[bmnut]

Originally Posted by ZedsRedBaby

Little buggers. I've just murdered a load that were sucking the life out of my Amanogawa cherry. I expect the ladybirds will be pissed off when they get here.

[Jimbon1973]

I have just successfully ceramic coated my car myself and results are really impressive.
It's worth saying that I didn't go down the route of any point correction- car was only 5 or 6 days old and paint appeared to be in perfect condition.
I used Shelby Ceramic Coating for three reasons:
1) Ease of use, it's meant to be one of the easiest ceramic coatings to apply and buff.
2) It wins a good few awards as a product- autocar's top rated ceramic coating for example.
3) It costs £30, about 20 times less than what someone was charging.

I enjoy cleaning the car anyway, so this was just a bit of time, preparation and elbow grease to do it. It genuinely was so simple.

I have washed it once since (after a bout of very dusty rain) and the water literally just ran off.

I couldn't recommend this product enough if you want to do your own coating.

[sensible]

I had the old 'Seal and Protect' done by the dealer on a new F30 in 2015. It was over £400 and lasted about six months. I wouldn't have anything the dealer is supplying, and would go elsewhere and get a proper job done for similar money.

[SonD]

I have also literally just finished a ceramic coating, having had the car for one day before putting it into the warehouse for 3 days of work.
While not difficult at all, I found owning the right tools (at the very least a D/A polisher) and the ability to keep it dry for the required time a very real bonus.
Full decon first (very little as only 33 miles on clock) then a total de-swirl / de hologram with CarPro Essence. That worked very well, to the fact I have never had a paint finish as good as this, ever.
Then 2 coats of CQ 30 UK, with required time between them, and topped that with 2 coats of Gliss. All incredibly easy to apply and buff off. Just very time consuming and for me, boring.
End result is actually quite astonishing IMO, very happy with it.
Will see how it goes as to longevity.
Couple of things I found - polishing EVERY last trace off the coatings before moving to the next is imperative, as it shows badly as a smear later if not.
Having the ability to keep it dry and temp stable for 24 hours was very, very useful.

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by SonD

I have also literally just finished a ceramic coating, having had the car for one day before putting it into the warehouse for 3 days of work.
While not difficult at all, I found owning the right tools (at the very least a D/A polisher) and the ability to keep it dry for the required time a very real bonus.
Full decon first (very little as only 33 miles on clock) then a total de-swirl / de hologram with CarPro Essence. That worked very well, to the fact I have never had a paint finish as good as this, ever.
Then 2 coats of CQ 30 UK, with required time between them, and topped that with 2 coats of Gliss. All incredibly easy to apply and buff off. Just very time consuming and for me, boring.
End result is actually quite astonishing IMO, very happy with it.
Will see how it goes as to longevity.
Couple of things I found - polishing EVERY last trace off the coatings before moving to the next is imperative, as it shows badly as a smear later if not.
Having the ability to keep it dry and temp stable for 24 hours was very, very useful.

Any pics?

[SonD]

Will have some later, not had chance yet - it's a 545E, but I guess still relevant to this thread.
I also applied some FlyBy Forte to the glass - nowhere near as easy, and having to not use wipers for 24 hrs could prove problematic to be honest.
Getting rid of the smears from final coat is not as easy as the CQ or Gliss for sure!
I can say, having woken to overnight rain, the water beading is something to see, never had it like that before.

[SonD]

No decent sun this wekend here, but it has just rained a little -
coatings seems to be working as described on both paint and glass..


[IMG]

[mnkhalifa]

With I had the somewhere dry and enclosed to do it myself as I would be happy to sacrifice some time and a few days without the car to get it done for the cost of the bottles alone, rather than having paid £950 for the full interior and exterior works. Either way I can definitely recommend ceramic coating, dirt seems to jet wash off a lot easier and the finish is amazing when thoroughly cleaned.

[SonD]

Got a little bit of sun with the rain, so took a few of the Tanzanite Blue.
I have never achieved a finish such as this before, but it did take a while.

[IMG]

[thescouselander]

I've had ceramic coating on a few cars but the wife never bothers with this on her lease cars so that just gets standard wax.

To be honest I believe the wax works out better because although ceramic looks great when first done it only lasts 6 months in my experience and then you're back to square one. Far better to buy a decent DA Polisher with pads and other materials including a decent wax and spend a bit of time every so often giving the car a good polish and wax. It's looks better over the long term and works out cheaper IMO.

[SonD]

If this does mot last way longer than a year I will be extrememly disappointed.
I am hoping for at least two years before I need to get serious again.
Possibly a simple re coat with Gliss after 6-9 months, but no more than that.
I have the D/A and the first job done with it with CarPro Essence is a de-swirl / hologram and polish. That alone would last 6 months or longer.
We will see what time brings I guess.

[mnkhalifa]

Anyone have any tips on dealing with the dreaded bird excrement, especially if it lands on ceramic coating? I can imagine the ceramic coating being somewhat of a barrier between the acidic shite and my car's paint, but I also don't know how long it would take for it to burn through and ruin the ceramic coating.

So far my understanding is get it cleaned off asap, but with what? I want to do it in a way that won't ruin the ceramic coating (if that's possible)? I'm wanting a solution that I can leave in the car to deal with it on the spot rather than having to wait until I can get to a jet wash.

[Slipmiester]

Poorboys Bird Dropping/Poo/Sh#t Remover & maybe keep a small water filled pressure sprayer in the boot . These are good , https://www.eurocarparts.com/p/trade...ayer-552980490

.. Euro Car Parts also sell the Poorboys, Click and collect if your near one, its probably the cheapest you'll get it .

[paulockenden]

This stuff's good: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01KU72CXU/

I also keep these in the car: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0028HCGFA/

[m111]

I know having bird sh*t on the paint isn't ideal, but what period are we talking about here because I get bird droppings aaaaaalllll the time. Cleaning every one isn't feasible.
Is it reasonable to give it a week or two until the weekend when you can properly wash the whole car, or would some of you prioritise giving the affected area a clean midweek?
I'm clearly not as time rich as some people.

[paulockenden]

I know from bitter experience that seagull sh!t can damage paintwork if left on the car for a week.

But it probably depends on the bird - I'd imagine some are more damaging than others.

[mnkhalifa]

Thank you all, looks like might have to try a spray bottle of Poorboy's. Although the pressure sprayer sounds like a good idea that's too large of an item to what I have in mind (I prefer to carry as few items as possible in the car to keep it tidy). As an alternative I might also get a small 500ml standard spray bottle and fill it with water to keep handy.

Originally Posted by m111

I'm clearly not as time rich as some people.

I am far from time rich unfortunately I just about manage to find time to give my car a proper wash once a month, but every week or so when I fill up I will use the self jet wash for 10 mins and try get rid of all the crap. As mentioned above though I want something I can use on the go in case I don't have time to wash the car. Silly birds

[ZedsRedBaby]

I keep autoglym bird poo wipes in the boot, and a detailing spray to clean off the residue from those.

The best thing is to avoid the poo in the first place if at all possible - don't park under trees or next to overhanging streetlights. Most (but not all) birds crap when they're perching rather than when they're in flight. Which is just as well if you think about it otherwise we'd be constantly wiping it out of our eyes

[thescouselander]

Depends on the nature of the poo. If it's fairly fresh I just wipe it off with some quick detailer but if it's baked on I soak some kitchen roll in hot water and then leave that covering the poo until its soft enough to remove with quick detailer. The main thing IMO is to avoid having to rub too much especially as the car is likely to be less than clean when doing this task.

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by thescouselander

Depends on the nature of the poo. If it's fairly fresh I just wipe it off with some quick detailer but if it's baked on I soak some kitchen roll in hot water and then leave that covering the poo until its soft enough to remove with quick detailer. The main thing IMO is to avoid having to rub too much especially as the car is likely to be less than clean when doing this task.

Pretty much exactly what I tend to do to prevent scratching on the ceramic coating seeing as it can’t be polished out.

[Jimbon1973]

I live by the coast in South Devon, so seagulls are a daily irritation down here.
I'm not sure about other bird poo, but seagulls tend to have a fair amount of grit in theirs and you have to be really careful not to rub it at all (even when it has been softened by water).
I've just bought some of the poorboys mentioned above, will be handy to have in the car, though may put in in a smaller spray bottle!

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by Jimbon1973

I live by the coast in South Devon, so seagulls are a daily irritation down here.
I'm not sure about other bird poo, but seagulls tend to have a fair amount of grit in theirs and you have to be really careful not to rub it at all (even when it has been softened by water).
I've just bought some of the poorboys mentioned above, will be handy to have in the car, though may put in in a smaller spray bottle!

I have the same problem with the shitehawks as we live ‘as the crow flies’ (no pun intended!) about 500 yards from the coast and if you’re really unlucky you can be ‘carpet bombed’ by the buggers!
The one upside I’ve found with a ceramic coating is that it seems to make the paintwork significantly more resistive to the dreaded bird lime etching which is just as well because I have no idea whether or not the hair drier method of getting rid of the etching would even work on ceramic coated paintwork, in theory I suspect not? Fortunately I’ve not had to do that yet but would be consulting my detailer first before attempting any course of action. I’m lucky in that respect I guess as he is only 10 minutes down the road from us.