How ceramic coating actually works

After rain, dried droplets and water rings stay on the bonnet. Dirt clings to the paint and lets go only on the second pass, so you sponge the same spot twice.

You won't spot a ceramic coating on the car at first glance. You'll notice it at the bucket: water runs off the paint, dirt holds on less, and a routine wash is quicker.

When you run a finger along the edge of a panel

You'll feel film under your finger, because it sits on the paint as a separate layer. With a ceramic coating you'll feel nothing – it doesn't physically step in between the paint and its surroundings.

So you don't get an extra layer on the paint. We bond the coating chemically straight onto its surface and change how that surface behaves, so it isn't standing loose on your paint, it holds onto it.

The demo shows the difference between something that merely sticks to a surface and something that anchors to it chemically:

That's why we first level your paint by polishing and degrease it. A ceramic coating takes only to clean paint – not to leftover wax, tar and old polish. On paint we hadn't degreased, it would hold only in places and vanish from the rest within months.

What you'll notice at the next wash

Before we propose a coating, we look at the condition of your paint – we recommend paint diagnostics as the first step. We go over the car panel by panel, show you the scratches and water spots, and tell you what polishing can level out.

On well-prepared paint your car stays clean and even-looking for longer, washing goes more easily and dirt settles more slowly. Don't look for the difference in photos – you'll see it on the car and in the upkeep.

When you wash the car aggressively or with the wrong chemicals

Put the car through a brush wash or clean it with unsuitable chemicals and you'll see it on a ceramic coating sooner than on film. PPF film (a protective layer laid directly onto the paint) takes that treatment for the paint, a ceramic coating doesn't – it's bonded straight to it.

You also can't replace a ceramic coating on its own. It ages along with the surface it's bonded to, so we always deal with it and the paint underneath together.

On the front bumper, the leading edge of the bonnet, the wing mirrors and the areas behind the wheels, we add PPF film alongside the coating. That's where stones off the motorway come at you, and where your car picks up chips first.

When you cover a lot of motorway kilometres or park outside

If you cover a lot of motorway kilometres or the car stands outside most of the time, and mechanical protection is what matters to you, a ceramic coating alone won't settle it. We'll talk through combining it with PPF film – there's more in When combining technologies makes sense.

Bring the car to our studio in Ústí nad Labem. After paint diagnostics we'll propose a surface treatment based on how you use the car.

Write to us and we'll arrange a consultation

Wondering how a ceramic coating differs from the other protection options? Take a look at the Guide.