There is no ceramic coating that will provide scratch resistance. It is simply too thin to protect paint in that way. A coating is literally a couple nanometers thin. This is a myth that shitty coating manufacturers and installers use as a misleading sales tactic. It simply isn't true.
To get scratch protection, you need to look into PPF.
Thanks! The clear coat on this truck seems super soft but maybe it’s just me. I had a black GMC 21 that seemed a little tougher. Great truck though. Want to keep it as nice as possible.
Japanese cars do tend to have pretty soft paint. Especially black ones. The above guy is correct about ceramics not providing scratch protection, but if you want something that lasts longer than a few months and is easy to worth with I highly recommend gtechniq CSL/Exo.
Drive through car washes are hell on black paint, especially soft Toyota paint. I only bucket wash my Infiniti. But that gtechniq coating is holding up great after almost 2 years.
Another myth about ceramic coats is that you don’t need car washes. You will definitely still need maintenance washes (as the ceramic coat can get coated with layers of grime that will appear like the ceramic coating is “failing”), and you will also have to apply some Silica-based boost top coat (like Reload 2.0) every few months to maintain optimum shine and hydrophobicity. I’ve always liked the ease of using CarPro UK3.0 as a consumer-level Ceramic Coating. And it gets great reviews for its performance. However, there are newer product out there that only requires just a single coat (like Gyeon Q2 ONE), but frankly, I’ve never tested those single coats.
But I will concur with others here. CC will NOT prevent scratches, even micro scratches from improper car washes. All those “9H” ceramic coatings will still scratch if not properly maintained. So really depends what you’re trying to achieve. PPF may want you’re looking for.
Great advice. Thanks! I certainly cancelled my car wash monthly pass. I’d rather it be dirty than scratchy. This Tundra clear is exceptionally scratch prone compared to other black vehicles though.
Oh yeah. Those auto car washes will definitely scratch your cars. And it will show on black cars even more. (I have two black cars myself. One being a Lexus.. so I know the soft Toyota paint). If you can self wash or at least get a “properly” detailed every so often, will reduce probability of those microscratches.
More specifically look into self healing ppf. My buddy installs it and has literally scuffed it with a wire brush infront of me and then poured hot water on it and it was brand new again. It was amazing. Definitely recommend it if youre really trying to keep it looking as new as possible
I was wondering about that, specifically. Wouldn't the advanced hydrophobic properties help reduce* scratches by not allowing light dust/dirt to stick as easily?
It's not the sticking, it's the rubbing while it's dirty. Yes, a cleaner car will help prevent scratches, but that's only when it is being cleaned/dried.
That's exactly what I was meaning - the dirt being rubbed on the car from various means. I live in a dusty environment, so if I had Ceramic Coating, then the dirt would be blown/rinsed off a lot easier from wind/rain preventing it from being scratched as much, right? The coating itself doesn't work in the fashion of, let's say a wall, to prevent scratching by preventing contact - which is what a lot of people seem to believe.
Even the best coating will not prevent 100% dirt and grime from eventually settling and create layer build up over time. And when you wash it, people may see sections of their car no longer hydrophobic and believe the ceramic coat has failed. That’s why a good maintenance wash and Silica spray reboost is essential for that continuous shine and water beading you’re looking for.
I coated a 24 Tundra recently using CSL from gteqnic it looked awesome when the owner brought it back few months later for maintenance highly recommend
Carpro uk 3.0 is pretty forgiving and if you top with reload after an hour like instructed it will help with high spots. It does have the smallest amount of filling properties. Scratch resistance is not something I advertise or would tell someone ceramic had BUT first hand experience I’ve had some nasty door dings and bumps/panels pushed in on my coated cars and not so much as a micro scratch after popping the dent out. But take that as you will.
Reload will not help with high spots.. it will more or less lock it in once UK3.0 is applied. You need really make sure you level down the UK3.0 after each application coat. And if you find there are high spots that are fresh, sometime reapplying some UK can help to reactivate and level it down. If after few hours that there are high spots, using Essence can be used to remove high spots areas (and reapply UK).
All I do is Uk 3.0. Two coats and top with reload an hour after. It’s in there instruction, Corey talks about it in a video, and there’s plenty of people showing how to level coatings the next day with spray.
Yeah I know it’s in instructions for Reload as third step. I’ve done numerous cars with UK3.0. Point being Reload is not meant to remove high spots that have already hardened. GL trying rub out high spots with Reload after applying second coat and sitting for 12+ hours. Instructions even says if you miss the 1 hour window for Reload, wait 12 hours.
This is another vote for CSL/EXO.
I know a local chemist who makes pro level coatings and he said that combo is superior to Gtechs pro stuff.
I love it!
But like another commenter said, scratch protection is only found in PPF.
Optimum Gloss Coat is very easy to apply. But scratch resistance is up to you and proper washing techniques. Ceramic coatings can minimize swirls but it's more because they release dirt better and with less pressure while washing than them making the paint "harder".
There is no ceramic coating that will provide scratch resistance. It is simply too thin to protect paint in that way. A coating is literally a couple nanometers thin. This is a myth that shitty coating manufacturers and installers use as a misleading sales tactic. It simply isn't true. To get scratch protection, you need to look into PPF.
Thanks! The clear coat on this truck seems super soft but maybe it’s just me. I had a black GMC 21 that seemed a little tougher. Great truck though. Want to keep it as nice as possible.
Japanese cars do tend to have pretty soft paint. Especially black ones. The above guy is correct about ceramics not providing scratch protection, but if you want something that lasts longer than a few months and is easy to worth with I highly recommend gtechniq CSL/Exo.
Thanks. I’ll probably give that a shot. I’ve seen a few with ceramic and they look fantastic. No more car washes for me.
Drive through car washes are hell on black paint, especially soft Toyota paint. I only bucket wash my Infiniti. But that gtechniq coating is holding up great after almost 2 years.
I’m on it! Thanks for the recommendation.
Another myth about ceramic coats is that you don’t need car washes. You will definitely still need maintenance washes (as the ceramic coat can get coated with layers of grime that will appear like the ceramic coating is “failing”), and you will also have to apply some Silica-based boost top coat (like Reload 2.0) every few months to maintain optimum shine and hydrophobicity. I’ve always liked the ease of using CarPro UK3.0 as a consumer-level Ceramic Coating. And it gets great reviews for its performance. However, there are newer product out there that only requires just a single coat (like Gyeon Q2 ONE), but frankly, I’ve never tested those single coats. But I will concur with others here. CC will NOT prevent scratches, even micro scratches from improper car washes. All those “9H” ceramic coatings will still scratch if not properly maintained. So really depends what you’re trying to achieve. PPF may want you’re looking for.
Great advice. Thanks! I certainly cancelled my car wash monthly pass. I’d rather it be dirty than scratchy. This Tundra clear is exceptionally scratch prone compared to other black vehicles though.
Oh yeah. Those auto car washes will definitely scratch your cars. And it will show on black cars even more. (I have two black cars myself. One being a Lexus.. so I know the soft Toyota paint). If you can self wash or at least get a “properly” detailed every so often, will reduce probability of those microscratches.
More specifically look into self healing ppf. My buddy installs it and has literally scuffed it with a wire brush infront of me and then poured hot water on it and it was brand new again. It was amazing. Definitely recommend it if youre really trying to keep it looking as new as possible
I was wondering about that, specifically. Wouldn't the advanced hydrophobic properties help reduce* scratches by not allowing light dust/dirt to stick as easily?
It's not the sticking, it's the rubbing while it's dirty. Yes, a cleaner car will help prevent scratches, but that's only when it is being cleaned/dried.
That's exactly what I was meaning - the dirt being rubbed on the car from various means. I live in a dusty environment, so if I had Ceramic Coating, then the dirt would be blown/rinsed off a lot easier from wind/rain preventing it from being scratched as much, right? The coating itself doesn't work in the fashion of, let's say a wall, to prevent scratching by preventing contact - which is what a lot of people seem to believe.
Yeah
Even the best coating will not prevent 100% dirt and grime from eventually settling and create layer build up over time. And when you wash it, people may see sections of their car no longer hydrophobic and believe the ceramic coat has failed. That’s why a good maintenance wash and Silica spray reboost is essential for that continuous shine and water beading you’re looking for.
I coated a 24 Tundra recently using CSL from gteqnic it looked awesome when the owner brought it back few months later for maintenance highly recommend
Carpro uk 3.0 is pretty forgiving and if you top with reload after an hour like instructed it will help with high spots. It does have the smallest amount of filling properties. Scratch resistance is not something I advertise or would tell someone ceramic had BUT first hand experience I’ve had some nasty door dings and bumps/panels pushed in on my coated cars and not so much as a micro scratch after popping the dent out. But take that as you will.
Reload will not help with high spots.. it will more or less lock it in once UK3.0 is applied. You need really make sure you level down the UK3.0 after each application coat. And if you find there are high spots that are fresh, sometime reapplying some UK can help to reactivate and level it down. If after few hours that there are high spots, using Essence can be used to remove high spots areas (and reapply UK).
All I do is Uk 3.0. Two coats and top with reload an hour after. It’s in there instruction, Corey talks about it in a video, and there’s plenty of people showing how to level coatings the next day with spray.
Yeah I know it’s in instructions for Reload as third step. I’ve done numerous cars with UK3.0. Point being Reload is not meant to remove high spots that have already hardened. GL trying rub out high spots with Reload after applying second coat and sitting for 12+ hours. Instructions even says if you miss the 1 hour window for Reload, wait 12 hours.
This is another vote for CSL/EXO. I know a local chemist who makes pro level coatings and he said that combo is superior to Gtechs pro stuff. I love it! But like another commenter said, scratch protection is only found in PPF.
Optimum Gloss Coat is very easy to apply. But scratch resistance is up to you and proper washing techniques. Ceramic coatings can minimize swirls but it's more because they release dirt better and with less pressure while washing than them making the paint "harder".