Ceramic Nanocoating Woes

[JDP]

One of the first mods I did to the truck and the Line-x bedliner (which was installed perfectly) was research a detail shop to have a ceramic nanocoating put on the whole truck. I found a detail shop with good reviews and one that uses Crystal Serum Ultra because they have a 9-year warranty and the manufacturer apparently certifies their installers. I am less than pleased with the results I got back and just sick at the amount of money $$$$ I paid for it. I swear it looks like a couple 12 year-olds did a crappy paste wax job on the truck. there were numerous spot of dried nanocoating that was not buffed out and other hazing areas where it wasn't buffed out correctly. I took it back to them to try to fix, but now I know the rubbing compound they used to remove the dried areas of nanocoating have surely damaged the coating itself. Now I get to try and find another detailer to attempt to fix the problem.

Everywhere you see a piece of blue tape is dried nanocoating that was not buffed out. There are additional spots that are large hazy areas that were not buffed properly. I'm still a huge fan of ceramic nanocoating, but really really really not a happy camper at the moment.

Okay, rant and vent over

 

[Loshad]

I'd tell 'em "Fix it, refund me, or I'll take you to court."
The fact that they have already tried to blow you
off means there's no point in talking nicely.

 

[blueonblack21]

This scares the hell out of me as I am seriously considering taking the plunge as well. I hope you get this resolved quickly and to your complete satisfaction!

 

[oops]

Ugh. Man. Sorry you got sucked in by these snake oil salesman. It's just like the plastic surgery industry.

Is there actually any way to fix this and get the desired result other than completely stripping/polishing and starting over? I see detail shops on YouTube doing that all the time.

 

[JDP]

I'm not really sure how it gets fixed. I'm currently talking with two other detail shops that handle the same product in hopes that they have a solution. Time will tell.

 

[jhblaze1]

I'd tell 'em "Fix it, refund me, or I'll take you to court."
The fact that they have already tried to blow you
off means there's no point in talking nicely.

this .

I got ceramic pro 9h or whatever and mine came out flawless. When I wash it, it looks like it was freshly waxed. They warranty their product.

If the OP's product and work is warrantied he should have no problem demanding they fix it. Otherwise yeah, sue them.

 

[LT75]

Wow that sucks. I just did my whole truck in my garage last weekend and it took about 12 hours. 2 coats of cquartz and good to go. I only saw one little spot that I missed in a corner of the bed. It was actually when I put the cquartz plastic trim coating on the top bed rail that I slipped and got some on the corner of the paint.

i’m sorry but I couldn’t imagine paying that much money to get it done. But I detailed cars when I was younger, so I have all the tools I need.

 

[ccw]

Since the manufacturer certifies their installers and has such a (seemingly) robust warranty, any chance you could work with them directly to help make it right? Reimbursement or something?

At a minimum they should know about one of their installers doing such a terrible job.

 

[LT75]

Some of those coatings are very temperamental. I see it happen a lot where people try to do too many panels at once. If the temperature outside is hot and you do that, those coated panels flash quick and you can’t get it off. That’s why I do one panel at a time, wait to 3-5 minutes depending on the temperature and humidity then wipe off and move on.

 

[Evolrider]

I had planned to do a ceramic coat day 1 on my truck but now I am rethinking it

 

[oops]

I had planned to do a ceramic coat day 1 on my truck but now I am rethinking it

Just do a ceramic spray. I did a paint prep, synthetic clay, and two coats of Griot's Ceramic Spray my first weekend with the truck. Each coat took less than 30 minutes. And I only used half a bottle. It'll probably only last a year or so. But I've got $10 and one hour a year…

 

[Evolrider]

Just do a ceramic spray. I did a paint prep, synthetic clay, and two coats of Griot's Ceramic Spray my first weekend with the truck. Each coat took less than 30 minutes. And I only used half a bottle. It'll probably only last a year or so. But I've got $10 and one hour a year…

That is exactly what I was thinking of doing, thanks for the advice

 

[Fitter48093]

This is mine, Did it myself with Adam’s Graphine, $120.00 and a weekends time. Best coating I’ve used to date

 

[oops]

Just do a ceramic spray. I did a paint prep, synthetic clay, and two coats of Griot's Ceramic Spray my first weekend with the truck. Each coat took less than 30 minutes. And I only used half a bottle. It'll probably only last a year or so. But I've got $10 and one hour a year…

Here’s a photo nearly 4 months later. And I don’t park it in a garage. ?

My maintenance “wash” is blowing off the dust off with a leaf blower. ?

 

[Andy]

ouch, sounds like they should not be certified for CS Ultra, sounds like they should just do CS Light, it doesn't last as long but it gives the installer way more time to remove the excess coating. CS Ultra has a really short cure time. it is recommended to be installed either in small 1'x1' squares and polished off immediately. that being said, I installed CS Light on mine right after I purchased mine

 

[Sludgemonkey44]

Here’s a photo nearly 4 months later. And I don’t park it in a garage. ?

My maintenance “wash” is blowing off the dust off with a leaf blower. ?

View attachment 27917

I’ve never seen a leaf blower that cleans wheels and applies tire shine…apparently I’m shopping for them in the wrong places…?

 

[oops]

I’ve never seen a leaf blower that cleans wheels and applies tire shine…apparently I’m shopping for them in the wrong places…?

I described a maintenance wash. Obviously I still do deep cleans.

Point was: Dust and pollen isn’t sticking to the paint yet after four months. So I’m pretty satisfied with this product for the price.

 

[TampaUKFan]

Here’s a photo nearly 4 months later. And I don’t park it in a garage. ?

My maintenance “wash” is blowing off the dust off with a leaf blower. ?

View attachment 27917

THIS↑ Ceramic coatings aka "pixie dust" as I like to call it is one of the biggest shakedowns in the auto accessories market. I fell for it 3 times .... you get sucked into it because its the "in" thing to have done to a nice vehicle. The 3 cars we had done professionally came out great and the coatings were very durable but the last 5 vehicles we have had I did myself and they look as good if not better and only cost $150 or so each. The hardest part of ceramic coating is the correction part, but even a rookie can do it themselves and not mess anything up. I laugh any time I see a post how a ceramic coating is going to save their front end from rock chips and bird crap. The coatings help but you still have to take good care of your vehicle, if you let bird crap sit on your paint or wash improperly your paint will be damaged.
Best thing to protect your paint if you want to spend a lot of money is clear bra on the whole front end, then just use an inexpensive spray coating once a year like soop has on the whole truck.

 

[PapaRaptor]

Thats horrible. I have all my cars and trucks ceramic coated. with a 9X type products. Looks like they used a product that "flashed" quickly and they rushed it and did too much area at a time. Ceramic coatings are only as good as the installer. You can do yourself but should really study up on it before you attempt it. There are many steps before the coating is applied, not just the color correction but proper wash, iron decon and clay bar. You don't want to seal anything with the coating except the clear coating. The wax mentioned above works great. I have my newest truck ceramic waxed ( only because my ceramic coating guy is on vacation.) The ceramic wax acts like the ceramic coating only will not last as long and if you use an iron decon on it, the wax will be gone and need to be reapplied. I can decon my coated vehicles if needed and it won't hurt the ceramic coating. There is so much iron fall out on these trucks when you get them. I prefer to not have the dealerships clean them. The small iron particles don't come off with a wash then they polish the surface causing very tiny "micro scratches" or "swirl marks". They will needed to be buffed out before any coating can be applied.

I would not accept that ceramic coating job. It does not meet any basic standards. Furthermore it will be very tough to restore.

I hear horror stories from the several ceramic coaters that I know. Mostly about guys self coating the vehicle but not doing any prep work and rushing it, doing large areas and the product flashes.

 

[PapaRaptor]

Here is the 9x ceramic coating on my VB Tremor. You can see the depth.