Best Ceramic Coating Product

[Idaho]

Considering a DIY ceramic coat as well as the one done by a detail shop. I saw another member stated that Avalon King products were quite good and right now you can get 3 of their "kits" for $100 with their 4th of July sale.

Any others have experience with Avalon King and can it be applied to the plastics as well? I see a lot of people stating they do apply their coating of choice to the plastics but I'm not finding much on the sites of these companies stating whether you can or cannot do that.

 

[Traffic22]

The do it yourself vs professional really comes down to asking yourself 2 questions. (IMHO)

1) Are you a control freak who won’t be happy unless you do it yourself? (I am in a lot of situations, and no matter how good it comes out, I find flaws if I think I could have done it better.)

2) Do you make more money than the detail guy? If you make $100 an hour and he charges $60, it’s kind of a no brainer. (Unless you answered yes to question 1.)

For reference, if it makes a difference, the kid who did my Raptor did it by hand, no machines, came out flawless, looks better than any new truck I’ve seen driving around.

His process:

1) Wash 2x with 50/50 car wash soap and dish soap to remove all old wax.

2) Clay bar.

3) Polish paint.

4) 3 coats of this stuff. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01H4D1ZAY/?tag=fordraptorforum-20

5) Maguire’s back to black on trim.

Total time 20 hours.

Is it the “best” as asked by the OP, can’t say. Can say I’m super happy with how it looks and how easy it is to clean. I’ve washed the truck 3x since it was done, and have only needed soap once. Other 2x, dirt and dust came off with just a clean microfiber cloth and water.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Hdaniel85]

Mine is in the shop getting the following done -

• 4 layers of Ceramic Pro 9H on paintwork and trim
• 1 layer of Ceramic Pro Light on paintwork and trim
• 1 layer of Ceramic Pro Plastic on plastic exterior
• 1 layer of Ceramic Pro Wheel and Caliper on wheel faces
• 2 layer of Ceramic Pro Rain on windshield

Then a Xpel PPF protection film on the following -

Full Hood and Fenders w/ wrapped edges, bumper, mirrors, and headlights

I just dropped it off today July 6th and won't get it back until July 9th. They have done many Raptors so I went with them, they have very good reviews and are only a 10 minute drive from my house (SoCal).

They do require an annual inspection to maintain the warranty. Can't wait for the final finish! My truck had tons of swirl marks from the dealer washes (bought with 250 miles on it) along with some light scratches, my fiance also pin striped it letting her drive it off-road.

I will post some before/after photos once it finished!


FYI This company uses a product called Ceramic Pro, it supposedly holds up for 5+ years if properly maintained, we shall see.

Price was $3200 out the door with taxes.

 

[Ducc]

The shop I took it to used Feynlab. I have no complaints, but it's my first ceramic coated vehicle so I have nothing to compare it to.

 

[Idaho]

I ended up deciding to do it myself and save about $1100 (hopefully) with the ceramic UV kit from Adam's along with their ceramic wheel kit. The total cost for the two kits, a polisher, and the wash/polish products was about $400. I know it will be an all-day event plus not having the truck for the 24 hour cure time, but hope it will be worth the time invested for the return and savings. Though other products might be better, I figured for a first-timer like me the UV kit from Adam's was a good choice being their is a way to "check your work" with the UV light. Going to try two coats of ceramic as the rep from Adam's I spoke with stated that more than 2 coats is the point of diminishing returns as further coats don't bond as well to what's already been applied.

 

[greatone99]

the consumer kits r no where's near the quality of the pros kits

 

[hdvvraptor]

[QUOTE="Hdaniel85, post: 1503443, member:

Price was $3200 out the door with taxes.[/QUOTE]

thats a big investment, but worth it if u plan on keeping it for a long time, unlinke me i dont keep them for more than a yr or so so i go the prosumer route and use diy coating

 

[Hdaniel85]

[QUOTE="Hdaniel85, post: 1503443, member:

Price was $3200 out the door with taxes.

thats a big investment, but worth it if u plan on keeping it for a long time, unlinke me i dont keep them for more than a yr or so so i go the prosumer route and use diy coating[/QUOTE]


Agreed, if I wasn't in it for the long haul, a coat of wax every 3-4 months would do it for me. But she turned out amazing!

 

[ljn21]

thats a big investment, but worth it if u plan on keeping it for a long time, unlinke me i dont keep them for more than a yr or so so i go the prosumer route and use diy coating

Agreed, if I wasn't in it for the long haul, a coat of wax every 3-4 months would do it for me. But she turned out amazing!

View attachment 147631

View attachment 147632[/QUOTE]

Shiney! Looks great

 

[hdvvraptor]

that came out great enjoy that mirror black paint