After watching some internet videos on the longevity of ceramic coatings, I decided to give Griots 3 in 1 Ceramic Wax a try.
I was wondering about the flat black portions of the car, as most waxes will leave a white film. I tried a bit on the underside of the spoiler(the part that overlaps the trunk) and there was no white residue.
I then applied two coats separated by 24 hours, and the results are fantastic.
The hydrophobic properties are decent enough to easily bead the water off.
Interesting.
I have no experience with Ceramic based protection - but I wonder why the beading is not as tight as traditional waxes?
When I used to use Meguiar's / Mothers / other carnauba based waxes, the surface tension was amazing and these uniform drops would just gather and pool away once I started driving.
Only drawback was that the protection didnt last more than 2 weeks
Do you find that it has a tendency to pool and sheet off or just bead more?
That is a pretty nice shine there. Finding a good wax/sealant that doesn't leave white residue on flat black decals/plastic or on black rubber is always worth sharing with the group!
Results of water beading right after application mean nothing (every wax/sealant ever made will do this exact same thing). Actual test is what it does after several months with washes.
I've never understood the beading. Isn't the point of a coating to repel water? I mean, like when it rains, you don't run out and dry your vehicle off (well, most of us don't).
If those beads sit there, they act like little magnifying glasses in the sun and actually damage the paint.
The point of a good hydrophobic coating, such as ceramic (or whatever) is to make the water sheet off leaving very few droplets behind, so they DON'T damage the paint (or the sacrificial layer of wax, etc).
I have Griots Garage 3 in 1 Ceramic Spray wax in my Detail Arsnel. I applied it when I got my Car back in October. I did a super minor Paint correction as I didn't allow the dealer to wash my car right off the truck. I took it home with all the dealer stickers and shipping stuff on it except the front lower guards. They took them off as they should.
It's now April 21, 2021 and I applied October 3 2020 and the protection is still on there. BUT I do however use toppers.
A way to keep your protection is to layer it. I maintenance wash my car every week than I will use a topper weather it be a spray wax, Detail Spray or a Ceramic booster like CS3 from Adams Polishes.
There is a ton of awesome products on the market for this and it really makes a difference. Ceramics and now Graphene are what is the best in overall protection. you can buy old fashion Waxes and sealants, they still work well. I don't think you should be buying $3 waxes and putting it on your finish but that's your call man, how much do you love your baby?
It was you who bought the wax-based ceramics, but there is also a completely different one that is applied after detaling. It helps not to accumulate dirt on the car and works as an anti-rain. I recently bought a ceramic car coating for myself, which does not leave any traces.
4 month update.
The car has sat outside every day, except for a 4 week period when we had landscapers working onsite.
I wash it with Chemical Brothers pink soap when it needs it, usually once every week or two.
It rained on it last night and I woke up to this. The beading is just as good as when applied, and still no clouding of the matte black surface.
another update. The coating did not last the winter.
But for the cost of the product and the ease of applying it, I think it is still good as a once a year "wax".
The OP is only using a "topper". The OP is not using a true ceramic coating... one where you would top it off every few months. It's simply an every day spray on sealant.
Spray coatings are good, they can last a good long time with toppers. I like to use a topper after every wash. I think it retains the shine and slickness. I just use things like Griots Garage Ceramic Detail spray , Adam's polishes CS3 or Adam's polishes Graphene Detail spray.
I use Adams polishes Car Shampoo which is a neutral car wash shampoo and my favorite one out of all the ones I have tried.