After 8 hours of detailing and Ceramic Coating...
#1
After 8 hours of detailing and Ceramic Coating...
Today I was finally able to do my long anticipated first full detailing on my Carrera T after having the front protected with PPF.
By now the paint should be at least 60 days old, and ready for a light polish and paint correction, and of course get the Ceramic coating.
I haven't done Ceramic in the past (nor PPF either), but I'very familiar with applying a good sealant (Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant), followed with Carnauba (Wolfgang Fuzion) for great results.
But this time I wanted to do a Ceramic coating, and given my good experience with Wolfgang products, I decided to try their Uber Ceramic Coating.
I'm glad that someone on RL posted a flash sale on Autogeek not too long ago, so I was able to get restocked with plenty of supplies at 25% off
I started with a good wash (2-bucket method) and foam gun. By the way, one thing I noticed was how EASY it was to clean the Carrera S wheels on the T. First of all, they were filthy, but you could not tell just by looking at them because the Titanium color is almost exactly the same color as the brake dust. Used Sonax Full Effect for the first time and was pleasantly surprised at how effective and easy it was to use. Cleaning the wheels was a breeze, even more when compared to cleaning my Spyder RS black wheels on my former Macan GTS. I would say it took me about the same time to do all 4 wheels as it used to take me to do just one on the Macan. Go figure!
After drying the car at 120 MPH... or should I say with a 120 MPH blower, it was time to prep with clay bar, followed by a polish with a light cutting white foam pad, and then finally removed all traces of the polish with Wolfgang's Perfekt Finish Paint Prep instead of the traditional water/alcohol mix.
I was a little concerned about DIY the ceramic coating, specially after reading some horror stories, but no risk no reward, right?
I'm happy to say that the whole process was waaaaaay easier and simpler than I expected. Actually almost too easy. I guess the secret is to do a good surface prep, and be patient and do small sections at a time.
One thing that I did want to test before doing the whole car was to do a small part covered with Xpel. So I tried the mirrors, thinking that if I messed them up, it would not be too expensive to cover them again, compared with other larger panels. After trying the Ceramic coating on the first mirror, I was fully convinced I needed to do the whole car, PPF'd or or not. Including the windshield and glass sunroof. Only thing I didn't do was the lightweight glass. Just in case
So, after 8 hours since I started this morning, I was extremely happy with the results.
The shine and reflections on the paint are out of this world.
To give you an idea of what the roof looks like, just see the picture below. It is almost like the car is INVISIBLE and all you see are the reflections of the garage on the paint!!!!
This is an un-altered and un-edited photo from my iphone. All of the images you see are reflections of the wall and ceiling of my garage on the shape of the roof of the car:
And the hood, also reflecting the open garage door:
Had to get to every nook and cranny:
And all done for now:
So, after all that work, very happy with the results. Now I should be able to follow with the Carnauba Fuzion next week, after the Ceramic is fully cured...
Cheers!
By now the paint should be at least 60 days old, and ready for a light polish and paint correction, and of course get the Ceramic coating.
I haven't done Ceramic in the past (nor PPF either), but I'very familiar with applying a good sealant (Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant), followed with Carnauba (Wolfgang Fuzion) for great results.
But this time I wanted to do a Ceramic coating, and given my good experience with Wolfgang products, I decided to try their Uber Ceramic Coating.
I'm glad that someone on RL posted a flash sale on Autogeek not too long ago, so I was able to get restocked with plenty of supplies at 25% off
I started with a good wash (2-bucket method) and foam gun. By the way, one thing I noticed was how EASY it was to clean the Carrera S wheels on the T. First of all, they were filthy, but you could not tell just by looking at them because the Titanium color is almost exactly the same color as the brake dust. Used Sonax Full Effect for the first time and was pleasantly surprised at how effective and easy it was to use. Cleaning the wheels was a breeze, even more when compared to cleaning my Spyder RS black wheels on my former Macan GTS. I would say it took me about the same time to do all 4 wheels as it used to take me to do just one on the Macan. Go figure!
After drying the car at 120 MPH... or should I say with a 120 MPH blower, it was time to prep with clay bar, followed by a polish with a light cutting white foam pad, and then finally removed all traces of the polish with Wolfgang's Perfekt Finish Paint Prep instead of the traditional water/alcohol mix.
I was a little concerned about DIY the ceramic coating, specially after reading some horror stories, but no risk no reward, right?
I'm happy to say that the whole process was waaaaaay easier and simpler than I expected. Actually almost too easy. I guess the secret is to do a good surface prep, and be patient and do small sections at a time.
One thing that I did want to test before doing the whole car was to do a small part covered with Xpel. So I tried the mirrors, thinking that if I messed them up, it would not be too expensive to cover them again, compared with other larger panels. After trying the Ceramic coating on the first mirror, I was fully convinced I needed to do the whole car, PPF'd or or not. Including the windshield and glass sunroof. Only thing I didn't do was the lightweight glass. Just in case
So, after 8 hours since I started this morning, I was extremely happy with the results.
The shine and reflections on the paint are out of this world.
To give you an idea of what the roof looks like, just see the picture below. It is almost like the car is INVISIBLE and all you see are the reflections of the garage on the paint!!!!
This is an un-altered and un-edited photo from my iphone. All of the images you see are reflections of the wall and ceiling of my garage on the shape of the roof of the car:
And the hood, also reflecting the open garage door:
Had to get to every nook and cranny:
And all done for now:
So, after all that work, very happy with the results. Now I should be able to follow with the Carnauba Fuzion next week, after the Ceramic is fully cured...
Cheers!
#4
Haha, maybe I did not explain myself:
I did the paint correction of the panels that were going to be PPF'd BEFORE they were covered, but I didn't have enough time to do the whole car at that time, so I only did the parts being covered.
Today I did the correction on the rest of the panels (doors, rear fenders, rear bumper, spoiler and engine cover.
After that, I did the Ceramic coating on the whole car.
Hope this explains it better.
#5
Your car looks awesome!
Did you apply the Wolfgang's Perfekt Finish Paint Prep over the film. I use a similar product (Gtechniq Panel Wipe) and I have received different stories regarding the application on the PPF.
Did you apply the Wolfgang's Perfekt Finish Paint Prep over the film. I use a similar product (Gtechniq Panel Wipe) and I have received different stories regarding the application on the PPF.
#6
What did you hear about doing it?
Trending Topics
#8
#9
Looks great! 8 hours is a pretty fast pace. Amazing.
Don't put the carnauba over the ceramic coating. It will defeat the dirt/dust/water repelling properties of the super slick ceramic coating.
Don't put the carnauba over the ceramic coating. It will defeat the dirt/dust/water repelling properties of the super slick ceramic coating.
#11
After your comment I did a little bit more research and indeed, it looks like it may not be the best idea to do the wax!
#13
Today I was finally able to do my long anticipated first full detailing on my Carrera T after having the front protected with PPF.
By now the paint should be at least 60 days old, and ready for a light polish and paint correction, and of course get the Ceramic coating.
I haven't done Ceramic in the past (nor PPF either), but I'very familiar with applying a good sealant (Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant), followed with Carnauba (Wolfgang Fuzion) for great results.
But this time I wanted to do a Ceramic coating, and given my good experience with Wolfgang products, I decided to try their Uber Ceramic Coating.
I'm glad that someone on RL posted a flash sale on Autogeek not too long ago, so I was able to get restocked with plenty of supplies at 25% off
I started with a good wash (2-bucket method) and foam gun. By the way, one thing I noticed was how EASY it was to clean the Carrera S wheels on the T. First of all, they were filthy, but you could not tell just by looking at them because the Titanium color is almost exactly the same color as the brake dust. Used Sonax Full Effect for the first time and was pleasantly surprised at how effective and easy it was to use. Cleaning the wheels was a breeze, even more when compared to cleaning my Spyder RS black wheels on my former Macan GTS. I would say it took me about the same time to do all 4 wheels as it used to take me to do just one on the Macan. Go figure!
After drying the car at 120 MPH... or should I say with a 120 MPH blower, it was time to prep with clay bar, followed by a polish with a light cutting white foam pad, and then finally removed all traces of the polish with Wolfgang's Perfekt Finish Paint Prep instead of the traditional water/alcohol mix.
I was a little concerned about DIY the ceramic coating, specially after reading some horror stories, but no risk no reward, right?
I'm happy to say that the whole process was waaaaaay easier and simpler than I expected. Actually almost too easy. I guess the secret is to do a good surface prep, and be patient and do small sections at a time.
One thing that I did want to test before doing the whole car was to do a small part covered with Xpel. So I tried the mirrors, thinking that if I messed them up, it would not be too expensive to cover them again, compared with other larger panels. After trying the Ceramic coating on the first mirror, I was fully convinced I needed to do the whole car, PPF'd or or not. Including the windshield and glass sunroof. Only thing I didn't do was the lightweight glass. Just in case
So, after 8 hours since I started this morning, I was extremely happy with the results.
The shine and reflections on the paint are out of this world.
To give you an idea of what the roof looks like, just see the picture below. It is almost like the car is INVISIBLE and all you see are the reflections of the garage on the paint!!!!
This is an un-altered and un-edited photo from my iphone. All of the images you see are reflections of the wall and ceiling of my garage on the shape of the roof of the car:
And the hood, also reflecting the open garage door:
Had to get to every nook and cranny:
And all done for now:
So, after all that work, very happy with the results. Now I should be able to follow with the Carnauba Fuzion next week, after the Ceramic is fully cured...
Cheers!
By now the paint should be at least 60 days old, and ready for a light polish and paint correction, and of course get the Ceramic coating.
I haven't done Ceramic in the past (nor PPF either), but I'very familiar with applying a good sealant (Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant), followed with Carnauba (Wolfgang Fuzion) for great results.
But this time I wanted to do a Ceramic coating, and given my good experience with Wolfgang products, I decided to try their Uber Ceramic Coating.
I'm glad that someone on RL posted a flash sale on Autogeek not too long ago, so I was able to get restocked with plenty of supplies at 25% off
I started with a good wash (2-bucket method) and foam gun. By the way, one thing I noticed was how EASY it was to clean the Carrera S wheels on the T. First of all, they were filthy, but you could not tell just by looking at them because the Titanium color is almost exactly the same color as the brake dust. Used Sonax Full Effect for the first time and was pleasantly surprised at how effective and easy it was to use. Cleaning the wheels was a breeze, even more when compared to cleaning my Spyder RS black wheels on my former Macan GTS. I would say it took me about the same time to do all 4 wheels as it used to take me to do just one on the Macan. Go figure!
After drying the car at 120 MPH... or should I say with a 120 MPH blower, it was time to prep with clay bar, followed by a polish with a light cutting white foam pad, and then finally removed all traces of the polish with Wolfgang's Perfekt Finish Paint Prep instead of the traditional water/alcohol mix.
I was a little concerned about DIY the ceramic coating, specially after reading some horror stories, but no risk no reward, right?
I'm happy to say that the whole process was waaaaaay easier and simpler than I expected. Actually almost too easy. I guess the secret is to do a good surface prep, and be patient and do small sections at a time.
One thing that I did want to test before doing the whole car was to do a small part covered with Xpel. So I tried the mirrors, thinking that if I messed them up, it would not be too expensive to cover them again, compared with other larger panels. After trying the Ceramic coating on the first mirror, I was fully convinced I needed to do the whole car, PPF'd or or not. Including the windshield and glass sunroof. Only thing I didn't do was the lightweight glass. Just in case
So, after 8 hours since I started this morning, I was extremely happy with the results.
The shine and reflections on the paint are out of this world.
To give you an idea of what the roof looks like, just see the picture below. It is almost like the car is INVISIBLE and all you see are the reflections of the garage on the paint!!!!
This is an un-altered and un-edited photo from my iphone. All of the images you see are reflections of the wall and ceiling of my garage on the shape of the roof of the car:
And the hood, also reflecting the open garage door:
Had to get to every nook and cranny:
And all done for now:
So, after all that work, very happy with the results. Now I should be able to follow with the Carnauba Fuzion next week, after the Ceramic is fully cured...
Cheers!
#15