Who has done this? I've no garage and get tired of my car getting dirty and having to wash so often. I think I could do the math on time saved over a year of washing vs the cost of this approx $2K addition to my car. I've XPEL Ultimate (figuring out if it is "plus" or not, which does have some hydrophobic properties.

As I understand, the only thing this diagram is missing is that the ceramic coating on the PPF will extend the lifetime of the PPF itself, as well.

But who has done this, can you tell the difference, is it worth it?

 

I applied ceramic coat myself, in my garage - but not over PPF. You can save yourself a LOT of money if you're willing to put in the elbow grease to get it done. Not a hard job, and it made a HUGE difference. Next round will be a front bumper re-spray, PPF application and then clear coat, just as you describe.

 

Here's the full article from where that Venn diagram was sourced. A lot of good information:

https://avalonking.com/blog/the-trut...tion-film-ppf/

One thing I didn't see mentioned and is often misunderstood, ceramic coating scratches, so I'm not sure how it will extend the life of PPF. The hardness factor of ceramic coating is also mis-marketed so you need to be aware of "hardness" claims. The article does mention the PPF has been known to yellow over time. Ceramic coating may help that if the cause is UV rays.

I used Miyabi ceramic coating and did it myself. No affiliation. This site has a lot of great videos and information on care.
https://www.esotericcarcare.com

I don't have PPF so no help there.

 

Even with ceramic the car will still get dirty; it just makes it a lot easier to wash. My steps are:
1. Wash with soap or Optimum No-Rinse
2. Hose the car down, if using soap
3. Blow dry with an electric leaf blower - because the ceramic allows the water to bead super nicely, this gets rid of maybe 95% of the residual water
4. Wipe with microfiber cloth. Little to no time spent wringing because it's almost completely dry already
5. Do NOT apply wax or other products after the wash, as this just coats the expensive ceramic coating

You'll still have to wash almost as frequently depending on your tolerances for how dirty you're willing to let your car get, but it will save you significant time on each wash. I went with CQuartz Finest Reserve. If you decide to have a shop apply the coating, I recommend you ask for a tour of their workspace as this will give you an idea about their quality of work and attention to detail.

This video gives a pretty good explanation, although it kind of sounds like an ad because it's sponsored by XPEL. It's very realistic about what ceramic can and can't do though, including a demonstration of what happens when you scratch ceramic applied over PPF around the 8:00 mark.

 

After the paint correction, ceramic pro lifetime and PPF was applied. Since then all I do is use the power washer with a general nozzle to spray the entire car clean. No soap, no washing at all. just rinse and dry with a microfiber. And it’s perfectly clean when finished. I had the car, wheels, calipers and rotor hats all coated and PPF applies to full nose, mirrors, side sills and rockers and behind rear wheels. Love it and worth every penny. But if you car has scratches and swirls and you ceramic coat over them you will see the imperfections forever !

 

I don't have XPEL, but did get Ceramic Pro lifetime done professionally. The paint correction prior to application was important to me. I calculated time and fewer washes saved to determine it was worth it to me. Especially for the F Pace that my wife drives but doesn't like to wash as often as I do.

 

By the way, PPF does not stop hard water spots. Prevents the spots from reaching your paint, but you still have the effect and washing will not remove them.

 

A good spray polish will remove the spots with ease.

 

Not in my case. Granted, I have probably the worse situation possible, 6 months out of the year, the car lives outside in the South Texas sun with sprinklers alongside my parking spot.
About once a month I have to do a chemical wipe and rince to remove the spots and then replace the coating.
But also, I don't have the newer Xpel+ , that maybe would make a difference.

 

I use cQuartz (and Reload in between treatments) but did not do any PPF. Looking at the car now, I should have on a few key areas. The one I notice most is where there is a little piece of it from the factory, on the front of the rear fender flare. More of that should be covered.

 

So I am pulling the trigger. My car is getting fully detailed, and I chose Ceramic Pro on top of Xpel, even tho there's a chance my Xpel is the Plus version that is hydrophobic. I know it won't make the car less damageable, and get it's an expensive way to make cleaning the car better. But I've not had our fun coursed dinners, nor luxury hotel stays, and I need to spend capital in some manner, and doing so to help a local business feels super duper great. My goodness do I want things to be like they were, but after a few months of whining, I installed a world war 2 vet in my head and it said "SUCK IT UP, THIS IS REALITY, BE A MAN, AND DEAL" lol So I am just trying to spend a little money while having no income haha

BUT... don't take your car to a detailer. Holy cow they see things that are impossible to notice with the normal eye, and then you notice and will never unsee. My ppf was expertly put on, and this guy agrees, but he still pointed out "acne" bubbles and **** I would have never ever ever seen ever. LOL But this guy in the north bay is a master at what he does, and he even told me he could easily take my money, but thought I didn't really need ceramic on top of PPF if I wanted protection, vs wanting it to be easier to clean. And his kid just got out of ICU from coronavirus, so I am thrilled to help this dude pay off his bills. =)