Any experts on ceramic coating? My Rallye 350 is original paint and the paint is really nice. It does have a few flaws but nothing terrible for original paint. I have a friend that details cars and does ceramic coatings as a side job. He is not a high end professional but asked him for advice. He is saying I really need to have the car ceramic coated to protect the original paint and that the car needs to go to a professional he knows. Said he is not the right guy for this car, I was not going to have him do it anyway... What are the long term drawbacks of having it done if any? I am reading that they look more like a base clear car after they are done and I prefer not to have that. Anyone have their lacquer paint done? With the strips all being decals, will it affect them in a bad way. After it is done it is to late so I want to be sure first.

We had my parents Toronado Trofeo done a few years ago and turned out fantastic but I am just not sure that is right for an original paint lacquer car. I am not against it if has no long term side affects to the car. He could not answer that for me.

My friend is saying it would be roughly $1600 for a professional detail and paint correction. Ceramic coating is only $200 more because the hard work is already done at that point.

He said to leave all the trim on but I thought taking it off would be better. I did not think I would want the ceramic on the trim and they can't clean and detail under it.

Any thoughts?

 

I had that done to my '72 ragtop about 2 years ago - it was however, rotisserie painted a base/clear resale red back in the mid-late 90's. That said, the trunk in particular was showing noticeable fade onset issues when I pulled the trigger on the ceramic / paint correction effort. A local pro-level detail shop did the whole car for about $2500 and it produced an amazing overall result. Worth every dollar in my opinion.

1st pic shows detailing in process / 2nd = finished result

 

Personally, I think ceramic paint "protection" is a scam, kind of like seal coating your asphalt driveway.

 

My results don't lie - a local car wash-level job may be pig lipstick but a real pro-level detailing effort is the $#!% in my opinion.

 

For sure not a scam. It is really impressive when done professionally. Just not sure it is right for my old lacquer original paint.

 

I'm a professional detailer... I detail antique and classic cars all the time... You Never want to ceramic coat lacquer or single stage paint..... I don't care what anyone says !!! You don't want to seal up the Lacquer or single stage paint you want it to breath otherwise down the road it may start cracking ... What I recommend or I use for those types of paints is Maguires yellow #26 wax once a month.. All those oils in the cararnuba wax will rejuvenate the paint and keep it soft from cracking and keep the paint looking new... Ceramic coat is just for two stage paints only....

 

Thanks. That's the expert opinion a lot of us were waiting to hear. Not the irrelevant, "Look at this. See how it makes your original paint look so much less original!"

 

Thanks for the input. I am talking to a professional guy I was hooked up with now that is a museum curator. He told me the same thing. I want to get it right the first time and I have zero experience with paint care. I suck at it and hate it. I just want it done right the first time and then I will maintain it.

 

Any recommendations for what to clean and protect the Rallye 350 decals with?

 

I know Angelo Valenti does a lot of it. He is pretty knowledgeable.

Eric I would keep the car clean, covered, and just use a quick detailer.

 

Eric, I don't have a specific product recommendation but, relying on my Chemical Engineer training, I determined that you must avoid long-term contact with any product listing a petroleum-based ingredient.

These can cause your decals to deteriorate over time.

I learned from my early exhuberance.