Ceramic Coatings [ suh-ram-ik koh-ting ]:
By Casey Flores
Made of silicon dioxide, a ceramic coating is a type of clear semi-permanent auto body protection. It won’t guard against stone chips or scratches, but it will protect a car’s exterior from things like tree sap, bird droppings and bug guts. It’s also hydrophobic, meaning water beads up rather than runs off the car. Unlike car wax, a ceramic coating creates a tough bond with the surface of the vehicle, so it doesn’t need to be applied as often. It can be used on top of paint protection film or a vehicle wrap, as well as on wheels, trim and glass.*
Here’s how to apply it, per Ryan Jaworsky, marketing manager of System X—an American manufacturer of ceramic coatings.
1 Clean the car ferociously.
2 Apply in a 2-foot by 2-foot box from left-to-right.
3 Cross-hatch the box you just made.
4 Let the product “flash” (aka settle) for 30 seconds to two minutes.
5 When it starts to bead up, take a microfiber towel and buff off the coating— level it—until it’s even.
Business Example: Innova Car Care Greensboro, North Carolina
Most customers entering Innova Car Care in Greensboro, North Carolina, get the only package the shop offers: a paint protection film (PPF) track package and a ceramic coating on the rest. Owner Mike Fede only offers one of each—premium versions. He’ll install the PPF, apply the coating to the rest of the car and send customers on their way.
That simple business model wouldn’t have been possible for Fede just a few years ago, but he says the products have come so far that he’s now able to keep his product offerings that tight.
“I’ve got every bit of faith in the product,” he says. “Weeding out some of the mid-level
products with lower price points has been a great decision for me to get rid of the gray area.
I only offer the best products I can get my hands on.”
Asked what keeps customers coming back, he says many don’t—and that’s his goal.
“I feel like PPF should be a one-and-done product,” he says. “If I were detailing cars, I’d tell them they have to come back, but I don’t even mention it. We’re more of a one-and-done type shop. I’d say 10% will come back for maintenance—but all of the customers I’ve seen in the past—I’ll get their next cars, their kids’ cars, etc. I’d rather sell a coating than have you in my shop every year. I don’t know why people don’t offer it in their shops.”
*Definition from Capital One Auto Navigato
Casey Flores is the editor of PPFMag
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