[Laurawilcox]

Michael, you are fortunate to have the option to garage your vehicles/toys. I still work full-time and my car is parked outside all week long as they have no garage facilities. I have appreciated the ideas here to maintain my vehicle as long as I can.

[midiwiz]

Originally Posted by JohnN

Yes, I have googled the topic, I'm looking for local observations.
No, I don't want to talk about dog-poop, zombies, or north vs. south Villages.

I have a 20 year old car and for the last 10 years, the Florida sun has beat the heck out of it sitting in the driveway, so much so that the paint has deteriorated.
I don't have any shade available, I don't want to use a cover.

Soon enough, I'll be moving that car and replacing it with my newer 10 year old car when I buy a new one. The 10 year old car is in great shape and I'll like to do better preserving the finish. A DIY ceramic auto finish seems reasonable. So, what do you thing?

1) Brands used , with pro and con.
2) Results, short term and long term?

Thanks, ~peace~

First off there is little ROI on a 10 yr old car. The paint really has to be 'showroom'. With that said here are the items you'll have issues with.

1) before anything you need to wash and clay the existing finish. putting ceramic overold finish is as useless as putting a floor over existing tile.

2) once clayed and dried, tyically this is when imperfections are fixed, assuming you have no idea how to do that part let's move on because it can be lot of effort.

3) ceramic goes on in SMALL sections. Reson is flash time can be fast depending on conditions. I would never attempt this outside in the sun only in a garage with 100% shade. The reason is that with any good ceramic product (which doesn't come in combination with wax) when it flashes the longer it sits the harder it is to wipe down and remove the flashing. Which is very necessary if you want it to work correctly.

4) I do the entire car, wheels windows, etc. Some ceramics are specific some are general. At your level ofuse you'll get 5 yrs out of 1 application. AS LONG AS, you use a 'rejuvination' product.

5) for people in your lane, I highly recommend CarPro line of products as they are far easier to work with and flexible enough to give you the flash time you will probably need until you get the hang of it. You'll also notice they have product for every application. Side note the leather ceramic product is far superior than any other leather product. I've used it for years and the leather is better than fine every time.

Car Cleaning Products | Pro Detailing Products

6) make sure you clear your day. but this is better than spending on things that are gimmics like maguires, turtle wax, etc. those products are blends and don't do what a solid line product would do in the long run.

[Topspinmo]

Originally Posted by Jimmay

My auto came with the coating already applied. After every wash it looks like it was just waxed.

Until the sun burns clear coat off if sets outside? but it you trade every 3 or so years you’ll never have that problem