3, 5 or 8 yr
Ceramic coating: 3, 5 or 8 years of protection
A hydrophobic coating applied after a decontamination wash, a paint inspection and a light polish, in the garage, with aftercare instructions when it's done.
Chapter 01
3 Year, 5 Year or 8 Year: picking the coating
The 3 Year coating is called Built for Endurance. It is a graphene coating, resilient, and it gives slightly less gloss than the other two. The 5 Year coating is The King of Gloss, built on SiO2 and SiN for a high-gloss, mirror-like finish. Those are the names and chemistry as Urban Auto Detail lists them.
The 8 Year coating is The Best of the Best, a blend of SiN, SiC and SiO2 that gives a slick, wet look and is the toughest of the three. The longer the rating, the more the coating is built to take, so a daily driver that sees winter highways and gravel is a different conversation than a weekend truck.
The benefits they list are the same across the range: super durable, hydrophobic, enhanced shine and resale value. Hydrophobic is what you see in the photo above, water gathering into beads instead of sheeting across the panel. Which coating fits depends on the vehicle and how you use it, and that's settled in the estimate.
Water beading on a coated dark paint panel
The four steps before and after the coating goes on
Step 1 is a wash and decontamination, with clay and chemical so the paint is clean down to the surface. Step 2 is an inspection under special light and a paint thickness check, the same one used for paint correction. A coating seals in whatever is under it, so this is where the paint's condition gets read honestly.
Step 3 is a machine polish. A light polish is always included, because the coating needs a properly prepared surface to bond to. If the paint has swirls or haze that a light polish won't clear, that's where the two-step cut and polish on the paint correction page comes in, and the quote form asks what level you want.
Step 4 is the coating application, followed by aftercare instructions so you know how to wash and care for it. Plan on up to 8 hours on site, and the booking page lists 7. A garage or enclosed space is needed, plus water access. You don't have to be there if the team has access to the vehicle.
Chapter 03
The estimate, the deposit and what else you can coat
Ceramic coating is priced by estimate, not from a fixed number, because the vehicle and the paint decide the work. The quote form asks for the vehicle, the level of paint correction, the ceramic coating, a glass coating and, if you want it, a rim coating.
Glass Ceramic Coating starts from $99 and takes about an hour. It's a hydrophobic coat for the windshield and glass that helps visibility in wet weather. Leather Ceramic Coating protects against stains, UV and cracking, at $149 for a coupe or sedan, $169 for a truck or SUV and $199 for a 7-seater. Both are on the add-ons page.
A deposit is taken at booking for ceramic coating. It's non-refundable but transfers to a rescheduled appointment with advance notice, and the balance is due when the work is finished, by cash, card or e-Transfer. The coating goes on in your own garage, anywhere in the Foothills service area.
Urban Auto Detail: call or text (403) 973-2143.