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BTW, cars at the dealer often need paint correction. All it has to be is washed improperly once. I have also never bought a car new that didnt need to be decontaminated.
The paint doesn't HAVE to be corrected before a ceramic coating, its just that whatever swirls or marring exists will be sealed in by the coating.
Applied Ceramic Pro with lifetime warranty with film on the front bumper. Pricey but performed by a reputable installer. Previous poster is correct. Paint correction should be done even in a new car. Especially black. I made the mistake of having a few poor hand washes done... swirls everywhere. Lexus black is a soft paint.
I would highly recommend ceramic coatings on properly prepared paint. The shine, beading, easier care, and added protection from bird droppings and bugs, makes it absolutely worthwhile. My only caution is that it's NOT miracle protection. It doesn't stop scratches, and you still have to care for your paint. It just looks and performs better when you do. The fact that you are even thinking about spending the money to get a coating, tells me that you care about how your car looks, and probably take better than average care, anyway.
I applied to to my '16 NX myself, and will put it on the new ES as soon as I can. It lasted 3 years on the NX, and was still going strong when I gave it back to Lexus. I LOVE the sheen the coating brought to the paint. I think it will look awesome on the Atomic Silver.
the issue is if the car is new at the dealer
u don't have to do paint correction and they have control over the car having it and not having heat from sun and it can cure
so if your asking is it worth it from dealer absolutely yes if your in climates like florida or north east
or want low maintanence.
its much more expensive to do once paint is contaminated and has to be corrected and cleaned
hope this helps
Good tip. I was quoted $900 for opticoat pro when I purchased in December from a reputable detailer in central NJ. I decided I'd just go with a wax regimen as I've been doing for years. Well, the weather has been terrible and am wishing I got the opticoat applied. Now I'm wondering if the price will go up.
I'm not sure I would let a dealer do it. Detailing and paint correction aren't typically their focus.
On a side note, people have said that new cars don't need paint correction. Sometimes they don't, but more often it's worth it, in my opinion. I'm always amazed at how much better they look, even when they didn't look that bad to begin with. Sometimes a dealer will do a quick polish of a new car to get contaminates out of the paint (rail dust!), but it still sits on the lot for days or weeks until you buy it. I can almost guarantee there will be swirls in the paint unless it's an unusually meticulous dealer. True, most people don't care and/or wouldn't see swirls, but those aren't the people that will even consider paying $1000 for a coating. I can't imagine spending all that money to put a coating on a car with swirls.
I'm not sure I would let a dealer do it. Detailing and paint correction aren't typically their focus.
On a side note, people have said that new cars don't need paint correction. Sometimes they don't, but more often it's worth it, in my opinion. I'm always amazed at how much better they look, even when they didn't look that bad to begin with. Sometimes a dealer will do a quick polish of a new car to get contaminates out of the paint (rail dust!), but it still sits on the lot for days or weeks until you buy it. I can almost guarantee there will be swirls in the paint unless it's an unusually meticulous dealer. True, most people don't care and/or wouldn't see swirls, but those aren't the people that will even consider paying $1000 for a coating. I can't imagine spending all that money to put a coating on a car with swirls.
Couldn’t agree more. Almost every car from the dealer will already have swirls and scratches that need paint correction prior to applying a coating. Especially a black car, it shows everything.