Ceramic coating/PPF Oh not another thread...
Discussion
Afternoon all.... I know this has been covered various times previously but I've been offered something from my dealer. My Rapide AMR has full front end PPF. But they are offering to ceramic coat the whole car, and on top of PPF. it's Gtechniq HALO for £1k. Seems to me be a lot when a quick google search shows it's £50 a bottle (although NO idea how many bottles would be needed!
Any thoughts on is it worth it?
Will it save the paint?
Will it last and not effect paint later?
Any thoughts on is it worth it?
Will it save the paint?
Will it last and not effect paint later?
Halo is designed for ppf or wraps. Really a gtechniq crystal serum light and exo combo on the rest might serve you better, saving halo for the wrapped section of ppf.
There will only be one bottle required, it is time consuming if done correctly though. Prep is critical.
It won't save the paint from anything like ppf, but will make it easier to clean and less swirls.
£1k feels high, but it does depend on the level of polishing done prior to the application
There will only be one bottle required, it is time consuming if done correctly though. Prep is critical.
It won't save the paint from anything like ppf, but will make it easier to clean and less swirls.
£1k feels high, but it does depend on the level of polishing done prior to the application
The Halo product is for use on top of the PPF, so they need to clarify what is being offered.
Halo on the front end PPF presumably.
1. Ceramic coating the remaining areas of the car with a different product?
2. If so what product? What level of paint correction will be done before ceramic application?
3. What warranty are they offering on this work? (you'll need to see the warranty T&C too).
If they are just offering the Halo and another appropriate ceramic coating to be applied for that money then it's significantly over priced. The best course of action is usually to clarify precisely what is being sold to you and price it through a reputable indy. The dealer will likely farm this work out and take their percentage, or make a mess of it in house.
Halo on the front end PPF presumably.
1. Ceramic coating the remaining areas of the car with a different product?
2. If so what product? What level of paint correction will be done before ceramic application?
3. What warranty are they offering on this work? (you'll need to see the warranty T&C too).
If they are just offering the Halo and another appropriate ceramic coating to be applied for that money then it's significantly over priced. The best course of action is usually to clarify precisely what is being sold to you and price it through a reputable indy. The dealer will likely farm this work out and take their percentage, or make a mess of it in house.
M11rph said:
The Halo product is for use on top of the PPF, so they need to clarify what is being offered.
Halo on the front end PPF presumably.
1. Ceramic coating the remaining areas of the car with a different product?
2. If so what product? What level of paint correction will be done before ceramic application?
3. What warranty are they offering on this work? (you'll need to see the warranty T&C too).
If they are just offering the Halo and another appropriate ceramic coating to be applied for that money then it's significantly over priced. The best course of action is usually to clarify precisely what is being sold to you and price it through a reputable indy. The dealer will likely farm this work out and take their percentage, or make a mess of it in house.
Most AM dealers use Gtechniq in house through the platinum line up which is just a rebranded selection.Halo on the front end PPF presumably.
1. Ceramic coating the remaining areas of the car with a different product?
2. If so what product? What level of paint correction will be done before ceramic application?
3. What warranty are they offering on this work? (you'll need to see the warranty T&C too).
If they are just offering the Halo and another appropriate ceramic coating to be applied for that money then it's significantly over priced. The best course of action is usually to clarify precisely what is being sold to you and price it through a reputable indy. The dealer will likely farm this work out and take their percentage, or make a mess of it in house.
In fact gtechniq pretty much skewered the market in that respect as Porsche and Ferrari dealers use the products as well.
I'm an amateur detailer and in addition to getting professional detailing on my cars in the past, I have done them myself on occasion. Back in the day, I used carnauba wax, then years ago switched to synthetic sealants.
I've only ever ceramic coated one car (the wife's DD), back in late 2019. I spent a day prepping the paint, as that is absolutely critical (it was new but as is always the case came from the factory with plenty of defects). That car still washes up and rinses off like no other vehicle I've ever had, nearly 3 years later. Even more notably, it has suffered from the dreaded bird bombs several times, and never was the clearcoat etched, unlike my other cars when they've been nailed by birds.
Sample size of one, I know, but take from that what you will.
I've only ever ceramic coated one car (the wife's DD), back in late 2019. I spent a day prepping the paint, as that is absolutely critical (it was new but as is always the case came from the factory with plenty of defects). That car still washes up and rinses off like no other vehicle I've ever had, nearly 3 years later. Even more notably, it has suffered from the dreaded bird bombs several times, and never was the clearcoat etched, unlike my other cars when they've been nailed by birds.
Sample size of one, I know, but take from that what you will.
Often lots of room to haggle on Gtechniq. We’ve often had it thrown in “free” or discounted by dealers.
Having seen the attention to detail that some dealers don’t go to when washing cars I think that, if I was actually paying close to full price for it, I’d go with a specialist detailer whose single job is to make the car look as good as it can.
Having seen the attention to detail that some dealers don’t go to when washing cars I think that, if I was actually paying close to full price for it, I’d go with a specialist detailer whose single job is to make the car look as good as it can.
I would never give a dealer any money to coat or prep a car for you. They do t have the time and the products they use won’t be the best you can get. As many will know on here, I’m the most experienced Aston detailer in the country and also Gtechniq accredited and you want to save your money.
Firstly, in that money, you can get the rest of the car properly machine polished and coated by someone that knows what they are doing and also, the coating used (in my case at least) would be better than what they are offering. Halo isn’t worth putting on the film really, it’s not going to last very long and the platinum they would use on the rest of the car is also known by another name, crystal serum light) and there are better sealants out there.
My advice is to buy the car, don’t get any coatings put on it and then get an actual detailer to polish it and coat it.
It doesn’t matter wether it’s a new Aston or an older one, every single car ever to leave gaydon needs at least 2 days machine polishing on it and don’t get me started on the DBX’s!
Firstly, in that money, you can get the rest of the car properly machine polished and coated by someone that knows what they are doing and also, the coating used (in my case at least) would be better than what they are offering. Halo isn’t worth putting on the film really, it’s not going to last very long and the platinum they would use on the rest of the car is also known by another name, crystal serum light) and there are better sealants out there.
My advice is to buy the car, don’t get any coatings put on it and then get an actual detailer to polish it and coat it.
It doesn’t matter wether it’s a new Aston or an older one, every single car ever to leave gaydon needs at least 2 days machine polishing on it and don’t get me started on the DBX’s!
paddy328 said:
It doesn’t matter wether it’s a new Aston or an older one, every single car ever to leave gaydon needs at least 2 days machine polishing on it and don’t get me started on the DBX’s!
Interesting; my DB9 looks less 'shiny' than the similar aged XK I had before it. It's almost as if it didn't get a coat of lacquer.Totally agree and I've mentioned it previously "paint' is not rhe best attribute of any aston.
Typically just look around the point where the wing mirror meets the car , any strips of painted body work are usually left completely swirled up from the factory. I think the guys at Gaydon are given a huge mop to run across the car for final finish and it just doesn't work.
A proper going over by a quality detailer is well worth the investment especially as some of the Aston paints are so soft and quite difficult to work with.
Black Storm, i thnk is one that rings a bell !
Typically just look around the point where the wing mirror meets the car , any strips of painted body work are usually left completely swirled up from the factory. I think the guys at Gaydon are given a huge mop to run across the car for final finish and it just doesn't work.
A proper going over by a quality detailer is well worth the investment especially as some of the Aston paints are so soft and quite difficult to work with.
Black Storm, i thnk is one that rings a bell !
Longy00000 said:
Totally agree and I've mentioned it previously "paint' is not rhe best attribute of any aston.
Typically just look around the point where the wing mirror meets the car , any strips of painted body work are usually left completely swirled up from the factory. I think the guys at Gaydon are given a huge mop to run across the car for final finish and it just doesn't work.
A proper going over by a quality detailer is well worth the investment especially as some of the Aston paints are so soft and quite difficult to work with.
Black Storm, i thnk is one that rings a bell !
Storm black is one of the best looking colours Aston has ever produced, but it’s easily the softest. I’ve worked on a few across the board and it looks stunning once polished, but keeping it that way is a very hard task indeed. My advice for anyone with that colour car is to have it polished and then PPF the whole thing.Typically just look around the point where the wing mirror meets the car , any strips of painted body work are usually left completely swirled up from the factory. I think the guys at Gaydon are given a huge mop to run across the car for final finish and it just doesn't work.
A proper going over by a quality detailer is well worth the investment especially as some of the Aston paints are so soft and quite difficult to work with.
Black Storm, i thnk is one that rings a bell !
Edited by paddy328 on Tuesday 26th July 22:40
Longy00000 said:
Totally agree and I've mentioned it previously "paint' is not rhe best attribute of any aston.
Typically just look around the point where the wing mirror meets the car , any strips of painted body work are usually left completely swirled up from the factory. I think the guys at Gaydon are given a huge mop to run across the car for final finish and it just doesn't work.
A proper going over by a quality detailer is well worth the investment especially as some of the Aston paints are so soft and quite difficult to work with.
Black Storm, i thnk is one that rings a bell !
I think they had some small stones on the mop when mine was done, it was covered in thousands of little J marks, it took me a fair while to remove them.Typically just look around the point where the wing mirror meets the car , any strips of painted body work are usually left completely swirled up from the factory. I think the guys at Gaydon are given a huge mop to run across the car for final finish and it just doesn't work.
A proper going over by a quality detailer is well worth the investment especially as some of the Aston paints are so soft and quite difficult to work with.
Black Storm, i thnk is one that rings a bell !
To most people, you would have never seen them, but once you know they are there
TheRainMaker said:
I think they had some small stones on the mop when mine was done, it was covered in thousands of little J marks, it took me a fair while to remove them.
To most people, you would have never seen them, but once you know they are there
Those are sanding marks. Very tight uniform hazy patches and some more like what you have. Every single Aston has them in some form. It’s down to the way it’s DA sanded and then polished back up. To most people, you would have never seen them, but once you know they are there
paddy328 said:
Storm black is one of the best looking colours Aston has ever produced, but it’s easily the softest. I’ve worked on a few across the board and it looks stunning once polished, but keeping it that way is a very hard task indeed. My advice for anyone with that colour car is to have it polished and then PPF the whole thing.
I see that now they can spray PPF like the peelable paint. That will be a game changer is it can be applied in multiple coats to your desired thickness and looks to be a better finish.Edited by paddy328 on Tuesday 26th July 22:40
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