Steps for Ceramic Coating

[MIDNIGHT EXPRESS]

Hi All,

I am new to this forum and was hoping for some expert advice/opinions. I've recently come across the CarPro products and I'm hooked! My question is this; what should my steps be to prep my car for a ceramic coating? I have a 3 year old white Jeep Grand Cherokee Summitt and the paint is in Good condition. There are no major defects, swirl marks or paint decontamination. I wash the car weekly, have recently waxed it and most recently used some Iron X just on the rear where I had IFO. I was thinking about using CQuartz, but if others have an opinion on what Ceramic Coating to use my ears are open.

Thanks to all for your input and taking the time to help me out!

Cheers,
Chris in MD

[Ebg18t]

Chris - If it were me I’d do the following:
1. Complete wash then chemical decontamination.
2. Clay bar to insure it’s fully decontaminated.
3. Mild correction with Carpro Reflect. Super mild & leaves a great shine
4. Wipe down with Eraser
5. Drink a nice cold beverage to prepare for CQ Application
6. Apply CQ to small test area to see how quick it flashes. Once you know how it flashes and gets leveled start the panel. I go thru 4-6 applicators. Make sure you put your leveling towel(s) in some APC ASAP after.

I’ve primarily used CQUK in the past and been very happy with it. The only trouble I had was with a few high spots due to my lighting and humid/hot weather. The protection & reflection was awesome!

I used dLux on the plastic trim & wheels.


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[The Guz]

Welcome to the forum.

White is a good color to own as it hides defects (ie swirls) very well. I recommend having good lighting to really see the condition of the paint. Moving your hard at various angles helps to visually examine the paint. The sun is always a good sort of light to see defects. I would imagine in 3 years there would be some defects as well as some contamination especially of the paint has not been clayed in quite some time. The baggie test is a good way to determine if claying needs to be done.

The next question I have is are you doing this by hand or machine (ie dual action polisher)?

These are the steps I would take. I am assuming you have a machine.

1. Wash
2. Chemical decontamination (ironx)
3. Mechanical Decontamination (clay)
4. Test spot -> with the least aggressive combo do a test spot to let the paint tell you if you need to get more aggressive. For example test spot with Essence on a polishing pad or your favorite polish. Move to a compound if you desire more correction and then finish with a polish.
5. Paint Prep (Eraser)
5. Coat (TiO2 or UK) -> 2 coats max
6. Coat with Gliss -> allow 4 hours from the last coat of the base coating.
7. Maintain

I like to use Essence as my polishing step prior to applying either UK or TiO2. It will add durability and enhance gloss.

[Brenan Jiran]

Your paint sounds like it's in great shape, so your prep steps will mostly involve ensuring the surface is free of any wax or oils. A good wash, followed by a wipe-down with a panel wipe or IPA, will do the trick. If you haven't used a clay bar yet, it might be worth adding that to remove any remaining contaminants. CQuartz should work really well, especially since you're already familiar with CarPro products.