Remember how she looked the day you met?
Shiny, glossy, new. And that smell!
We are talking of course about the day you met your new car. And how everything from that new car smell inside to its glossy, shiny exterior got your pulse racing and your heart smiling. Now it can be hard maintaining that new car feel. But with modern paint protection technology, it IS possible to keep the gloss going long after the car rolls out the showroom. And of course keeping your car in good shape is always a good investment. In fact, one of the top identifiers of a car’s valuation during its lifetime is its paint condition.
So what are options in the market to protect your car’s paint? And how do you pick the right one? Should you start safe and choose a classic ceramic coating or go for the revolutionary Graphene ceramic coating? Does it get better than Paint Protection Film (PPF) and how long does it last? All these questions and more answered by the detailing experts at CarzSpa Detailing Studios!
Table of contents
Why your car needs paint protection
Everyday you take your car on the road exposes its surface to natural elements like UV rays, rain and bird droppings to pollutants like smoke, dirt and tar from the road, all of which can cause physical and chemical harm. Oxidation, dents, abrasions, scratches – all ways to kill the natural shine of your car.
The car’s paint is not enough to fight all these elements alone. Enter paint protection products like ceramic coating and PPF, which create a layer, almost like a second skin, on top of your car paint to protect it from all the natural and industrial aggressors that attack paint. And of course there is science behind it. Ceramic coating, Graphene and PPF each protects on the car paint based on a different scientific technique. More on this follows…
Types of Paint Protection Products
Ceramic Coating
Ceramic Coating for cars is a liquid polymer, which on applying to your car’s exterior, bonds with its factory paint and forms a semi-permanent layer of protection over it. Ceramic Coatings are formulated from the same raw material used in glass and ceramics – i.e. Silicon Dioxide or SiO2.
Graphene Coating
Graphene Coating for cars, is created with the addition of graphene to traditional ceramic coatings, creating a lightweight and yet strong coating, which repels dust, in addition to water. This is considered to be a breakthrough in vehicle coating technology.
Paint Protection Films
A paint protection film, or PPF, is a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) film that shields your car’s paint, defending it against environmental debris, scratches, rock chips and other abrasives. It is transparent, malleable and self-healing making it an advanced choice for protecting your car’s paint while retaining its showroom shine.
Ceramic Coatings vs Graphene Ceramic Coating vs PPF
Protection
Ceramic coatings are hydrophobic. This means they are water-repellant which makes it hard for dirt and dust to stick to it. Since the coating doesn’t really get dirty, it’s easier to clean too! Ceramic coatings also protect the paint from oxidation caused by UV-rays, almost like a sunscreen for your car.
Thanks to graphene’s anti-static properties, graphene ceramic coatings are dust-repelling, as well as, water-repelling. Basically, it won’t allow dust or any other flyaway particles to settle down on the surface of the car. In addition, graphene’s low heat retention property ensures that water does not evaporate on the paint, instead forming water beads that can slide off easily. Graphene’s honeycomb molecular structure imparts a high contact angle to water, making it easy for water to slide down the paint. This reduces the chance of water spots forming on paint.
Protection grade of various paint protection products
Meanwhile, Paint protection films or PPF provides great impact resistance and scratch protection from small rocks, twigs, bug splatter and flying debris, because it is thicker and made with Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU). It also has self-healing properties, where any form of scratch or abrasion from keyrings, door handles or other manual activities over time can be fixed using warm water or some hot air is blown at it.
Longevity
Ceramic coating on cars can last anywhere between 2 years to 5 years, depending on the hardness of the coating. A 10H (pencil hardness) coating can provide protection for up to 5 years.
Graphene is thinner, lighter and incredibly strong because of its two-dimensional structure and honeycomb lattice. Industry experts describe this allotrope of carbon as harder than diamond yet more elastic than rubber, tougher than steel yet lighter than aluminium. As a result, it provides 10H hardness and can last up to 7 years.
PPF sheets, made with TPU, have an elongation break of up to 500% and a tensile strength of up to 30MPa, which means they can protect your car’s exterior and paint for up to 10 years. With application of heat, some PPF can self-heal, which means the films can return to its original form after any abrasions or scratches.
Looks
Due to their several chemical properties, ceramic coatings are known for the velvety gloss and shine they add to a car’s paint. They prevent the paint from getting oxidised, which ensures the paint looks fresh for a longer time in a country like India.
Graphene coatings, being hydrophobic and anti-static in nature, repel all dust and liquid contaminants, ensuring a sleek glossy look as well. In addition to all the benefits of ceramic coatings, graphene coatings also eliminate the appearance of water spots caused because of water drying on the surface.
While PPF can also provide a smooth and glossy finish to the car, especially a product like the Aegis SPX which comes with an extra gloss enhancing top coat, nothing beats the gloss of a ceramic coating. PPF is also not very effective against UV rays. The main feature of PPF is to protect the car from scratches and debris that can damage the car’s paint and to self-heal from any damage caused thus.
Cost
Ceramic Coatings cost between Rs 15,000 to Rs 45,000, depending on the grade and durability of the coating you choose.
Graphene coatings, being an enhanced version of ceramic coatings, cost more, ranging between Rs 35,000 to Rs 50,000.
Paint protection films in India cost anywhere between Rs. 85,500 to Rs. 2,30,000 and above, depending on the type and size of the car.
Application
From cleaning to buffing to polishing to actual application, ceramic coatings can take a day’s time to be applied by a detailing professional at a fully-equipped studio like CarzSpa’s Detailing Studios present in over 90+ locations across the country.
New age ceramic coatings, including graphene ceramic coatings, take about half a day for application and the remaining time to cure it.
PPF takes slightly longer. A small car could be installed with PPF in 2 days, while bigger vehicles may take longer. While you might be tempted to DIY the application of these paint protection products, we highly advise getting them applied by an experienced car detailing professional, to avoid harming instead of protecting your car paint.
CarzSpa’s Paint Protection Hall of Fame
CrystalShield Ceramic Coatings by CarzSpa
CrystalShield is CarzSpa’s very own exclusively created ceramic coating range. Its 80% high-grade SiO2 content hardens when it comes in contact with air giving the paint surface a smooth and protective layer, making it one of the most premium coating solutions in the market. It contains nano-ceramic particles that go into the pores of the car’s clear coat. When exposed to air, these Nano-based ceramic particles crystallise to create a protective second skin on the car’s paint.
G10 Graphene Ceramic Coatings
Graphene coating was introduced in India by CarzSpa Detailing Studios with our exclusive product CrystalShield G10. The chemical properties and the honeycomb structure of graphene make the coating highly hydrophobic, dust-repellant and provide a velvety more long-lasting gloss to the exterior compared to the other variants of ceramic coatings.
Read more : Ceramic Coating vs Paint Protection Film – What is Better?
Aegis PPFs by CarzSpa
Aegis Paint Protection Films by CarzSpa are made from the finest sheets of TPU that offer top-notch performance and best-in-class durability. Based on the latest covalent bond nanotechnology, the Aegis range of PPF products keeps your cars protected from scratches and abrasions caused by dirt, rocks and tar.
So, which paint protection product is better?
Looking solely at the benefits on offer, PPF definitely ranks on top for long-lasting paint protection from scratches! However, if it is gloss and shine that you are after then Graphene ceramic coatings followed by ceramic coatings would be preferable.
Now, for you, our customer. There are many things that matter when it comes to selecting the product. If your focus is to achieve great shine, protect your car paint from UV rays and protect you car paint from minor scratches, ceramic coatings could be your thing.
If you live in a dry and arid environment with lots of dust, are looking for premium shine for longer and don’t mind spending the extra cost for the same, then Graphene Ceramic Coating is your thing!
But if you drive on highways often and want to protect your car from rock chips, tar and dirt hitting your car at high-impact and are willing to spend that much extra to ensure complete protection of your car’s body paint then PPF can be your car paint’s saving grace.
If you still can not decide which paint protection to go for, visit your nearest CarzSpa Detailing Studio with your car for expert guidance on picking the right product as per your vehicle’s need and usage.
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