Aftermarket Paint Protection

tmattson57

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My Lincoln
2025 Nautilus
I’m the proud new owner of a ‘25 BL Nautilus in BLACK :/
It’s beautiful now and I want to keep it that way for as long as possible.
Has anyone done aftermarket paint protection such as a ceramic coating? Does anyone have any experience with a product call Icon Rocklear?
 
I haven't used it, but based on a quick online check I'll stick with what we've done.

I looked at specialist-installed ceramic coatings, but chose not to go that route. Nothing against it, but I've been used to washing/waxing my cars for several decades, so using DIY-applied top finishes made sense to me.

If you're highly concerned about rock dings, PPF can be helpful, though over time it's easy to build up a "grime line" at the edges, takes attention to keep it clean.

End of the day I went the cheap/simple approach. Since I already preferred hand washing cars, can do that at home for much of the year (central NY winters get brutal), I went with a good car wash shampoo (already in-hand), restocked my set of microfiber detailing towels (large for the main drying-after-washing plus some smaller ones), and went with Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions Ceramic Spray Coating.

I did a thorough first wash on all 3 of our cars (over a couple weekends), including a round of tree sap removal on the two older vehicles (Nautilus only needed some minor touchups for sap - we had multiple trees overhanging the driveway removed this year), and first round of the TW product. Results were beautiful, nice shine/gloss, excellent beading, no streaks/water spots. The TW applied/buffed easily enough that I was happy, so did a second round (TW recommends an initial two applications) a week after all 3 had completed the first pass (much faster given no new tree sap).

We've had multiple large snowfalls already, the cars still look beautiful after using a snow broom on them (snow comes off easily), I fully expect the two-coat TW to last through the winter, will do a single coat in the Spring, likely another double in the Fall.

For between-main-cleaning touch-up I've picked up some of the TW 3-in-1 Ceramic Detailer, expect it'll work well though I haven't tried it yet.

 
Both my 23 Nautilus Black Label and my wifes 24 Corsair Reserve are ceramic coated with a specialist installed Crystal Serum Ultra coating. It beads water extremely well, and almost nothing sticks to them. Cleaning is incredibly easy. I highly recommend it. My 2016 Fusion Titanium AWD is ceramic coated with Fynlabs Self Healing Ceramic Coating but that coating had issues and needed reapplied several times. The car still looks brand new after 289,000 miles and 10 years of driving.
 
I started using ceramic coating on my vehicles about a year ago. The first couple I had professionally done and I watched the process. The last one I did myself. It was only a little more effort than waxing. It definitely holds up better. In theory, it will last 10 years. I will be happy with 3-5 between recoating. The vehicles are easier to clean, and the surface feels smoother. I handwash my vehicles. I also only buy light colored vehicles because they are easier to maintain. I am told that automatic car washes does shorten the life of ceramic coating. All my vehicles are garage kept.

I did try ceramic coating on a portion of my boat. It did not hold up better than wax. The calcium from the water needs to be cleaned with muriatic acid periodically. The boat is also garage kept.
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I started using ceramic coating on my vehicles about a year ago. The first couple I had professionally done and I watched the process. The last one I did myself. It was only a little more effort than waxing. It definitely holds up better. In theory, it will last 10 years. I will be happy with 3-5 between recoating. The vehicles are easier to clean, and the surface feels smoother. I handwash my vehicles. I also only buy light colored vehicles because they are easier to maintain. I am told that automatic car washes does shorten the life of ceramic coating. All my vehicles are garage kept.

I did try ceramic coating on a portion of my boat. It did not hold up better than wax. The calcium from the water needs to be cleaned with muriatic acid periodically. The boat is also garage kept.
When you did it yourself, did you clay and polish before applying the coating? This is where most of the labor cost is in applying the coating. If they charge a fortune and do not do the above, they are charging too much. The coating process itself is fairly quick and the main aspect is ensuing a level coating so no high spots.

Have you done any decon washes (lower ph) or booster sprays. Most detailing enthusiasts I have read about in the detailing arena cannot resist to layer, add toppers, etc. regularly because they still want to touch the paint.

I decided to use ceramic based sealant and apply with a Dual action polisher.
 
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