What is the BEST ceramic coating?
The absolute, undeniable, beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt BEST ceramic coating? Well, in all honesty, it doesn’t exist!
Asking “What is the best ceramic coating?” is somewhat like asking “What’s the best color?” or “What’s the best food?“; there’s just too many individual and unique aspects to consider to declare a definitive, singular answer. The real question is “What is the best ceramic coating FOR YOU?“
Aspects of a a coating that may help determine your best choice are:
- Longevity: Those of us with black cars and a troubling sense of OCD w regards to their appearance might wish to polish the car more frequently than a particular coating’s expected lifespan; a 3-4 year coating wouldn’t be practical in these cases as paint correction/polishing will remove a coating.
- Climate: What sort of conditions do you need protection from? The harsh Winter conditions of the Northeastern U.S.or the blistering heat of a Southwestern U.S. locale? Somewhere in between?
- Vehicle Usage: Is this a daily driver or a fair-weather only car? Highway use or predominantly local/surface streets?
- Maintenance: Do you enjoy maintaining your vehicles or prefer the ‘less is more’ approach?
- Budget: “Less is more” or “Cost is no object”?
- Ease of Use: Are you applying yourself and if so, do you have experience with applying a coating?
The above are just some items to consider when seeking out your preferred ceramic coating; while many coatings may perform in a somewhat similar fashion, it’s often that extra 5-10% of ‘goodness’ that’s makes a coating particularly suitable for you.
What is a ceramic coating?
A ceramic coating is a liquid applied to your vehicle that hardens, forming a semi-permanent barrier. In addition to an increased level of gloss and shine, coatings also add a deepening and richening of colors. Blacks will be blacker, reds will be a deeper red, etc. Also on colored or satin wheels, coatings will have the same effect. It will not turn satin wheels glossy, but it will add a darkening and richening effect.
Check out the video below as Todd explains ceramic coatings in a bit more detail:
What are the benefits of a ceramic coating?
A protective glass / ceramic / quartz coating has 3 purposes…provide self-cleaning properties / ease of maintenance, protect from airborne elements sticking to the finish, and provide long-term gloss / good looks. It will not protect against rock chips, and the only protection from that is Paint Protection Film (aka ppf, aka “clear bra”). A wax or sealant will last from 1-6 months, whereas coatings can last several years or more.
Application
Whether you are a DIY person, or a professional detailer, you will find Kamikaze & Gyeon coatings to be amongst the easiest coating products you’ve ever applied. We have seen where some DIY’ers have been turned off on coatings simply because they were difficult to work with; in those cases, the people simply chose the wrong product. Despite what some coating manufacturers wish to say, a product doesn’t have to be difficult to apply to be good!
Each of our product pages has informative videos on the application process and the answers to any questions are just a phone call or e-mail away! Like many things, the initial preparation is the key to outstanding results. In short the process is:
- Chemical and physical decontamination
- Paint Polishing if needed
- Prep wipedown
- Apply coating
Our YouTube library is filled with detailed videos on all steps of the process so you’re never alone should you want to apply a true, multi-year ceramic coating!
Our Favorite Coating Applicators & Towels
Best Ceramic Coatings
Our favorite ceramic coatings combine incredible ease-of-use with outstanding results. Used in our studio on our client’s cars and by our Care Care customers on their personal cars, these products have become our preferred choices due to their versatility, visual appeal, ease of application and overall performance.
Kamikaze ISM Coat 3.0
ISM Coat 3.0 from Kamikaze Collection is a single-layer coating that can be used on nearly every exterior surface of your vehicle aside from glass and wheels. Paint, plastic trim, headlights, tail lights, windshield cowlings, wiper arms….all will be protected and preserved with ISM Coat 3.0! A 24-36 month conservative lifespan w/ recommended maintenance, ISM Coat 3.0 continues Kamikaze’s reputation for performance and looks in an easy-to-use product.
ISM Coat 3.0 can be combined with a base layer of Kamikaze Miyabi Coat 2.0 for even more formidable protection and performance. Used by itself or in conjunction with Miyabi Coat 2.0, Kamikaze Collection’s ISM Coat 3.0 is our favorite (and most popular) offering.
Kamikaze Zipang Coat 2.0
The most advanced and highest performing consumer coating on the market, Zipang Coat 2.0 provides even higher levels of gloss and brilliance than Kamikaze ISM Coat 3.0. With it’s semi self-healing characteristics, the appearance of small swirls or imperfections in the coating surface will reduce when exposed to heat.
For those looking for the ultimate in coating protection, we recommend Zipang Coat for its unmatched looks, hydrophobicity, ease of use, and semi self-healing technology. Zipang Coat also provides a darkening effect to the paint (blacks will be deeper black, richer reds, etc), and has the ability to lightly fill small imperfections in the paint.
Zipang Coat 2.0 has an effective life of 36-48 months and can be combined with a base layer of Kamikaze Miyabi Coat 2.0 for and effective life of 5+ years. Used by itself or in conjunction with Miyabi Coat 2.0, Kamikaze Collection’s Zipang Coat 2.0 is the choice when only the best will do!
Gyeon Q2 MOHS Evo
Crisp, sharp gloss, slick finish and amazingly easy to use! Up tp 3 years effective life with a single layer, 2 layers up to 4 years with proper maintenance.
Extreme chemical resistance, the ability to be applied outdoors (out of direct sunlight) and can also be used on top of Paint Protection Film; what’s not to like?
The Detail Supply THE CERAMIC LIGHT Coating
With its heritage in Kamikaze Collection technology, up to 2 years effective life and the easiest application characteristics of any true ‘glass-bottle’ ceramic coating available, The CERAMIC LIGHT from Kamikaze’s Detail Supply is an incredible value given its level of performance!
The 20ml bottle is enough for a single-layer on a typical sedan and it applies & removes even easier than many ceramic-infused spray sealants.
* CERAMIC LIGHT is a member of Kamikaze Collection’s THE DETAIL SUPPLY lineup, products which they use regularly in their studio and have found to provide the best performance value per price.
Coating Longevity
Many things contribute to the true effective life of a ceramic coating and in some cases, claims of “X months/years” can be somewhat optimistic. A fair-weather only ‘Sunday Driver’ will obviously do better w/ regards to coating performance and lifespan than a all-season daily driver that spends 80 miles a day on the freeways in a Northeastern climate. Among the factors that contribute to a coating lifespan (or lack thereof):
- Vehicle usage patterns
- Climate
- Maintenance
- Mileage
A bit more on the effective life of coatings:
Maintaining Your Ceramic Coating
Maintaining your ceramic coating is actually quite simple! Use a pH balanced shampoo like Gyeon Bathe and occasionally use a coating maintenance product after a wash to keep the performance at optimum levels!
Our favorite Coating Maintenance products:
Conclusion
It’s tough to choose a ceramic coating for your car with so many choices out there and, as mentioned previously, there likely is no universal, BEST coating for everyone. It’s really a matter of finding those products that meet your specific desires, budget and vehicle usage patterns. There are plenty of great coatings available to a consumer these days (and probably some ‘not great ones’ as well) and the choice can be a difficult one as we all want what’s best for our cars. For ourselves and our customers, performance and ease of use are very high on our list of requirements and the products we use our studio are the same ones we offer to our customers online. The intangible benefits of some products also stand out; those aspects that simply make one ‘feel’ better about their choices, for whatever reason, have a certain value as well.
We sincerely hope you find your ‘best’ coating and enjoy the benefits ceramic coatings can provide!