Ceramic Clearcoat?
- Thread starter enkrypt3d
- Start date
Mercedes has been using a ceramic clearcoat since 2003 that is supposed to withstand scratching three times better than a conventional clearcoat. Sounds good to me.
That explains why my friends that have Mercedes and they do some really hap-hazard washing on their cars:
1. Use gray water from laundry wash and rinse cycles to save water
2. take it through a drive through spinning brush car wash
3. have migrant workers wash the car and wipe down with towels that's touched 20 other cars before theirs including off road trucks
4. wipe crud off their paint with a paper towel - dry!
And their paint still looks prestine
PPG's Cerami-clear technology has been for a little while now. It's only offered currently in OEM applications and was developed to withstand scratches and swirls better than many other clear-coats. There's no way I know of to get it in the refinishing industry, and even if you could, you likely wouldn't be able to apply it correctly.
The problem many Honda owners run into (much like Porsche owners) is having to deal with the very soft clear-coats on their cars that lose their gloss and shine much easier as they take on swirls and scratches.
The problem many Honda owners run into (much like Porsche owners) is having to deal with the very soft clear-coats on their cars that lose their gloss and shine much easier as they take on swirls and scratches.
we have worked on couple cars with ceramic clear (BM S600, E46 M3, some others, C5 Z06 corvette have some kind of ceramic clear but its a lot harder then euro ceramic clear). it is harder to scratch but its even harder to fix.
now there is alternative, i am getting new product to try on my car and on my friends car for now before i can put it on other cars. Product called CQuartz, its nano ceramic coating which looks like just as hard as ceramic clear if not harder but only good for about 2 years. im putting it on my honda accord becouse i cant wash the car without marring it even with 2 bucket method.
here is link (im in no way associated with the company). it is A LOT cheaper then reclearcoating your car too
http://www.aquartz.net/aquartz.html
here is couple videos of the product
please do not try to do what they do in video on your car
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg1XK-fy3AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0dTY1_Iebc
there has been products like this in past (one of them is Optimum Opti coat) which has similar properties but it was not avaliable to public, only pro detailers could order it. and it was complicated to apply, this products seems a lot easier to use, this is why i ordered it
Mikhael
now there is alternative, i am getting new product to try on my car and on my friends car for now before i can put it on other cars. Product called CQuartz, its nano ceramic coating which looks like just as hard as ceramic clear if not harder but only good for about 2 years. im putting it on my honda accord becouse i cant wash the car without marring it even with 2 bucket method.
here is link (im in no way associated with the company). it is A LOT cheaper then reclearcoating your car too
http://www.aquartz.net/aquartz.html
here is couple videos of the product
please do not try to do what they do in video on your car
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg1XK-fy3AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0dTY1_Iebc
there has been products like this in past (one of them is Optimum Opti coat) which has similar properties but it was not avaliable to public, only pro detailers could order it. and it was complicated to apply, this products seems a lot easier to use, this is why i ordered it
Mikhael
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- 27 June 2003
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- 4,618
can i see pics of this on your car?thx!
as soon as its on i will post before and after pictures, im sure there would not be noticable difference though but we will see
as promised.
here is what i did today
Today i did my roof in prep for CQuartz application (initial thoughts, great product, easy to use but have to follow instructions very closely, honestly i messed up on first application and will have to fix it, waiting for instructions from manufacturer, or will just wetsand it again)
wetsanded with 2000 and 3000 grit paper
polished with M105 on wool pad, 203 on orange and 85rd on black, 3 IPA wipedowns, and applied CQuarts (looks like i screwed up and have to redo CQuarts application)
here are pics
condition of roof (acid rain etching, bird poo damage
wetsanded w ith 2000 grit
then 3000 grit
polished with 105
50/50, left side after 105 and 203, right side after 105 only
result after 2 stage wetsanding and 3 stage polish
Cquartz applied
removed per instructions
difference between sunroof glass and paint
here is what i did today
Today i did my roof in prep for CQuartz application (initial thoughts, great product, easy to use but have to follow instructions very closely, honestly i messed up on first application and will have to fix it, waiting for instructions from manufacturer, or will just wetsand it again)
wetsanded with 2000 and 3000 grit paper
polished with M105 on wool pad, 203 on orange and 85rd on black, 3 IPA wipedowns, and applied CQuarts (looks like i screwed up and have to redo CQuarts application)
here are pics
condition of roof (acid rain etching, bird poo damage
wetsanded w ith 2000 grit
then 3000 grit
polished with 105
50/50, left side after 105 and 203, right side after 105 only
result after 2 stage wetsanding and 3 stage polish
Cquartz applied
removed per instructions
difference between sunroof glass and paint
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I think you need to post close up shots of the area that you initially posted of with damage. That would give a good indication if the clear coat filled in and leveled the area. It does look like the paint is free of contaminants but close ups will reveal all. Good job though!
i have to remove the coating today and reaply it becouse i went over half cured coating iwth another coat too fast and it sealed hazed layer, surface still have small pitting from acid rain but its 100% better then it was, im pretty satisfied with results
deffenetly worth applying to any car, since it should help a lot with wash indused maring even with 2 bucket method. and since our honda paint is pretty soft its deffenetly a plus
AND it doesnt cost $700-900 like dealership charge to apply similar coating (i remember they offered it when i got my car, only thing is that they just apply it on top of your scratches and defects so it will not last long)
deffenetly worth applying to any car, since it should help a lot with wash indused maring even with 2 bucket method. and since our honda paint is pretty soft its deffenetly a plus
AND it doesnt cost $700-900 like dealership charge to apply similar coating (i remember they offered it when i got my car, only thing is that they just apply it on top of your scratches and defects so it will not last long)
repolished roof to remove/level "marring", reaplied coating, much better this time.
here are some pics
here are some pics
Where can we get the CQuartz? Their website doesn't have any info on purchasing.
This pic is trippy! haha
Any pics with a reflection of the sun? i want to see how that looks with harsh sunlight...
ill try to take some tomorrow, that day was cloudy for sun pics
This pic is trippy! haha
Any pics with a reflection of the sun? i want to see how that looks with harsh sunlight...
I love this pic the best.
It's my new wallpaper for the Fall.....
i can send you higher res image of that to use as wallpaper
im sure you guys realized that picture was taking with camera upside down so top is actually roof of the car
im sure you guys realized that picture was taking with camera upside down so top is actually roof of the car
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direct sunlight pics as requested
here is video
and video of Cquartz beeding
here is video
and video of Cquartz beeding
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ok today washed the car after applying cquartz couple days ago on test panels, applied on roof and fender, today washed with Dawn and citrus wash, here is video after washing
Mikhael
Mikhael
Wetsanded my hood today and applied CQuartz, looks sick, i can say its mile deep, cant wait to see it once it rains, coating is like RainX on super steroids as you can see from fender video
after 1500grit
after 2000 and then 3000 grit
starting to polish with rotary and wool pad
after wool pad on PC for final compounding.
after polishing with SIP, 203 and 106 on different pads
washed car with Dawn to remove all polishing oils to get it ready for CQuartz application
applied coating, waited 30 min at 30C to cure, wiped off, left car under gas heater for 2 more hours to let it cure more, coating should be completely cured in 48hours
done
reflection without orangepeel
driver side fender is next, then clear bra
Mikhael
after 1500grit
after 2000 and then 3000 grit
starting to polish with rotary and wool pad
after wool pad on PC for final compounding.
after polishing with SIP, 203 and 106 on different pads
washed car with Dawn to remove all polishing oils to get it ready for CQuartz application
applied coating, waited 30 min at 30C to cure, wiped off, left car under gas heater for 2 more hours to let it cure more, coating should be completely cured in 48hours
done
reflection without orangepeel
driver side fender is next, then clear bra
Mikhael
Most of the coatings are said to last between 1-5 years. The big three names right now are Opti-Coat, C1, and C-Quartz. All are slightly different. I just got done applying C1 on a Maserati GT after performing paint correction on it.
Some of the coatings...
After application
Seems slicker than Opti-Coat at this point and application seemed a little easier as well. Water beading is outstanding, so only durability to test still (which will be an ongoing process of course).
Btw what kind of car is that above?Similar threads
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