Knoxrower

Sorry for the bad picks but tackled prepping and Ceramic coating my GS this weekend. It was a lot of work but definitely worth it. I've switch from Zaino that I was using on my previous car to Adams for my GS. The finish is fantastic and application of the actual coating was pretty easy. I was a little nervous after watching some video's and the fear that its "permanent" so if you mess it up its a lot of work to correct it.

ray_ray

Looks great

RagTop69

It does look great! So, what was the process of preping and coating the car? Is it like waxing? Does it take a lot longer than waxing? Is it considerably more expensive than wax?

Knoxrower

Depends on what wax you are looking at. Some waxes can get up to $100.00.
The process I followed after much research was
-Wash with Dawn Dishwashing fluid to get the dealer wax off it
-Clay bar with lubricant
-Wash again
-Then polished with Adams finishing Polish with a random orbital polisher, my paint was in good condition so the finishing polish is all that was needed.
-Wiped it down with Adams coating Prep
-Then applied the Ceramic coating
-Next day wiped it down with Adams Ceramic Boost

I took it out for a ride earlier today and still can't get over the gloss.

jrose7004

Good job!

SouthBaySurfer

Car looks great; nice work. I have applied coatings to two of my cars, and follow the same procedure you listed.......except, I never use Dawn liquid to wash. Dawn is strong detergent that will pull the oils out of the rubber and plastic trim and dry them out. I use a regular car wash soap- right now it's Duragloss.

Midnight08

While I agree that Dawn isn't the best choice for washing a vehicle, most car soaps are not designed to strip off glazes, sealants, or waxes that have been applied. In truth, most of the time we wouldn't want that, since it would mean having to reapply protective layers after every time we wash. So, when washing to prep for this kind of clear coat correction, it's best to use a car soap that is designed to strip off anything that has been applied. This gets you to clear coat, which is what is worked on in the claying, compounding, and polishing stages of correction. Once the clear coat is in "perfect" condition, then a final wipe with whatever coating prep your system suggests, time for that to flash off, then application of the coating.

For proper adhesion, it's important that that final wipe be done before the coating. If the system you're using doesn't have a specific product for that step (some do and some don't), then a quick wipe of 15% solution of IPA (isopropyl alcohol) works well. Just spray it on, then wipe off with a decent microfiber towel, then allow ten to fifteen minutes to make sure it has all evaporated off. Then apply the coating.

gordosoar

Had mine done by a pro a few month ago and it still looks great even after being in the rain and not being washed. The water just runs right off. Should last 5-7 years like this.
It was expensive but worth it.