To ceramic coat PPF or not to

[ZenicaNC]

I am talking with some area shops about having our Taycan fully wrapped. It seems each shop is touting having the Xpel coated in ceramic but my understanding of ceramics is that it has a Mohs rating between 3 and 7. Fingernails are 2.5 so if the average ceramic product falls in the middle, say Mohs of 5, or basically glass.

The PPF is by nature, flexible and significantly softer than glass so how can you apply a hard coating to a soft underlayment and expect the hard coating to perform well? Granted, the sheet metal of the car is hard but by sandwiching the PPF between two hard materials, wouldn't the top layer crack and fracture if struck by another vehicle door? Like squeezing an Oreo cookie.

I am starting to think this whole ceramic after PPF is like snake oil salesman's BS. Am I overthinking this and it really is beneficial? I listened to all the reasons why they promote it; easier to clean the PPF, block UV, gloss(ier) but the 8 year old Xpel on my Cayenne has never been hard to keep clean. I zip through car washes and it always comes out great. Once a year I use the clay bar and a spray polish/wax. For being an 8 yr old car with 60k miles, it looks brand new. The car will look new the day it dies of prohibitive mechanical failure.

I suspect the newer PPF from Xpel will certainly hold up as well as the stuff from 8 yrs ago so I'm just not seeing a benefit to the cost. Can someone that has ceramic on their PPF educate me? since I don't always trust the word of an incentived salesman.

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[RGBArgee]

Initial thoughts …. Why on earth would you ceramic coat PPF!

 

[RAHRCR]

I got “the works” when it comes to PPF and ceramic on top. This is a complicated topic but I would get a PPF with ceramic built in if it was less expensive than the 2 services separately…recognizing that I would be maintaining it with a ceramic topper anyway. The hardness piece of this goes down the rabbit hole very quickly. With all of this said, knowing what I know about Taycan values today, I would recommend only a ceramic coating for the vast majority of people with some touch up paint as needed.

 

[ShiftyWolf]

Ceramic coating is far more hydrophobic than PPF, so washing off dirt is super easy. The coating also seems to bring back the luster that PPF slightly reduces. Having said that, I prefer just PPF (to the extent of how much area you want to protect). My last car had full PPF and I found it shined nicely after a wash and spray wax treatment. The self healing properties of PPF will also help with protecting your paint from small impacts while still looking good. Shortly after buying, I got stuck behind a dump truck leaking sand and was very happy for a little protection.

YMMV

 

[ZenicaNC]

I got “the works” when it comes to PPF and ceramic on top. This is a complicated topic but I would get a PPF with ceramic built in if it was less expensive than the 2 services separately…recognizing that I would be maintaining it with a ceramic topper anyway. The hardness piece of this goes down the rabbit hole very quickly. With all of this said, knowing what I know about Taycan values today, I would recommend only a ceramic coating for the vast majority of people with some touch up paint as needed.

Is ceramic alone enough to prevent rock chips and scratches? It’s such a thin application of material that I have a hard time believing it will really stop a rock from doing damage at highway speeds.

 

[RAHRCR]

Is ceramic alone enough to prevent rock chips and scratches? It’s such a thin application of material that I have a hard time believing it will really stop a rock from doing damage at highway speeds.

Ceramic coating will not stop rock chips. That is what the touch up paint is for. My view is that the PPF is not worth it for the vast majority of people…at least on a Taycan.

 

[ZenicaNC]

Ceramic coating will not stop rock chips. That is what the touch up paint is for. My view is that the PPF is not worth it for the vast majority of people…at least on a Taycan.

Ah. I've never used a ceramic for paint before so I wasn't sure if that was one of its virtues. I have had it applied to wheels before so avoid some brake dust build up and for that, it worked well. I plan to keep the Taycan for a few years and use every bit of the Fidelity warranty right up to the 100k miles so that is about 90k miles from now. I could see a lot of rock chips happening in that time. I see your point about deprecation but the value of the PPF for me is in preserving the appearance while I do own the car. I fully expect to lose 75% of what I paid over the next 8 years.

 

[raharris]

Is ceramic alone enough to prevent rock chips and scratches? It’s such a thin application of material that I have a hard time believing it will really stop a rock from doing damage at highway speeds.

Ceramic won’t offer that protection; only PPF will. I have had PPF and Ceramic applied to all my cars - not had any issues and easy to maintain. Ceramic doesn’t seem to help with dirt collection at any exposed edge unfortunately.

There are ceramic coatings designed to work with PPF. I have xpel with grechniq; and use their spray to keep it at its best.

Cars clean up real quick and easy.

 

[VOLT4GE]

The Taycan sits lower than a 911, so it’s more prone to getting nicked up by rocks. I’d suggest getting the PPF on the “front clip” and on the SW corner of the back doors. You’ll thank yourself later.

Ceramic coating: It makes the car far easier to clean.

The topic you haven’t addressed: Before adding PPF and ceramic, you ought to do a paint correction or you’ll seal in the swirl marks and little imperfections that are in the paint now. Also worth it.

 

[RAHRCR]

Ah. I've never used a ceramic for paint before so I wasn't sure if that was one of its virtues. I have had it applied to wheels before so avoid some brake dust build up and for that, it worked well. I plan to keep the Taycan for a few years and use every bit of the Fidelity warranty right up to the 100k miles so that is about 90k miles from now. I could see a lot of rock chips happening in that time. I see your point about deprecation but the value of the PPF for me is in preserving the appearance while I do own the car. I fully expect to lose 75% of what I paid over the next 8 years.

There are a couple of great YT videos that dispel the myths around PPF. To be clear I did it on my car because I am an enthusiast for all things detailing and paint related. Objectively speaking, it doesnt make financial sense on a Taycan.

 

[ZenicaNC]

Well, my PPF search has taken a turn, for the better. Unbeknownst to me, to the saleman at the Porsche dealer and to one Xpel shop I visited to get a quote from, the CPO I bought already has PPF. Whose I cannot say but it is fully wrapped including the exterior piano black trim. I only noticed it when I opened the rear door and my skin felt an ever so slight edge on the handle. Then I looked closer and sure enough, from the front fascia to the rear it is completely covered.

This just leaves me with ceramic coating the wheels and possibly the PPF. Talk about pleasant surprises.

 

[violuma]

Objectively speaking, it doesnt make financial sense on a Taycan.

I don't think there is any such thing as "objective" when it comes to "financial sense", because we all value things differently. I do think that the design of the Taycan makes it more susceptible to road damage than most other vehicles, as it sits so low.

 

[agurkas]

I am getting CT wrapped next week in satin purple, and as part of the package, I got the ceramic over. The wrap guy strongly believes it will help keep the wrap in tip-top shape longer, and I trust him. Given his reputation and how long he has been in the game, $500 extra on $5.5K wrap job and him incuding two years of refreshing the ceramc finish - would be silly for me to say no. I have seen a couple of the cars he wrapped (one my friend has) and how they look after several years - I tend to listen to pros cause I see the results.

 

[Vim Schrotnock]

If you are going to get PPF, get the XPEL, and you absolutely must do the ceramic as well. I've had full XPEL ppf for almost 4 years, and I get a ceramic 'refresh' every 18 months or so. The Xpel will protect your car from pretty much everything - there are videos of people trying to scratch through it with a screwdriver. The ceramic coating(s) are hydrophobic and the Ceramic Pro that was used on my car is amazing. I've posted a number of photos of my car after rain/snow storms and the ease of cleaning is like nothing I've ever experienced. My wife was so impressed that she got her new 450 GLE full PPF and ceramic. I would not get a PPF that incorporates ceramic because I prefer the idea of getting a new coating every 18 months for a few hundred $'s.

 

[RAHRCR]

I don't think there is any such thing as "objective" when it comes to "financial sense", because we all value things differently. I do think that the design of the Taycan makes it more susceptible to road damage than most other vehicles, as it sits so low.

I respect your opinion but I certainly do view this as something that can be quantified in an objective way.

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