FAQs

No.

Regular exterior washes help remove harsh winter chemicals like road salt that are used to clear ice and snow from roadways. These chemicals end up on the undercarriage, bumpers, fenders and doors of your vehicle and cause damage to the surface over time. It’s also a good idea to do a decontamination wash towards the end of winter to combat deterioration.

No. Installation of Paint Protection Film or Ceramic Coating can happen at any time of year. There are ideal temperatures needed in order to ensure application goes smoothly, but we have a heated shop and can perform these services at any time of the year. In fact, you may find that scheduling during fall or winter will get you in quicker. Also, the sooner your car is protected, the safer your investment is from the hazards of daily driving.

While both products provide protection for your vehicle’s paint, there are some key differences and what you ultimately choose will be dependent on your budget and the specific end result you’re looking for.

Paint Protection Film is a clear plastic material that is applied over the contours of the area you are protecting. Only painted surfaces need to be covered with PPF. While it is possible to cover an entire vehicle, most people opt for partial coverage that focusses on areas that are more prone to chipping due to rocks or door dings. Application to headlights can assist in protection from rocks and yellowing from sun damage.

Ceramic Coating is a clear liquid that can be applied to multiple surfaces – paint, glass, wheels, metal, plastic and more. It dries to a very hard protective layer that resists scratches, UV damage, acids from bug guts and bird droppings, road chemicals, etc. With ceramics, it isn’t much of a money saver to coat only part of the painted surface so that’s why its only offered in a full-vehicle coverage (for painted surfaces). Wheels, glass, plastic and metal surfaces can be coated, but they require a different formulation of ceramic unique to each type of surface, so those are offered as separate and optional add-ons.

Technically, no, you don’t HAVE to do paint correction, but we highly highly recommend it. PPF and Ceramic are both long-term coatings for your vehicle. Once you put them on, it doesn’t come off easily, and you can’t correct any visible issues to the paint once the PPF or Ceramic is on. So its best to ensure your vehicle’s paint is looking as best as it can be before installing PPF or Ceramic. Prices for paint correction (Polishing) are quoted separately and not included in quotes unless specifically requested.

The amount of time and effort that will be required to get your vehicle’s paint to the level of correction you desire depends on the level of damage we’re starting out with. Vehicles with severe oxidation, multiple scratches or larger surfaces areas take longer, with multiple levels of correction needed. On the other hand, a brand new vehicle may already be in high-quality condition and would require very little paint correction.

It’s important to know that deep scratches that have gone all the way through the clear coat and into the paint, or worse the primer are NOT going to come out with paint correction. That’s why its important for us to see your vehicle first, so we can inspect and explain what you can and can not expect out of paint correction for your particular situation.

No – Paint Protection Film is made to adhere to painted surfaces, and will not adhere to ceramic coatings. So if you know you want to have PPF on part of your vehicle (partial hood, door cups, edge guards, etc), we need to know that so as to not apply ceramic to that area. For example, you may want PPF on the door edges to protect from chips if the door bumps into anything. That PPF strip should be installed first, with a ceramic applied just up until the edge of the PPF.

Ceramics are made to be very durable and long-lasting, The only way to remove ceramic coatings prematurely is to remove them with a series of abrasives (like sand paper or heavy cutting compound). Its much easier to remove PPF, however, which can be peeled and pulled off of the vehicle and replaced with a ceramic coating if desired.

Possibly – it depends on your expectations and the depth of scratches and damage to your vehicle’s paint. Polishing the painted surfaces of cars will reduce or remove minor scratches that haven’t gone all the way through the top clear coat. Automatic car washes tend to leave fine scratches, often referred to as swirl marks, that dull the appearance of your vehicle over time. Also some car washes can abrade the car so heavily as to remove clear coat entirely. Polishing removes minor scratches by smoothing the surface so the eye can no longer see them. You may be surprised at how vastly improved a car can look after a few passes of buffing and polishing. Before polishing we will check paint thickness to ensure there is enough paint left on the surface to allow correction.

It’s important for us to see your vehicle, so we can inspect and explain what you can and can not expect out of paint correction for your particular situation. Usually photos in full sunlight are sufficient

Although it seems like the surface of a car is very smooth and sleek, tiny microscopic particles like iron particles often referred to as rail dust, can get embedded into the surface. These are the orange spots seen most readily on white vehicles although the are on all cars. Cleaning your car with a clay bar specially designed for paint, and decontamination solutions help to lift these particles out of the paint surface, preventing further damage. This step is important before a coating or PPF so that these contaminants are not under the protection damaging the surface you are trying to protect.

No! Detailing can be done on any type of vehicle – RVs, semi-trucks, and OHV’s. Give us a call and we can talk through the options for your special needs.