I posted about mine somewhere here with pictures and prices. I'll try to find the post.

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Pictures:

OFFICIAL: S90/V90/V90CC Photo Thread

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The ceramic was $900 CAD but part of a bigger package (list a few posts below the above)

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Any negatives to ceramic coating? How does it compare to the paint protection packages the dealers offer?

 

Dealership paint protection packages are typically just snake oil, overpriced, low quality, or all of the above. Working at a dealership, I saw plenty of people purchase something like that, and nothing ever even got applied to the vehicle. You're essentially just buying a warranty against paint defects.

If you're finicky about your paint, get it compounded and polished before having any sealant/wax/ceramic coating applied. A couple downsides of ceramic coatings are that it can give a somewhat unnatural look compared to a traditional wax. Additionally, you'll have to compound the ceramic coating off the car if you need to reapply or fix something.

 

It is an excellent choice of paint protection. Like an excellent wax but lasts for months or years.
Dealer paint protection is max a wax. Or as outlined above - a warranty.

As ckmack is saying - make sure to prep well before doing ceramic. The main cost for a professional detailer doing ceramic is (or should be) the paint correction work. The actual coating is easy and fast. Paint correction is not!
But if your car is relatively new, and paint is n good shape - a thorough clean and then coat!

Takes a day or two for paint correction and 2 hours for coating. Then usually needs 12 hours to cure before rain. Or pros use a light to speed up curing process.

 

Thanks for the enlightening responses. Some dealers also offer something that Is some sort of film that protects against rock chips to the paint along with affording paint protection. If not applied to the whole car you can often see a small line where it has been partially applied to say just cover the areas most susceptible to rock chips like the front of the hood. Anyone have thoughts on the merit of this product which usually runs from $800 to $1,800 depending on the extent of coverage?

 

A friend with a Mercedes CUV said she had a parking lot "bruise" in front bumper/fender area covered by the plastic film. She said it looked pretty awful. The bruise was fixed by removing the film and replacing it at a cost of just under $200.00. The repair shop said without the film, the stripping/buffing/surface coat/repair would have cost closer to $2000.00, and of course likely would not have perfectly matched the silver metallic paint.

 

That's not ceramic, that's paint protection film. Totally different and as you say - protects paint against pebbles etc. You then ceramic coat the film to get better shine and water repellency.

 

We've done Opti-Coat with professional installation and DIY. They worked great, but were expensive. Professional application was a stronger solution and lasted around 36 months. The DIY coat lasted about a year. I'm now a big fan of Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions Ceramic Spray Coating. It is much easier to apply, works super well, and last long enough (6 months to a year) -- especially given the super low cost. I never thought I'd be recommending Turtle Wax, but this stuff is VERY good.

 

I applied Optimum Gloss coat on my 17 S90 in April 2020. Applied two coats and did the clay bar and polish prep. It is pretty easy to apply. The car still beads when wet and repels water very well.

 

I had a detail shop apply a house blend coat, it was ok for 3-4 months. I redid it with 2 coats of CQuartz Finest and have had really good results about a year out. It was a pretty slow process over 2 days and there are a few spots I have light halos because I didn’t get it wiped clean quickly enough - but overall doing it myself was worth it.

 

If you are considering a PPF, I would recommend going with Xpel Ultimate PPF. I did the full hood, front bumper, rear bumper, rocker panel, and mirrors with Bryan at Mr. Sparkle Detailing while he was in New York back in 2017. It lasted me this long, and I think Xpel warrants their products at least the Ultimate for 10 years. Definitely worth it, especially the front bumper and hood will thank you.

 

I have always felt the films look absolutely awful, worse than rock chips. The other protections are okay, they can help keep a car clean looking but none of them are worth paying someone else to put on. Honestly... the one we sell it IS the warranty that makes it an okay value. I've seen it pay out well more than the cost for things like bird droppings and tree sap. Clearly it doesn't fully protect, or the warranty wouldn't be needed.....

 

Do you know which film(s) you use? Besides the film an experienced good installer of the film is critical just like the ceramic product and of course the installer. There's so much preparation to do, washing the car, claying, polishing /compound (if necessary) and then the application of the ceramic or PPF whichever you go are so important.

At that time I had mine, he did it from a sheet of film and not pre-cut (Because it wasn't available at that time). I didn't notice it was there unless it's really close or the rear bumper because he had to cut around the CROSS COUNTRY stamping.

To the OP, if you are going ceramic, try out an installer that is experienced with GYEON and specifically Q2 Syncro. It's one of the better products out there.

 

We don't any and I don't recommend them when folks ask. The times a customer insists I send them to a 3rd party detailer and they use XPEL.. Every time I'm disgusted with the results but the customers have always been thrilled. I hate the way they look and I hate the way they feel. Like I said, I'd much rather get stone chips myself. That feels natural at least and touch up paint (when available for your color) does a well enough job for me. The films are a big turn off for me on a vehicle. They don't add to the value of a vehicle when traded in. Repainting a panel costs around $500, so I don't see how the film is saving anyone money either. Getting a C40 done for a customer (who I had his V60 done previously) and the quote came back around $1800 for a full hood, bumper, lights, partial fenders and door cups (I think that's what it was for, I forget off hand). Bumpers and hoods generally are all that we have to repaint for stone chips.

 

It’s not just you, I can’t stand them either. I’d just as soon take a little loss on the value of the car than drive around for years with the film.

That said, I also like to keep a car for 10 years and I live in an urban environment where I’m guaranteed to get scratches and door dings galore so I just figure it’s part of car ownership to have the car take a bit of a beating.

 

Usually like $500 a panel is what we figure for the lot. Though admittedly prices have been going up.