion possible. We are leaving an affiliate link to all our review products but in case the product turns out to be of low quality or not as all as advertised, we leave a warning to all our readers, and the quality of the product will always be reflected in the grade we assign to it at the end of every review. So if you do not want to sit through all of this text, you can scroll down to the Average Grade and read our Final Thoughts to get a general idea of what the product is all about. Ok, guys, let's jump into it and take a look at what we are reviewing today. 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating Get your 303 Nano Spray Coating on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3tADHWJ What does this product promise: 1+ Years of Premium Protection Lowers surface temperature, reducing water-spotting A high water contact angle sheds water quickly Easy to use! Black paint? Direct sunlight? No problem! Great for use on chrome, wheels, trim, and glass! Paint: Coats and protects the paint from scratches leaving a hard layer of protection Glass: Protects glass from chips and cracks, repels water while driving Wheels: Repels brake dust and helps keep your wheels looking clean (use an applicator to apply product to wheels). Trim: Preserves and protects plastic. Quite the list they have there. Let's go through it step by step! So, first of all, we start with the longevity of this product. They promise more than a year per application. And to be fair, when companies advertise the longevity of their products, they state the maximum time a product maintains its full effect under some ideal conditions. If you are a reckless car owner or simply live in an area where the climate leans towards the more extreme than usual, or simply do not park your car in a garage. Those are all factors that cut that ideal life of a product by a lot! So is it a year? Well, hard to tell. It seems plausible, but for a Ceramic Spray product, a year would be among the highest values we had the pleasure of testing. Next, 303 claims that the coating lowers the surface temperature and therefore lowers water spotting. For those uninitiated, water spots are what is left once a droplet of water dries up due to evaporation and leaves all the minerals behind baked on the paintwork of the car. They can be stubborn to remove and are generally the bane of the existence of any car owner. Well, we will test all that. Higher contact angle ensures that the least amount of water stays on the car. That is good. We will see how well it compares in that department. If you would like to learn more about the hydrophobic properties of Ceramic Coatings and about contact angles, you can read our article on that topic. Ease of use is always a good thing, but it does tend to come with Ceramic Spray Coatings. Our experience with graphene coatings in the past was that they tend to be a bit stickier in the buffing process, so we will keep that in mind. Also, they claim that direct sunlight is no problem. And black paint tends to absorb sunlight much more than, for instance, a white one would. On a hot day, a black car will be much hotter on the surface than a white car parked next to it. That is why direct sunlight is best to be avoided when performing any car detailing process, even as simple as washing a car. The reason is that liquids will evaporate much more quickly and will leave whatever hard residue was in them, creating a headache that you will have to deal with. Every person that has anything to do with car detailing will suggest you avoid direct sunlight when working on a car. They say that 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating can be used on any surface of the car except rubber. So avoid using it on a tire. They say that the Nano Coating protects the car from scratches. Well... that might be a bit misleading, but that will also be tested. You can read all about ceramic coatings and scratches in a previous article we wrote. Then we are informed that you can use the coating on a windshield as well, and that supposedly protects your windshield from cracks and chips. Without any further thought about that - this is straight up a lie. As to the issue of whether you should or shouldn't ceramic coat your windshield, you can read it here. The last two things we need to look out for are 'break dust repelling properties' and the protection of plastic trimming on a car. For the brake dust, we had some success with ceramic coatings, but since brake dust is basically iron particles and they stick to the wheel due to extremely high temperatures upon usage, ceramic coatings just do not have what it takes to tackle such an adversary. It helps to some degree, but it certainly won't prevent brake dust from sticking to your wheels. Check out this article if you are wondering whether you should ceramic coat the wheels of your car or not. The plastic trim on a car can certainly benefit from a good ceramic coating, especially if it is dulled out or faded. Now some products we have tested performed extraordinarily in that department, but others didn't do anything, and some even left white spots on the plastic. We shall test, and we shall see. Let's see how 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating performed! The first thing we did was wash the automobile and prime the surface for paint protection. There's no need to go to such efforts, but we want to be as objective as possible and examine how this product operates in ideal settings. Learn how you can prepare the surface of your car for ceramic coating and other forms of paint protection. After preparing the car for 303 Ceramic Spray, it was time to put it through its paces and see how it performed. The first thing that you will notice once you spray it on the car or onto the microfiber towel or applicator is that the liquid is black. And you might think that that will leave nasty stains or darken the color of the vehicle but no. Your car will retain its original shade of whatever color it currently has, just enhanced and more glossy. How will we test the product? In summary, we'll leave the covered automobile outside for the next two weeks and let the elements do their work. For the following 14 days, we'll drive the car hard every day, even on dirt roads, to replicate months or years of frequent driving. video explaining 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating in detail We'll wash the car using inexpensive auto shampoo at the conclusion of each day. Cheap vehicle shampoos are frequently alkaline or acidic in nature, and the alkaline or acidic base they utilize can harm paint protection. We'll also use harsher chemicals while cleaning, and we'll scrape a place on the carpet with an abrasive sponge to imitate scratching and evaluate the Ceramic Coating's resilience. If you would like to learn the full testing and reviewing process we go through with each and every ceramic coating product, you can click the link. Test results The application was straightforward. Before use, the bottle was well shaken. We sprayed the product on a specific work area ( a few sprays are all you need for a reasonably sized area ). To achieve complete coverage, the solution was massaged into the surface using a microfiber applicator in a crosshatch pattern. We polished the surplus paint to a glossy sheen because no curing or flashing time was required. We've also discovered that this coating requires a lot of buffing since streakiness was a problem for us. The product demonstrated great hydrophobicity after the first wash with normal vehicle shampoo. It was doing a bit more than sheeting, it was clearly beading. That is excellent, but you must guarantee that all of the small droplets are removed by drying or utilizing touchless methods such as an air compressor, leafblower, or just driving the car. On the second day, we also used an iron remover chemical, and after we had rinsed the cleaning product off, to our astonishment, 303 Graphene Nano Spray was still doing its job. Noticeably poorer, to be fair, but still very, very impressive considering the powerful chemicals that were used. After the third day and third wash using regular car shampoo and a degreaser, it was showing signs of struggle. We must say that for a Ceramic Spray coating, which performs much poorer than its standard counterparts, it blew us away with its resilience to chemical damage. And chemical damage is usually the main culprit that removes a ceramic coating over time. Most Ceramic Spray coatings that we had used in the past would completely lose their properties with much less aggressive methods used. This one is truly a gem! For additional testing, we reapplied 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating to the car's hood to get a better idea of how it will perform in other categories, then completed the balance of the two-week period using only conventional car shampoo. How we've graded this product: product life time when applied: C resistance to elements: C resistance to damage: E resistance to chemicals: C application difficulty: A hydrophobic properties: C gloss / shine: D Average grade: C Cost: 2.08$ / 1 fl oz 0.07$ / 1 ml Our final thoughts on 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating This product, simply said - blew us away. Surprise after surprise, and in a good way! Even if you went into this completely biased, you wouldn't be able to walk away just like that without acknowledging just how good this ceramic spray coating is. 303 created something amazing there. And they should be praised for that. Clap, clap for you, 303. Keep up the amazing work you have shown here. Was it the Graphene that made all the difference, or is the Ceramic Coating formula simply just too good? Hard to say, really. If we had some more scientific equipment to actually do some more sophisticated testing, in those white lab coats, of course, we might give you a straight answer. But here we are. We saw what we saw, and we were impressed. If you are looking for a Ceramic Spray coating, look no further - 303 Graphene Nano Spray Coating is definitely for you. And it is, most likely, the best Ceramic Spray coating we have used to date. We might even go as far as to claim that it would beat some regular consumer-grade ceramic coatings we have used in the shop before. It comes in 24 fl oz packaging as standard, and that should keep you happy the whole summer easily for an affordable price. If you dislike all the massive prep work and all the tools you need to correctly ceramic coat a car, then we definitely suggest buying this product and seeing where it takes you! Cheers! Get your 303 Nano Spray Coating on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3tADHWJ

  • Ceramic Coating Bottle - Plastic or Glass?

    Recently, as the site started growing more rapidly, we have got a lot of different questions from our readers. As we go about tackling each and one of them, today we have on our plate the infamous question of whether a Ceramic Coatings bottle that is used to store the product should be plastic or glass. Or another one, that is a bit more straightforward - 'Are ceramic coatings in a plastic bottle fake?'. Just as a quick disclaimer - we aren't scientists. We do not have a fancy lab with expensive testing equipment along with a Ph.D. and an IQ of 250. But we have almost 2 decades of experience with Ceramic Coatings under our belt, and that must count for something. We will answer that question by using what we have seen and experienced firsthand in all those years while working with many different Ceramic Coating products from all over the world and from many, many different manufacturers. So here we go! Contents: Can Ceramic Coating be packaged in a plastic bottle? What is the shelf life of Ceramic Coating? So why even package Ceramic Coatings in plastic instead of glass bottles? Should Ceramic Coating be packaged in a glass or plastic container? How should Ceramic Coating be stored? What is the shelf life of a Ceramic Coating? Is a plastic container an indicator that the ceramic coating is snake oil? Can Ceramic Coating be packaged in a plastic bottle? Yes, yes it can. Should it be? Well, that is a bit complicated, but if you want to be safe - then the answer is, "No, it shouldn't be stored in a plastic bottle." If you buy a Ceramic Coating and it arrives in a plastic bottle, you are instantly thinking to yourself "Oh Lord, why me? I have been ripped off!" - calm down. Everything will be ok. We promise! The reason why this information is popular in the car detailing industry is that it had some truth to it. The problem is the name 'ceramic coating' being used for different types of products. What do we mean by that? Ceramic Coatings are basically made out of 3 things: solids, solvents, and additives. Different products have different ratios of the thee in their formula. And of course, the types of solvents, additives, and their respective quality as well. It is like trying to recreate the taste of Coca-Cola. You know the ingredients, but somehow there are hundreds of products out there that try to mimic the giant, and yet not one tastes the same. Now, the Ceramic Coating, namely the liquid, may expand in the packaging due to changes in pressure or temperature and the chemical processes that both would impose on the coating itself. And such pressure changes might compromise the packaging and thus compromise the product itself. That is why it is not recommended to store ceramic coatings in plastic containers at all, but instead, use glass or, in some cases, even metals ( usually aluminum ). The truth is that this is not very straightforward or easy to answer, though, because there is more to it than just what we have just said. You also have to consider the shelf life and the storage instructions of each individual product you might have. What is the shelf life of Ceramic Coating? The average is about one year for an unopened product and about 3 - 6 months for an opened one as air is introduced to the solution. Again, this is also not really simple to answer as you have to consider other factors as well. Not each product is one year of shelf life, and in case the ceramic coating has been opened, it depends on how long it was opened for and what type of packaging it is. It depends on whether the ceramic coating comes with a dropper or is intended to be applied via a pipette. The ones that come with a pipette have a larger opening and a letting more air more easily once it is opened, while the ones that come with a dropper still let air in, but in a much smaller volume. These two factors do not determine how good or bad a ceramic coating is at all. They only determine how long the product will last once it has been opened. It also depends heavily on where you store the bottle. Is it in a cool place or a warm one, is it in direct sunlight, or is it in a dark place? So why even package Ceramic Coatings in plastic instead of glass bottles? Easy, it costs less. And it weighs less as well, so the transport and manufacturing costs go way down if you use plastic. So, even though you might come across amazing quality Ceramic Coating products, they just might be packaged in a thick plastic bottle. You never know. This is also the reason why Ceramic Spray Coatings have not considered 'real' ceramic coatings since they almost always come in a plastic container because the amount of solids they contain is very low, around 10 - 15 %, compared to standard ceramic coatings that have 45 - 100 % of solids in them. Because of this percentage, ceramic spray coatings have almost no risk of expansion due to external elements, and plastic packaging is the obvious choice for them. Hopefully, all of the above puts some clarity on the issue at hand. But for those that are screaming for a simple and short answer, below is the summary of what we have told so far. Should Ceramic Coating be packaged in a glass or plastic container? Glass is best, but plastic can be used as well if it is thick enough and if the composition of the ceramic coating allows it without compromising the integrity of the solution. How should Ceramic Coating be stored? In a dark and cool place. Avoid direct sunlight. You do not have to store it in a refrigerator. A dark place is usually cool enough. The best practice is to follow the manufacturers' instructions to get the most out of the product. What is the shelf life of a Ceramic Coating? If it is not opened, the average is one year, depending on the product in question. But if it is stored in a cool and dark place, it can last for years even, again, depending on the product. If it has been opened, however, then the shelf life drops significantly based on how much oxygen has been introduced to the coating and, again, how it is stored. Is a plastic container an indicator that the ceramic coating is snake oil? It can be. But it isn't really. If the plastic container is thick you still might have an amazing product on your hands. If you bought a fake ceramic coating, or what we like to call 'snake oil', it is likely packaged in a plastic container. But the reason behind it is usually not what you might first think. The real reason why fake or low-quality ceramic coatings are in plastic containers is that if someone wants to scam you, they do not want to spend too much money on it. That doesn't mean that the same might not come in a glass or aluminum container. It just means that that scenario is unlikely to happen as it would involve a much higher cost and a higher risk which a scammer might not be comfortable with. We hope we didn't give anyone any ideas about that. Ok lads, that about covers this issue. We hope we have answered your question clearly but be sure to contact us via our social networks or via email at info@ceramiccoatexpert.com. You can also check out more myths regarding ceramic coatings in this article, or you can check out the commonly asked questions regarding ceramic coatings. Cheers!

  • Review: CarPro CQUARTZ Lite Ceramic Coating

    Today we are looking at CarPro Lite Ceramic Coating. Is it any good? How did it perform during testing? Read on and find out! Get your CarPro CQUARTZ Lite Kit on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3KulijK Just to clarify - we are not sponsored by CarPro or any other manufacturer of Paint Protection products, and we will test and review the product as it is in real-world conditions. We will follow the manufacturer's instructions during the application process and we will prepare the surface to ensure the best finish and best adhesion possible. We are leaving an affiliate link to all our review products but in case the product turns out to be of low quality or not as all as advertised, we leave a warning to all our readers, and the quality of the product will always be reflected in the grade we assign to it at the end of every review. So if you do not want to sit through all of this text, you can scroll down to the Average Grade and read our Final Thoughts to get a general idea of what the product is all about. Contents: Why use CarPro CQuartz Lite? How to apply CarPro CQUARTZ Lite? So, how did CarPro Lite perform? What do we think about CarPro CQUARTZ Lite? So, CarPro Lite? It is no secret that we have been massive Carpro fans since the early days, and their CarPro CQuartz UK 3.0 Ceramic Coating is still our top favorite out of all the consumer-grade Ceramic Coatings we have used in our career. We have the exciting task to test out and do a proper review on another Carpro product. Naturally, we are stoked and can't wait to see how it performs. On our hands, we have CarPro Cquartz Lite Ceramic Coating, the 150ml Kit Version. Just to clarify, Lite is based on the 3.0 formula, but it is in no way a successor to that product. CarPro Lite Ceramic Coating is a toned-down version of the 3.0 formula that sacrifices longevity and durability for ease of use and price reduction. Is that a worth-vile sacrifice to make? We will see soon enough. Why use CarPro CQuartz Lite? With a life of 6+ months, it provides the same resistance to UV, stains, grime, and pollutants. Because of its self-cleaning qualities, it is simple to maintain. Use it as a stand-alone ceramic coating or as a topper for an existing CQUARTZ coating. CQUARTZ Lite is perfect as a gateway ceramic coating as it is created for people who aren't ready to dive into the industry-leading strength of our professional strength coatings. Excellent choice for expert detailers, DIYers, and weekend warriors that are into cars in general. It is also handy to know that you can use this product pretty much on any surface of your car's exterior except the windshield. What did we get with the Kit? The CarPro CQUARTZ Lite 150ml Kit includes the following: CQUARTZ Lite 150ml Bottle x1 Microfiber Applicator x2 CARPRO 2Face No Lint Towel x1 3M Face Mask x1 User Manual x1 The 150ml bottle of CQuartz Lite will last you around 15 uses in a medium-sized vehicle. It is suggested, and we agree, that you apply two coatings to each car. For optimal results, wait an hour after applying the first coat before applying the second coat. The coating should last up to 6 months if properly applied. It all relies on the temperature and weather conditions in your area, as well as the methods and chemicals you use to clean your automobile. For more details, read this article to understand how to best care for your vehicle after applying Ceramic Coatings and how to keep them as long as possible. How to apply CarPro CQUARTZ Lite? You are given a handy User Manual with clear instructions along with the product. We first need to prepare the surface of the car properly so that the coating can cure on top of the paint. Otherwise, if we skipped this step, you would have uneven coverage or very little, at least. Here you can read our step-by-step guide on how to fully prepare a car for ceramic coating like a professional. Once the car has been prepared, we are instructed to apply 10-12 drops on top of the applicator and to apply the product onto the pain while working one section at a time. This way, you are ensuring complete coverage and are making sure you have no streaks. The microfiber applicators are super handy, in our opinion, as you can slide three or even four fingers into them to make sure you do not squish them while applying or that your hand doesn't slide off them in the application process, which can be annoying. We are all large-sized dudes, and we can easily stick three fingers into them. We are hopeful that that crucial information helped some of you, haha. You should be careful, however, when using them because they have one huge drawback. While the fingers inside the applicator thing are super handy for control, it also gives you a false sense of security, and what can happen is that the finger or fingers that are not inside the applicator accidentally touch the car surface. Now, our advice is - always use latex gloves when working with cars. But if, for whatever reason, you aren't using gloves, then be mindful of those fingers outside. You see, fingers have oils on them that are excreted naturally by our bodies. You might also have dirt or grease on them from touching things. All those things need to be fully removed from the paint of a car before applying a ceramic coating. We are sure you can see how this can potentially ruin a job. Or at least be a huge annoyance. Anyway, we suggest using gloves. They are inexpensive, and they can be worth gold just for preventing things that you wouldn't even think of during a car detailing job. If you get your fingers on top of it, then clean and degrease that area. Dry it and then redo it. Do not leave anything to chance because you do not want the customer to leave unhappy, even if that customer is you! Ok, now what is very different than traditional ceramic coatings is that you do not need to apply the product onto the paint first and then wait for the flash-point of the coating, but instead apply it and buff it off immediately. Make sure to use a clean and dry microfiber towel for buffing, and also make sure to remove all possible high spots that might be present. Now, should you use the applicator that is given with the package for application, or should you use the traditional block plus suede combo? That is really up to you. But we feel like you will get a better result sticking to the traditional and tested technique. That doesn't mean that you will have a botched job if you go for the applicator. That is most likely a personal preference. You know what? We will test both and see how they turn out. Two layers are recommended, so once you finish your first pass you have to wait one hour and then can start applying the second layer. Once you are done, you do not have to wait one or two days, or in some cases, a week, for the coating to cure, but instead, only about 4 hours. That surely is quick. It is further recommended that if your car is not garaged for the next 48 hours and protected from possible rain or water, 1 hour after the 1st layer has been applied, you apply one final layer of CarPro Reload to protect the coating from possible water spots. Anyone who has anything to do with the car detailing industry knows what a nuisance those can be. So if you do not have the car garaged for the next 2 days, we suggest either trusting the weather forecast or using CarPro Reload. So, how did CarPro Lite perform? First of all, we will note that we tried applying this ceramic coating with the given applicator and with the suede block method, and the latter method, the traditional one, won by a landslide. It left a much deeper shine, and the overall finish was much better compared to the panel that was done with the applicator that came with the kit. The applicator didn't do badly, but when examining it with a lamp, you could clearly see the difference. Second, the product performed very, very well. We might just say that we were impressed because from the start, we knew that CarPro tried creating this hybrid between a traditional ceramic coating and a ceramic spray coating, and, well, we weren't sure how we felt about that. Well, we have no problem admitting when we are wrong, and, well, this one truly exceeded our expectations. It was a bit tacky upon application in the buffing process, but that is normal, considering it contains around 45% solids, and that number is extremely high when compared to ceramic sprays. We didn't struggle but we can see someone new to ceramic coatings might. So while we didn't have any problems, if you are a novice, please look out for those high spots and streaks and deal with them accordingly. This article covers advice on how to deal with both streaks and high spots. The way it enhanced the color of the car was really something. You could clearly see the difference between before and after with your naked eye. It was obvious. Cquartz Lite is extremely hydrophobic, and water runs for its life when introduced. Even after dozen washes, the coating still had all of its hydrophobicity when applied, proving its promised durability and its 3.0 formula origins. Let us see how we have decided to grade this product: product lifetime when applied: C resistance to elements: B resistance to damage: D resistance to chemicals: B application difficulty: B hydrophobic properties: A gloss / shine: B Average grade: B Cost: 12.42$ / 1 fl oz 0.42$ / 1 ml What do we think about CarPro CQUARTZ Lite? Considering how much you get and how much you pay for it, and how it ultimately performed - this surely is one of the top coatings out there - at least from an economic standpoint. In our opinion, the lifetime of 6+ months is its biggest flaw. Low resistance to damage is to be expected from this type of coating, but the lifetime simply is not very good. Even though it is bottled, for a moment, we even considered ranking this product in the ceramic spray category. Numerous Ceramic Coatings are better, and heck, it is not even a traditional Ceramic Coating when it comes to it. So no, it will never be the best. But it has its place, even among professionals. Because it is so easy to work with and easy to apply, it is perfect for newcomers that want to try Ceramic Coating a car but aren't sure about themselves. It is the perfect teaching tool and will still give you all the protection of a traditional ceramic coating - at least to some degree. If you buy it, you will not regret it, and a great thing about it is that it will last you a while! We are happy to stake our reputation behind this product and recommend it to everyone out there looking to use paint protection on their vehicle or any other vehicle for that matter. If you want a better ceramic coating, then you will need to accept the increased price, likely double the amount. You will also suffer the much-increased application difficulty that also comes with a very small error margin that this product simply doesn't have. If you are experienced and are looking for the best, then CQuartz Lite is likely not for you, unless you want a topper or something that you can apply quickly for whatever reason - perhaps a cheaper package for personal use, or even a training product. Suppose you are new to car detailing, paint protection, or ceramic coatings in general. Or if you have never ceramic-coated a car before, then this is probably the best product that you can buy. Cheers! Get your CarPro CQUARTZ Lite Kit on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/3KulijK

ceramic coat expert logo

About Us

Welcome to our team of experienced car detailers. With over 18 years of experience in the industry, we are dedicated to providing top-notch car detailing services to our clients.

 

Our specialty lies in ceramic coating, where we use the latest technology and techniques to give your vehicle long-lasting, durable protection against the elements accompanied by a beautiful new look. We take pride in our attention to detail and commitment to customer satisfaction. 

We are here to give you unbiased reviews on ceramic coatings and car detailing products we use daily in a professional environment. As well as teach you everything there is to know about ceramic coatings.

Join Our Mailing List

Thanks for submitting!

  • Facebook
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

© 2024 by Ceramic Coat Expert.

bottom of page