bryan55

I got a quote for ceramic pro and Xpel on my black Z from a local shop in the east Bay Area as follows:
- paint correction $1,000
- opti coat on car, wheels, etc. $700
- Xpel on full front and rockers, edges wrapped $2,800

This quote was without seeing the car, but the shop has done Z's before. Do these prices seem right? Also, if you have had work done in the Bay Area can you recommend the shop and post pics?

Thanks in advance.

Grzldvt1

Yes, it is a decent price. Keep in mind when you do Ceramic Pro, which my shop also does(Shameles Self Promotion - Deep Reflections), the final finish needs to be pristene. On a black car that can take up to two days to get correct. Then applying Ceramic Pro is a special skill/technique to get it on correct to make sure it is flat and no high spots($700 is dirt cheap based on the number of 9H coats.) The Xpel may be a waste of money, as it may not stick to the 9H. I know of a local SF Giants celebrity that went through this and the first time the car was power washed the Xpel bra simply blew off. Better get a guaranty it will stay on over the 9H/Sport

bryan55

Thanks for the heads up! I'll have to ask the shop about the Xpel going over the coating. Anyone else have an experience with protective film going over a ceramic coating?

XPEL

We'd recommend having XPEL applied first then if you choose to do so, have the coating applied to the film. Many customers choose this route, as it adds hydrophobic properties, etc (depending on the coating).

If you have a ceramic coating applied to the paint, and then XPEL installed, the coating can cause adhesion issues. Meaning paint protection film has difficulty sticking, most of this can be avoided with wrapped edges, but there will still be visible edges on the corners where you cannot wrap the film.

So it's best to avoid doing the coating beforehand. You are more than welcome to have a coating of your choice installed after the film has been installed.

bryan55

Ok. Surely someone on this forum has actually gotten their car done in the Bay Area. Anyone?

mountainears

Sacramento. Will tell you next week if worth the drive :-)

bryan55

mountainears

Got my car back tonight. Typical few bubbles here and there as people say, which should go away. He wants the car back in 3 weeks for its first wash and he'll go over it and correct anything that needs correcting as well.

Looks FANTASTIC! Did a great job with the stealth film, you really have to look close to know what is going on with this stuff.

First shot is at the intersection on the hood by the headlights. Hard to get pictures of a spot where there is an edge that isn't wrapped, but you can see it here (hood is open a little in this shot).

The other shot I just took while it was sitting there and he was finishing up.

I'll be at the Hooters Corvette Show in Sacramento tomorrow if any are around and if you want to see how the film looks. I'll get more pics there probably.

bryan55

Thanks for the photos. Looks like it turned out really great!

DUMAN

OCDetail in Fremont did a full stealth wrap on my benz. I highly recommend them!
They also do full detailing, wraps and tint. Joe is a good guy not the cheapest but you get what you pay for.


Tell him the Daniel with the matte white CLS sent you.

bryan55

I'm glad you recommended that shop. I was thinking that was my best bet. From what I have seen the shop looks good, they have pretty high-end cars regularly, and it looks like they do good work.

Grzldvt1

Talk to Omega Works in Pleasanton. Vincent is absolutely incredible, well beyond the best I have ever seen.
I can spot a clear bra at 100 yards, and his work cost me the most expensive car wash on the planet.
Had a car come in for a wash, and had no idea it was wrapped, tried to clean some sap on the hood and BAM, big hole in that spot.
That car was absolutely perfect with no plastic look to it. Won't reveal the material he uses, but take some time to go and talk to him.
Have had several of my customers use him, we then do a final detail and have several show winners at Monterey and no one had any idea they had a clear bra on them on a full hood/fender wrap.

Second, I am with Xpel, get it done first, then do Ceramic Pro. Ceramic Pro has just now come out with a brand new product, still in Beta and not for public consumption, for Clear Bra material. I have it on order and looking forward to trying it out.

09Z06pj

$2800 just for front clip and rockers? Haven't had a car done in about a year and a half but that seems very high to me. I know the installer is key and you get what you pay for but it seems high. Must be a Bay Area surcharge I guess. My guy is in Vegas but I know there's no way he'd be that high.

EPPPSB

Did you have your car done yet? I've had both Appearance Solutions in Sac and OCDetail in Freemont work on the same car.

Happy to share my opinion of both on a PM.

mountainears

EPPPSB, I wouldn't mind hearing your opinions about both places if you want to PM me as well?

Azmordean

Hey all --

Sorry to resurrect an old thread. I have an order in for a new 2018 C7 and have been talking with Joe at OCDetailing about doing ceramic coating + clear bra.

For the coating, he is recommending cQuartz Finest on the whole car, plus protection for the plastic bits and glass. He quoted $2500 for this, including prep (paint correction, etc).

For the bra, he suggests Xpel ultimate. He quoted $2450 for the whole front end (basically mirrors, hood, fenders), or $895 for just the front bumper / headlights.

If I do both, he's willing to throw in the cQuartz interior product for free, which is a plus since I have the grey interior, and the product should help with jean transfer and the like.

So basically I'm looking at 5 grand for a rather complete protection setup, inside and out. I know he's very well regarded but that's pushing close to 10% of the value of the car. I'm tempted to do it because it'll be a daily for me, so this should keep it looking good far longer. But then part of me says, as a daily, it's going to get messed up regardless and perhaps I'm throwing good money after bad.

Curious of any thoughts!

mountainears

The XPel folks don't recommend doing the ceramic coating under the XPel (see this post from them)

That said, there has been debate over it!

I ended up going with Appearance Solutions in Sacramento, they did the XPel treatment (entire car) and I'm happy with it. They did not ceramic coat under, but did paint correction / polish / detail prior to the film install. I did have the wheels ceramic coated.

That thread I referenced above had some price ranges listed as well from the vendor.

I paid $5900 for the whole car as well as full XPel window tinting. So about $1,000 more than what you're being quoted but covering the entire car and window tint.

Azmordean

The Ceramic in my case would go on OVER the Xpel. So Xpel first on the front end, then Ceramic over the whole car, including over the Xpel. My understanding is the Ceramic makes the Xpel easy to maintain, just as it does the paint -- kind of like a permanent high end wax job.

It sound slike the prices are fairly comparable though, so I guess I just need to decide if it's worth it .

mountainears

You might want to PM the XPel person in that thread (unless they chime in here) about doing it over the XPel to be sure it won't be warranty impacting.

Azmordean

They actually replied earlier in the thread =):

We'd recommend having XPEL applied first then if you choose to do so, have the coating applied to the film. Many customers choose this route, as it adds hydrophobic properties, etc (depending on the coating).

It's just a matter of cost. The Xpel isn't bad, and the coating isn't bad, but both is pricey!