CONS OR LIMITATIONS OF CERAMIC COATING

 

A ceramic coated car or truck (or tractor or heavy equipment) is both a thing of beauty and a wise decision for the time it saves you in maintenance.  For all the perks of a coating check out this article.  If you are already a well informed car owner, here’s the realistic things a ceramic coating CAN NOT do, that most coating brands and professional installers will gloss over (pun intended) or completely leave out.  

 

But a well informed customer is a satisfied customer.

 

First off,  it IS NOT bulletproof.  If anyone is promising you that you can set it on fire and never wash it, it’s not the kind of business I want to be dealing with down the road if any issues come up.  (And those statements aren’t exaggerations, companies literally have ads stating both of those things and we get calls from people looking for that level of “protection.”

 

YOU STILL HAVE TO WASH IT

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And the wash method you choose will have a huge impact on how well your coating performs and for how long.  

 

Now you’re thinking.  “I just paid $1,800 for a coating. I SHOULD be able to wash it however  I want!”  You absolutely can, but it is counterintuitive to have all the scratches buffed out, put a fabulous coating on your paint and then take it to the SWIRL-MAKER automated wash around the corner.  

I’d compare it to paying for beautiful gleaming white dental veneers and then drinking coffee without gently brushing them after the beverage.  Yes, they’re beautiful, but you want them to stay that way.  And good maintenance is essential.

 

IT DOESN’T PREVENT WATER SPOTTING

 

Surely you’ve seen the photos and videos of perfect beads across the hood of a ceramic coated vehicle.  Those make for great pictures.  But do not be lulled into a false sense of security that you can spray your car, look at the pretty beads and then walk away.  Each of those beads contain trace minerals.  And when the water eventually evaporates, guess what’s left?  Yep, little rings of calcium speckling up your vehicle.  

 

What’s the good news?  The spots can be removed much much easier than on a non-coated car.  But how about we prevent the minor heart palpitations when you later see the spots, and simply wipe the car off after a wash or spray down.  

 

This spotting happens most frequently on the hood, roof or trunk.  You rarely see a coated vehicle with spots on the side, because the water rolls right off.  It could happen if you repeatedly parked next to a water sprinkler on  hot days.  The heat causes the water to evaporate before it can roll off, leaving the minerals behind. 

 

WORK TRUCK OWNERS

 

This is the only category of customers who we have found end up not feeling like they got value from the coating. It’s not that every work truck owner was left feeling unsatisfied.  

 

But again we are going for full disclosure and realistic expectations.  

 

OK so now you’re wondering if you fall into the category of truck owner who could end up in this boat. Here’s several criteria that we found the few dissatisfied truck owners had in common.

 

1. The truck is a deep dark color 

2. It is used day in and day out in the field with equipment 

3. It is being loaded and unloaded by people other than you (lets face it, they will not take same care as you would with both your equipment or your vehicle)

4. They rarely made time to wash their trucks at all

5. They expected the coating to prevent any scratches or damage, despite the fact that they showed back up with dents all on the top of the bed

 

IT DOESN’T PREVENT ROCK CHIPS

 

Does it reduce the probability of rock chips? Absolutely, but to what degree is hard to measure, because of the variables. What was the size of the stone that hit you? What was the speed it was coming at you? What kinds of roads do you drive on? Tiny stone, not too hard.. yes you probably will be saved a chip.  

 

But for the sake of full disclosure you must understand that rock chips can happen. If you want to prevent rock chips from damaging your paint then you should consider paint protection film.  It is currently the strongest protection out there to reduce the probability of rock chips to your paint. 

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The most powerful protection from rock chips is paint protection film.  Learn more about here.  

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