ceramic coated Bronco; finally complete

[gasman556]

What do you define as “solid?” Newer, clean, uncontaminated (smooth) paint will often bead relatively well too.

How are you able to confirm that your coating is still present?

Longevity and results compared to uncoated cars indicates “solid” in my book.

Water still beads up. That doesn’t happen without a hydrophobic coating.

 

[The Critic]

Water still beads up. That doesn’t happen without a hydrophobic coating.

It definitely does. Clay a good-condition hood using aggressive clay, then machine polish it. Take it outside and wash. Wash it several times if you desire. You’ll find that the water still beads.

 

[gasman556]

It definitely does. Clay a good-condition hood using aggressive clay, then machine polish it. Take it outside and wash. Wash it several times if you desire. You’ll find that the water still beads.

 

[D1dad]

Then there was something seriously wrong with the coating. How many years are we talking about later? Coatings are permanent.

About 4 yrs. A reputable individual, not some commercial place. I drive a lot for business and figured it would help with chipping the hood as well as tree sap from my yard. Maybe I expected to much, but it helped neither. The only water beading that occurs now is if I wax the cars. There’s a chance I got taken or that ceramic coating is overhyped. Either way I won’t be doing it again.

 

[gasman556]

About 4 yrs. A reputable individual, not some commercial place. I drive a lot for business and figured it would help with chipping the hood as well as tree sap from my yard. Maybe I expected to much, but it helped neither. The only water beading that occurs now is if I wax the cars. There’s a chance I got taken or that ceramic coating is overhyped. Either way I won’t be doing it again.

PPF would’ve been the only thing that could have helped with chipping - think sacrificial layer. Tree sap if left long enough will damage any coating.

It stinks you had a bad experience. Maybe your guy got a bad batch? Either way, you now know what you don’t like with the history of what you’ve had done.

 

[Texchappy]

That’s debatable. A lot of coatings will lose their hydrophobic and dirt-release properties if the “pores” get clogged. This can happen pretty quickly during the winter months. The only way to restore the hydrophobic properties is to do a decon wash with an iron remover or APC, and even that isn’t always successful. I have seen numerous situations where a coating has stopped beading since the owner had not washed the vehicle in 2 months.

The crux of the issue is: it isn’t always easy to confirm the presence of the coating.

Auto correct - I typed aren’t! They are not permanent

 

[gasman556]

Auto correct - I typed aren’t! They are not permanent

This makes more sense.

 

[Texchappy]

About 4 yrs. A reputable individual, not some commercial place. I drive a lot for business and figured it would help with chipping the hood as well as tree sap from my yard. Maybe I expected to much, but it helped neither. The only water beading that occurs now is if I wax the cars. There’s a chance I got taken or that ceramic coating is overhyped. Either way I won’t be doing it again.

I’d call four years pretty good. We are lucky to get 4 months on a good sealant here and waxes barely last a month in summer. Considering you really need to do about as much pretty, doing something that lasts 4 years is worth it to me rather than 1-4 months. The coating on this Bronco said 8 years but I don’t believe it will last that long. I’d love to get 4 years after the work I did.