Paint Correction and Ceramic Coating
 

So I went to a detailer today, and got an estimate, and just wanted some opinions. I spent the better part of an entire weekend a few years back, doing the clay bar, then a 3 step process with these pads that mounted to a power drill, and while the results were good, they were not great. The swirl marks were still there, and I am not comfortable using chemicals and heavy duty polishing machines So anyhow cut to the chase, paint correction with a lifetime ceramic 5 layer coating the cost was $1,600. This includes sanding and sealing the headlights, as well as every single thing on the outside of the car being sealed with the Ceramic coat. Also clay bar the whole car, plus correct the swirls, etc. It seems expensive but I know how many hours it took me, plus the fact that I was unable to get the swirl marks out without fear of possibly ruining the paint. I've got a 2010 TSX it is outside all the time and I would like to keep this car as long as possible.

Anyhow just looking for some advice. Price advice. Etc.

Quite honestly that is a decent price if not low but price depends on how aggressive they need to get with the correction. Im guessing thats Ceramic Pro as no others have a lifetime warranty I am aware of but keep in mind while this is impervious to almost anything it will REQUIRE you to ensure that your correction is flawless. I say this because no chemical can remove the product it has to be removed with abrasiveness or polishing it will not "dissolve".

And BTW I have had a number of cars where I have had coating done and swear by this approach. I too went down your path and came to the same conclusion that I could not get it to a good baseline myself. Good luck and yes it is not cheap but quite honestly I believe the coating if applied correctly will give you more protection than any wax could #waxisdead

Ceramic coatings are the s**t, my RL is opti-coat pro'd and I love how easy it is to keep shiny. Wash and dry, done! Looks fresh polished every time. Just rrealize you won't be running the car thru the touch auto washes any more.

In all honesty, the price seems pretty good considering they are doing the prep. However, that depends on the coating being used?

I take it you opti-coated on new paint? . I've heard it's not worth doing unless it's on fresh paint or a new car

I'm actually glad you asked that question. My car was opti-coated after I took it over, so no, it wasn't new paint. I agree and disagree with your statement, it all depends on the situation and the car you're dealing with. The thing to keep in mind is unless the car is new or the paint is fresh, the cost of correcting the paint before doing the coating will drive the cost up a lot.

For example, I'll take my case. An opti-coat pro application thru the shop I went to is 695$. That's on a brand new car that has flawless paint, and most dealers will wash their cars unless it's fresh off the truck and you explicitly tell them not to wash it. If they wash it, boom: swirls and they will have to correct the paint before opti-coating it. Also, not to rag on factory painting process, but most factory paints will need SOME form of correction as no paint application is flawless, and some manufacturers are worst that others for their paint quality. Ceramic coatings will not hide swirl marks or damage as they have no fillers, so whatever swirling is in the paint prior to the coating will be "trapped" behind the coating so to speak. To my knowledge, and when I did my research, most shops will charge you per hour on paint correction before applying opti-coat or any other ceramic coating. That's where your costs start to add up and do they add up QUICK. All in all, for a proper opti-coat install on a used car, the cost can drive up to 2-4 times the 695$ that my shop quoted me.

Where the "it's not worth it" statement comes into play is here: You need to ask yourself, is it worth spending ~1500-2500$ on a used car, and in OP's case, a now 7 year old car. How long do you plan on keeping it? How well are you able to care for the coating? In my case, it was an easy choice. When I had it done, my RL wasn't going anywhere soon and it still isn't. On that note, to me it was worth it as it makes cleaning the car and making it look good so much easier. That's some of my thoughts on coatings...

Ive had a stage 1 paint correction completed for less than 500 CAD. It was a pretty good job performed for a decent amount of money.
The shop I took it to is a very reputable shop in my neighborhood, they mostly work on higher end vehicles such as lambos, benz, etc etc.

Ive recently found a local guy, also quite reputable, who charges 450 CAD for a stage 2 paint correction. He is obviously lower in price since he is not as "well known".
My advice would be to read testimonials/reviews of the shop you got an estimate from, chances are there will be more shops in your area who can do it for much less.
Also, you want to really research what the procedure entails that they have estimated 1600 for you. To me that's very high, I have local shops here who do a full stage 5 paint correction on Bentleys for 1500 CAD.

Hope this helps

Like I said I have had this done to several cars, one of them was 25 years old and the other is 20 years old. It was worth every penny. The finish just "pops" esp on the dark cars and like you said cleaning is easy. I even coated the calipers on the RL and wheels of TL and RL..disk brake dust just rinses off.

Thoi - I think its even more beneficial for older cars esp my 20yo one which sits outside without a cover unlike the rest. I didnt do an aggressive correction and the finish product looked amazing

I did wheels and the glass too, it's amazing how easy cleaning becomes and how great the car looks post wash. It's definitely worth every dollar I spent on it, no questions.

I'm not saying age should disqualify a car from opti-coat, but guys like you and me who keep their cars a decade or longer aren't as common. A lot of us "older car" guys tend to aggregate on car forums, which is why you and I don't mind opti-coating old cars. I think the average length of car ownership nowadays is something like 6 to 7 years, although the number is increasing lately. That's why I decided to throw the whole "how long are you keeping the car" in the mix if that makes sense?

Appreciate all the anecdotes!


I think your knocked it out of the park with that response project. The 'not worth it' comment was definitely due to prior poor paint condition and sealing that in. New definitely doesn't mean good/better in this case. :thumbsup:

Man it makes perfect sense and I was agreeing with you.

Going back to OP question. I have had all but 4 of my cars coated and have no apprehension in recommending it. I'd shop around though and compare the brands. Ive only done Modesta and OptiCoat on mine none have the lifetime warranty so I'd question that and shop around with other detailers and check reviews on the detailer.

:thumbsup:

I'm actually curious on your thoughts on Modesta vs Opticoat? I had both options presented to me at the time and Modesta was a steeper price at the time.


We try :cheers: Definitely some great input from everyone who chipped in here.

Since my friend owns the shop where I had work done I went with Modesta, as thats what he recommended. I used that on the nicer cars it seems to have a deeper shine if that makes any sense at all but short of that if you put the 2 side by side on a car and didnt tell me the difference I couldnt tell which was which. They both repel water the same. I just think Modesta is just trying to distance itself by price and exclusivity. I think anyone can buy some types of OptiCoat vs Modesta you have to be approved by Modesta to offer their brand. Also remembered I have used Cquartz as well so all 3 major brands and I'd have to say you cant go wrong with any of them, anything is better than nothing at all. Personally it all falls on the shop doing the work and their prep of the vehicle.

Reading this thread was the first time I've heard of ceramic coatings, so I'm going to ask an amateur question. If the idea is to protect the paint with an impervious layer, why would touch car washes be harmful to it? Why wouldn't all the junk (bugs, sap, rocks, etc.) that damages paint with clear coat eventually also damage (and show up as damage) on a ceramic coat?

It's actually a fair question :thumbsup: Ceramic coating are chemical/tree sap proof and I haven't really read or seen any ceramic coating failures due to chemical exposure, however they won't protect against things like rock chips in the same way a clear coat and paint will fail upon a rock impacting it, but the sheet metal of the car may or may not be dent after the rock impacting it. The best way to think of a ceramic coating is it's a long term wax, it adds a hydrophobic layer on top of the clear coat that last a very long time, almost like a second clear coat. In the same fashion as a wax or a clear coat, it wont hold up to things like rock chips and will still show damage on the paint. That's where things like XPEL ultimate and 3M films come into play.

For instance, I took my RL to get washed at the same shop that did my opti-coat last Friday. I've developed a good enough relation with the shop that they will often times let me walk around in their shop to see the cars they have while they hand wash my car. I saw a brand new Chevy Silverado that had been driven straight from the dealer to their shop. The car was undergoing some prep work for a full front end XPEL install followed by a coat of Modesta. This approach will cover you on a few fronts, it will help prevent rock chips and physical damage (to a certain point) and will add a chemical-proof, hydrophobic protection layer for the rest of the paint. With this combination, the Silverado would be protected against rock chips, bug spray, chemicals and would make cleaning much easier. However it won't prevent a scrape if someone where to hit it in the parking lot.

Where the hand car washes come into play is here, and it sort of follows into the "can't prevent physical damage" theme: touch car washes are harsh by nature, the bristles are very hard on the paint. Even if you look at soft cloth automatic car washes, they will often times have dirt trapped in the cloth that will get rubbed against the paint and finish and cause swirls and scratches. Even a hand car wash, when looked at over a long time span, will install small amounts of scratches as no sponge/cloth is perfectly clean. A hand car wash will add the small scratches over a much, much monger span of time than a touch car wash. This scratching effect, whether caused by a hand car wash or an automatic one, will exert it's effect even on a ceramic coating. I hope this makes sense and answers your question?

^ He's spot on with his response.

To further reduce any impact on the coating or paint in general folks use the "2 bucket method" to wash cars with grit guards in each bucket as well as 2 sponges one for above one for below the beltline. This helps to keep that grit off the sponge/mitt and your paint and into the bucket.

Thanks to both of you!

Thanks for al the insight, the guy to do my car, told me that a hard enough rain makes the car look clean again, but he also said having a pressure washer is perfect for cleaning the car once the ceramic pro is applied. I am thinking about taking the plunge in the not so distant future.

Thanks again Also I just found all the replies. I forgot you have to look at the actual thread to get more notifications. So sorry for the late thanks!

He is correct to a certain point it will knock off a good portion of the loose dirt but not everything. I found it is best with powerwasher if rims and calipers are treated works really well on those. Just be careful obviously with the setting on powerwasher. Had a lady come into my friends shop after she "washed" her vette with a powerwasher she washed it all right washing paint off parts of front bumper...she thought he could, as she states "buff it out".

I finally gave in to the ceramic craze. Dropped my '55 off at the detailer to get done with ceramic pro gold package. Ain't gonna be cheap, he thinks the thing will take 2 full bottles of 9H :eek:

You wont regret it. Yeah, lots of sheet metal of those era cars!

Wow a former Ashburner...nice. Hardly ever see folks from my town on boards.

it was a brief stint. My wife is from there. (actually met her on this forum back in 2001). Amazing the difference in that town from 2001 to now

Agreed, moved here in 1997 still blown away every day

How old were you in '97? We use to have a group of Ashburners in the early days. My wife graduated broad run in '99


Btw, trucks been at the detailer a for 2.5 weeks. Pick it up today. He has 50+ hours into it!!

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I have had two of my Acura's sealed with ceramic coatings. The application of the professional products will run around $1000 by a certified tech. I swear by it. I had my 6 year old RL done with OptiGuard (at the time that was the professionally applied product) and some minor paint correction with the car having a few years of minor scratches. When I sold the car @ 10 years it looked new. Then I purchased my Sport Hybrid and had it done upon delivery. The new professionally applied product from Optimum is OptiCoat Pro+ and since the car was new, it needed minor prep. My bill now was $1100. I love the ceramic coatings (there are other brands / products on themarket) , and while they will not protect from stone chips, they will prevent paint etching from contaminants, bird droppings and tree sap. The newer version is a smooth feel finish, where the older on my RL felt like the finish had just been stripped of wax. Both caused water to sheet off the car. And the Sport Hybrid has it on all trim, plastic, headlights, glass and even the wheels. My wash regiment is simple, a wash, blow dry, and a quick detail spray to keep it even slicker. The RL pic is when it was applied to at 6 years old. The Sport Hybrid was done after delivery.

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That's incredible. I really need to get my 911 done and my truck.


Picked up the '55 finally, guy put 40+ hours into it.

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Lets just say Im older than your wife and I live right behind BRHS.

Yikes, 50 hours. I think I have that with all my cars I dropped off.

Thats just stunning.

I did my 20yo Landcruiser and best decision I made. Made it look new, I didnt go aggressive on it of course but looked amazing.

Tampa - my 07 RL is CGP and came out with results exactly to your RLX. Seems darker colors look awesome with the coating.

So I'm doing an application of cquartz U.K. On my 996. It started with just the wheels I had refinished and then I decided to take the plunge on the paint. I've only done a few panels (don't have the time to sit and polish all weekend at once). Started with hood and have done drivers side. Will keep you guys up to date on results

I like cquartz better than opticoat I think the shine is deeper. Good luck and send progress pics when you can.

Is that a GTO in your profile pic?

it is, but no longer have it. Got rid of it when the second kid came about 5 years ago. Somehow I'm still able to keep the 996 Turbo with baby #3 on the way in 3 weeks....

Congrats. Hope you get the car finished before said bambino arrives.

I'll add my +1 on the CQuartz.
I live in Wisconsin, and did my silver '10 TL. $1600, including all prep; results were stunning.

So what's the cost in doing something like this yourself? Seems like everyone is saying it possible it's just a ton of work

​​​​​Cquartz ceramic coating sells for about $60 or so on Amazon. But it's not the same product that is sold to professionals, as it's easier to apply but won't last as long. There's plenty of videos on YouTube that show the multistep process of washing, claying, paint correcting, applying the coating.

+1. If you're looking to save a couple of bucks, I would consider doing the polish yourself. Just be aware some detailers who apply the pro version may still want to do some final corrections before putting on the pro version. The pro versions of the ceramic coatings last longer than the "consumer" versions we have access to.

$1600 is pretty cheap granted they are actually doing a 3 stage polish, but does your car actually need a 3 stage?

I know shops that charge 3-5000 for a full car and thats what I would go for if I were seeking paint correction.

I would personally go for the past history of work opposed to the ultimate costs.

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About to do this to my 2019 MDX....