Just picked up my 2015 RCF with 20k miles about 15 days ago. The car is ultra white with carbon/TVD.

A friend said I should protect my investment by ceramic coating the car, I was thinking about doing it myself but it seems like you'd need to do full polish and paint correction first. I am not really too savvy on professional detailing techniques so I decided to get a quote.

A 270+ review 5/5 star shop near my place quoted me:
1. ~$400 to $600 on full color correction (he said he'd have to look at the car first)
2. $800 on full ceramic coating (5 year warranty)

Does this sound pretty close for those who have done this before?

Thanks for the help.

 

Honestly, that doesn't sound too bad to me.

I've spent $1k just for a good polish and sealant service on my old NSX before.

Needless to say, I try to do that kind of stuff myself nowadays. Really not difficult, and considering you can't get yourself into much trouble using a random orbital buffer, it's kind of a no brainer if you have the time to spare.

(Yes, up front the cost of gear for me was ~$750, but that single investment (minus time, of course) has fully detailed at least 5 cars at this point, top to bottom.)

 

Sounds low but depends on how much paint correction is needed and what type of coating they use and how many layers.
As they how long it will take. Multi layer coating take time to cure between coatings. Also ask how long to avoid rain or before washing to all full cure
hardness. (like 10 to 20 days).
See if they have a web page and list services and prices.
http://scottsdalecardetailing.com/ is web site for
DetailBoss in Scottsdale. They do not list prices anymore.http://scottsdalecardetailing.com/glass-crystal-coatings/] http://scottsdalecardetailing.com/glass-crystal-coatings/[/url]
They use Ceramic Pro. Gold Package $3k for 2 stage paint correction (some wet sanding in 2 stage) and 4 layers of Ceramic Pro 9H and 1 layer ceramic pro light and ceramic pro glass on the windshields.
included all painted surfaces, yes including wheels, all ppf and all plastic ... After coating, they recommend no wax or quickdetailer (reduces hydroponic effect). Just wash and use 50/50 H20 and Alcohol
to spot clean up. Dont believe all the YouTube video hype re completely scratch resistant.
DetailBoss also posted lots of YouTube videos on their work and good info and pics on their web pages
http://scottsdalecardetailing.com/wh...nt-correction/
Price ranges are large so check around. Prices have gone up a lot. Go look at the results at the shop you think you will use.
Check warranty and maintenance restrictions. (like yearly maint coatings for lifetime warranty) Some coatings are 2 years, some 5, some lifetime.
My result is nice, check reflections in CF roof and in the rear fender images attached. (car was coated 2 years ago and maint coat of Ceramic Pro Lite each year, 30k miles now)

 

Here in Houston, I have been quoted $600 which was a three stage paint correction and two coats of ceramic.... Detail shops here though are dime a dozen so I believe pricing may be a bit more competitive.

Not sure if any ceramic is good for 5 years though. I've been told roughly two years from a couple different detailers.

 

Think I paid about $1500 for my Ceramic Pro which included full polish first. Car was brand new, so didn't need paint correction.

Word of advice on the ultra white...get a clear chip shield over the full hood and front fenders first...THEN get it ceramic coated.

The ceramic coating is good, but it likely won't hide large chips on white easily

And FWIW with a 5 year plan you're basically buying insurance on the coating. As stated above it may not last 5 years but you can prob go back each spring for a touch up for much much less.

 

Gosh I love this community! AND MAN THAT COLOR AND SHINE! LOVE IT!

Thank you guys for the useful tips. Now at least I know all the right questions to ask.

The car honestly looks pretty clean, I put a flashlight on it and saw some swirl marks but not horrible like I've seen some of my friend's cars. As ultra white it is pretty hard to see sometimes.

Ya I think i am going to put clear bra on the hood and fender like yellow2112 suggested as well, make sense since I am going to keep the car for as long as I can.

I will post some pictures when I have all that done. WOOT!

 

Yup, go for it. Sounds like a good price. They can just ceramic right over the clear bra.

I noticed a HUGE difference with the time and ease in which it took to wash the car after my ceramic too. Very useful. It didn't help a huge amount with the wheels and brake dust but they are easier to clean at least.