[mannym122]

Hey guys,

First time X5 owner here and I want to ceramic coat it after I take dealer delivery. How much should I expect to pay? And is there anything I need to know or prepare for?

Do you guys also PPF it afterwards or is that overkill?

[Melbourne_X5M]

Originally Posted by mannym122

Hey guys,

First time X5 owner here and I want to ceramic coat it after I take dealer delivery. How much should I expect to pay? And is there anything I need to know or prepare for?

Do you guys also PPF it afterwards or is that overkill?

If you do it yourself, less than $200.00 including paint prep.

In El Paso, where the cost of living is reasonable, $950.

In NYC, plan on your non-dominant arm.



PPF will protect against rock chips and scratches. Ceramic protects like a long-term lasting wax.

Your call!

[mannym122]

Thanks! Doing both is tempting as I know I'll be driving down the BQE and encounter a hail of rocks at some point. I don't trust myself doing it so I'll probably end up taking it to a detailing place. I expected the cost for ceramic to be in the $1500-$2000 range, but anything more and I'll consider DIYing it.

[IFlyX5]

I was quoted $750 in Houston, TX with a minor check-up, touch-up (??) once for the 1st year.

[mannym122]

Ok, sounds like my estimate was a bit high. Appreciate the response as I will most likely have overpaid

[dynamic]

Originally Posted by mannym122

Thanks! Doing both is tempting as I know I'll be driving down the BQE and encounter a hail of rocks at some point. I don't trust myself doing it so I'll probably end up taking it to a detailing place. I expected the cost for ceramic to be in the $1500-$2000 range, but anything more and I'll consider DIYing it.

Get yourself some Adams Carnauba or other top tier wax. They are all very easy on, easy off and will look every bit as good if not better than any of the whiz bang, shine of the month, products offered by the detail boys ready and more than willing to unload your wallet.
There is no such thing as a permanent wax.
A friend of mine had his new 911 "ceramic coated" 3 years ago by one of the go to shops in this area and you would never know it now. Waste of money.

[j1980mac]

I paid 2K in PA.

[maczrool]

$1500 for 5 year Opti-coat here in Memphis.

[Timmer-Bimmer]

I paid $1500 for ceramic coating, claying, and paint correction in North Carolina, although I had a second estimate that wanted $1500 for the ceramic coating and a separate $1500 for the paint correction.

I did PPF just on the front third of the hood and the door handle wells. That's where the bulk of my rock chips seem to land.

[Jetrik]

Originally Posted by Timmer-Bimmer

I paid $1500 for ceramic coating, claying, and paint correction in North Carolina, although I had a second estimate that wanted $1500 for the ceramic coating and a separate $1500 for the paint correction.

I did PPF just on the front third of the hood and the door handle wells. That's where the bulk of my rock chips seem to land.

Got surface protection which included ceramic coating for $500 in PA. They discounted it from $1k.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by mannym122

I expected the cost for ceramic to be in the $1500-$2000 range, but anything more and I'll consider DIYing it.

+1, Completely agree with dynamic ... everyone's different with different preferences of course (and needs), but if we're talking strictly "looks ceramic-y" you can easily get that yourself the 1st time with < $100 of product & tools all-in from scratch.

But to back up quick, if you're doing PPF, do THAT first, ceramic 2nd. But should you?

Well, just know that PPF is ONLY useful for the thin use case that your car gets hit light enough to not dent the metal (otherwise insurance) & not voluminous enough to justify comprehensive insurance (e.g., truck loses some gravel in front of you), but hard enough to chip the paint; AND those little paint chips bother you $2k worth. And then also you'll have to pay to have rock-chipped-PPF removed & reapplied ... and if the PPF doesn't get rock chipped, then you didn't need it. PPF also slightly dulls the paint, i.e. less glow if you care and can yellow ... and if you pay for the lesser installs (i.e., pre-cut vs custom) you deal with seams and/or edges that get dirty. And you also have installer risk.

All of that said, people who do like PPF are very passionate about it, and thus you'll likely know if it's the right choice for you in which case none of that above stuff matters.

--------- Bold & beautiful only below this line ---------

Back to ceramic, so how do you get your car to easily look like ceramic AND w/o spending thousands?

Well, first you gotta ask how often are you going to wash your car and who's going to do it?

* If you're willing to wash it, then this is all easy, more in a sec
* If you're not willing to wash it then it's WAY cheaper to have your detailer put on a LSP every wash (because you'll pay him the same for a wash whether you've paid him $$ for ceramic or not; if you paid for ceramic, you paid him to make his job easier)
* If you're not going to wash it at all, then ceramic isn't worth it anyway
* If you're going to use a drive-thru wash, then sell your BMW & buy a Highlander

Ok, so if you're willing to wash your X5, here's how I do it to avoid the time, hassle, & mess of 2-bucket even if you live in an apartment or on-the-go for road trips:

1. If your car is really dirty and/or ideally, spray/power-spray it down first*
2. Buy McKees rinseless wash, put a capful into 1 gallon of distilled/de-ioned water you can by @ Whole foods or similar for $0.49/gal - you can use a collapsible bucket for ultimate portability & easy storage
3. Buy 10 high quality microfiber rags; minimally like the member's mark from amazon (36 for about $20) or better, 550 everest from the rag company, put 5 in the mckees bucket, keep 5 dry
4. Pour some of the mckees solution into a spray bottle and spray down the first 2 panels (hood counts as 2)
5. Take out 1 rag, wring out until just barely no dripping, fold into 1/4s; with 1/4 wipe down the first panel working top to bottom and right to left - no circles!
6. Use a 2nd dry rag & wipe the panel dry. Spray down the 3rd panel, flip the wet rag to a clean side and wipe down the 2nd panel
7. Continue this way until done; rags NEVER go back in the bucket - once they come out, they're out and if you drop one grab a new one
8. Once the car is clean & dry, use new clean microfibers & spray it down with flex wax per the instructions

*Keeping to the portable theme, if you don't have a powerwasher at home and/or want a portable option just for the car you can buy a Worx Hydroshot ($80 for black friday!) - for the car the lowest power model is fine, but if you want to use it for other stuff buy the higher power models.

Anyway, do this every 2-3 weeks depending on dirty levels and your car will have minimal swirls and looks equal or better than ceramic and certainly better than PPF ... and you can easily use this method in a parking lot if need be.

Bugs should easily come off, but if not you can use a mckees bug sponge after it's washed - just spray on mckees solution and lightly scrub them off. If your car is coated they'll come off fairly easily. Mine will spray off and I carry some TW ceramic quick detailer to get them off. You can use citrol for road tar or bad situations. If you have a lot of road film from a wet, nasty trip, spray the car down first with a road film remover diluted 4:1 (or 10:1 for lighter film) w/ de-ionized water like Superior Product's Road Warrior or Fire Power which you can order from O'Reilly's. Let it dwell for 5 min or so, rinse, then wash as above.

After a time or two you can usually get the whole car done in ~20min and if you add in the tires/wheels, 30 min; a special note for the tires wheels: same process as above but with new microfibers, 1 per wheel. If you coat them new as above with flex wax most dirt & brake dust should hose off. If not, then I'd use a non-acidic tire & wheel cleaner like P & S Brake Buster: just spray on, let dwell for a few minutes, then hose off. Then wash as you would your paint. I don't treat wheels any different than paint, since they're painted & clear-coated, but they do get dirtier ... and there are some more advanced tools you can use to make it easier.

[dynamic]

^^^^^^^Great stuff!
I think you covered all bases with that one.

[callouscrab]

Really good post GrussGott - will try this weekend!

[2dangerous]

I’m going to get my wheels powder coated and the same shop does ceramic, they quoted me $1500 for 5 yr and $1800 for lifetime ceramic coating here in central jersey. I’m going to shop around to see what others offer in the area.

[CGG]

The main advantage of a ceramic coating is the paint correction and paint polishing that takes place before the ceramic is applied. The major cost of a ceramic coating is not in the ceramic coating itself but in the many hours it can take to correct and polish the paint. It can easily take 6-8 hours to do the paint correction and polish - perhaps more for a SUV.

There is no way that a coat of wax or sealant or whatever on uncorrected paint will look as good as a car that has been corrected and polished. It just won't look as good because it can't.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by CGG

There is no way that a coat of wax or sealant or whatever on uncorrected paint will look as good as a car that has been corrected and polished. It just won't look as good because it can't.

Yeah, that's true for experts looking through a jewelers loop or doing a close inspection, but for normal people I've never met the person who can tell, and that includes 2 of the best detailers in the country who've looked at my cars I ghetto detail as above (ignoring orange peel).

And then we could also talk about just what exactly one is REALLY getting with "correction" on a new car from a rando dude with a Rupes charging < $2k ... especially given all the variables beyond their control (like paint thickness) ... be that as it is ....

Here's my 3 year old non-corrected, non-ceramic ghetto detailed car AFTER a hard workout (thus dirty wheels & tires) ...

However better ceramic would make it wouldn't be worth $2000 for me ... no swirls though! 3 years old! never touched by a detailer. I think it looks stellar and the total cost was about $100 and a wash every 2-3 weeks ... though one time I went 3 months!

NET-NET
When we say "as good" we should probably define that as clean & shiny and 99.99% of people including all of us probably can't tell a new corrected car from a new non-corrected car from 3 feet away (if at all ever).

That said, ceramic's great! It's SUPER durable and it makes washing & waxing WAY easier.

For anyone who already has ppf and/or ceramic, it's the best choice for them!

But for others wondering if they can get 99.98% there by hand with a new car, $100, & a bi-monthly ghetto wash ... well, yeah you can. no buckets or foam cannons required

[Pro55]

I have many stone chips on front of the car. Wishing I’d had the ppf now. 2 years old and 34000 miles. The paint seems very soft to me. Ive used a touch up pen to fill in but it’s not great.
Feel I’ll need to get a professional out or re spray.

[kjx]

Originally Posted by GrussGott

And then also you'll have to pay to have rock-chipped-PPF removed & reapplied ... and if the PPF doesn't get rock chipped, then you didn't need it.

Great post but I disagree with this. PPF is much more resilient to rock chips than paintwork and is self-healing. So not seeing any chips on it does not mean you didn't need it. That is also not to say that it can't get damaged, but it is extremely rare.

My oldest car spent the first 2.5 years of its life without PPF because it was to expensive for me. And the bumper and hood was marked a lot with rock chips. The bumper had to be replaced due to a low speed parking lot hit. And I took the opportunity to get PPF.

Another 2.5 years went by and the surface of the bumper is flawless. PPF is awesome. I never skip it now. Got it on my X5 earlier this year and will get full body coverage on my M4. If you can afford it, NEVER skip PPF.

The best part of PPF is NO swirl marks or micro-imperfections in the clear coat over time. It's flawless.

Ceramic is nice to have and easily be self-applied (I got it with my PPF though). Ceramic wears out over time and will be lost immediately if the paint is polished.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by kjx

Great post but I disagree with this. PPF is much more resilient to rock chips than paintwork and is self-healing. So not seeing any chips on it does not mean you didn't need it.

The best part of PPF is NO swirl marks or micro-imperfections in the clear coat over time. It's flawless.

Well, except now your paint covered in plastic, so is that a bug or a feature? No right answer there IMO, depends on road conditions ...

In my pic above you can see that vehicle has zero swirl marks after 3 years - it just comes down to technique - and any that arise can be buffed out by a noob first time out for <$300 all-in including tools like an RO polisher, or a detailer will do it for $200 (at least here in the Bay Area).

Net-Net: IME PPF & Ceramic are trade-offs just like tires: no right answer for all, just a right answer for each person.

* PPF
Provides a high level of paint chip protection (whether you need it or not) and high ease of cosmetic maintenance, with the compromise of being expensive and covering your paint with plastic that may get dinged up and require removal & replacement cost, time, and effort. But there's no denying the rock chip protection & it'll make those washes WAY easier for someone who doesn't much care or have the time to learn good technique. It's a fantastic option for people who drive in places where they get pelted with rocks and/or chemicals or have a tough time w/ routine washes, i.e., gravel roads with traffic, snow regions (ice/sand/salt pelting), dirt roads/back roads, etc

* Ceramic
Provides a low level of paint chip protection and a medium-to-high level of cosmetic maintenance ease. It CAN be expensive, but it can also be done at home cheaply to varying levels of durability. It's very configurable. It's a fantastic option for people who primarily drive in the suburbs / cities / freeways in light or no winter regions and don't have the time and/or desire to routinely maintain their cars.

* Routine owner washing
Will be a low level of paint chip protection and you have to wash it yourself but it's cheap (and therapeutic?) and one CAN get the same results as PPF or ceramic lookswise ... BUT you gotta maintain it properly, which requires your time ... both to routine wash, but also potentially fixing paint chips if they bother you. It's a great option for people who like doing the work themselves



If I lived in a snow state (like a real one like MN) and did a lot of freeway driving I'd go custom PPF, at least on the hood & front bumper. Minnesota winters will demolish a car's front end. In a sun state like here in California, PPF just isn't needed unless you're doing a lot of dirt road/gravel road driving which I don't, plus I just like doing the work myself and generally distrust "the pros"

Seattle's a grey area ... not really a snow state, but you might spend a lot of time in the mountains and then ... yeah, PPF might be required.

[ksavostin]

X5 45e whole car:
- PPF ~ $6000
- Ceramic coating ~ $1000

[dynamic]

Originally Posted by ksavostin

X5 45e whole car:
- PPF ~ $6000
- Ceramic coating ~ $1000

7 grand, wow.
Forget about that and just get a new vehicle every 12-18 months which is what I do any way.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by dynamic

7 grand, wow.
Forget about that and just get a new vehicle every 12-18 months which is what I do any way.

I just recently looked into this and here's what my BMW authorized auto body shop quoted me for resprays in the Bay Area, CA:

... a single panel usually $800.-$1200. A front bumper cover refinishing from rock strikes is around $1200.-$1500.

So in the case that the damage is light enough to not be covered by normal insurance or comprehensive, you can just respray your bumper and/or hood for way cheaper, and now you have brand new paint.

This PPF & ceramic stuff is getting totally out of hand ... the industry manipulating people's emotional ties to their car and extracting ridiculous sums out of it.

In Alaska with a lot of dirt roads and/or tons of highway sand blasting during the winter, or routine runs up the Al-Can ... ok, sure, PPF the bumper, hood, and rockers ... but otherwise just why?