Paint correction & ceramic coating cost

The Running Man said:
But if its clear, how can it change the paint underneath?
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It doesn’t, you’re correcting swirls and scratches in the clear. The clear is what gives the paint gloss and depth, the paint underneath could be flat but a clear will still make it glossy. Likewise, when it’s swirled or hazy, the colour will look dull or lack clarity.
 
Sorry for my ignorance, but are you guys talking about restoring cars that have lost there colour?

I've got a mk7 tranny van and from what I've been told, there no lacquer on top of the white. So my dirty mits leave marks all over it.

I've been told it need a full polish and some fancy wax/coating? The guy said the name of the thing he wanted to put on and apparently it's the best you get from his over excitedness hahaha.

Worth doing myself? Need to fix a few rust spots as well before they go crazy too
 
koooowweeee said:
Just guessing. But sun damage through the clear (lacquer) coat. No expert tho.
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It's micro scratches of varying depth in the clear. If there's enough of them all layered up on one another, they obscure the way light transmits through the clear to the paint. You see what looks like a dull, flat none glossy surface that can almost have a very slighly transparent white look. Detailing is mostly clear coat correction, it's just called paint correction as the clear is over the top and part of it.

Problem is, once you understand it and see it, you can't unsee it :D

Just re cost, you can make it cheaper for yourself with very little negative effect by requesting single stage machine correction. Slightly deeper scratches in the clear won't be removed, but these aren't the ones that make your paint look flat, dull etc. They will likely still be softened slightly and less visible. If it's a daily car, I wouldn't bother and I'd rather the extra clear coat.
 
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Drollic said:
It's micro scratches of varying depth in the clear. If there's enough of them all layered up on one another, they obscure the way light transmits through the clear to the paint. You see what looks like a dull, flat none glossy surface that can almost have a very slighly transparent white look. Detailing is mostly clear coat correction, it's just called paint correction as the clear is over the top and part of it.

Problem is, once you understand it and see it, you can't unsee it :D

Just re cost, you can make it cheaper for yourself with very little negative effect by requesting single stage machine correction. Slightly deeper scratches in the clear won't be removed, but these aren't the ones that make your paint look flat, dull etc. They will likely still be softened slightly and less visible. If it's a daily car, I wouldn't bother and I'd rather the extra clear coat.
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So this will fix my 2002 red/pink Corsa :D

Don't really drive cars. Always in a van. But yeah I know what you mean. Bit like a wind screen in the sun. Loads of micro scratches makes it look different.
 
tsinc80697 said:
Correction = Visual improvement as it removes small scratches from the paint that diminish how vibrant and shiny it is.
Ceramic = Microscopic clear coating to protect the lacquer/paint beneath a little better. It's also slicker than the cars lacquer so grime can't stick to it as well; making it easier to clean.

Ceramic also lasts longer than wax, the 5 year claims by some manufacturers is a load of bull. 12-24 months is realsitic depending on where the car is kept, what weather it is used in, how it is washed etc
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Excellent, thanks for the explanation :)
 
koooowweeee said:
So this will fix my 2002 red/pink Corsa :D

Don't really drive cars. Always in a van. But yeah I know what you mean. Bit like a wind screen in the sun. Loads of micro scratches makes it look different.
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Red will be that but also more likely oxidisation from uv and just due to the colour itself. It depends on the age of the car/paint. If it's a newer car it's far more likely the above though. Some of the white/creamy look can also be oxidisation and on red it's more likely.
 
The Running Man said:
Thanks for explaining guys so paint correction is just buffing the clear coat?

So it can't get rif of scratches in the pain itself?
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It's correcting/cleaning the clear for the most part. If the scratch is through the clear and into the paint or worse then it's likely respray. If your vehicle is old and the paint is heavily oxidised, it's possible there isn't much clear to work with. Oxidisation and poor cleaning will eventually just leave chalky paint and no clear coat remaining. Red is the most susceptible.
 
Sheesh, £8-900 is mad. Even if you get 3-4 years out of it, its still a daft amount of cash. I'll be a cheapskate and stick to my collinite 915 hard wax:p

Joking aside, i appreciate the work they do for correction, but that is something that you can do quite well yourself, the outlay for a rotary isnt all that much, and if you use a decent set of pads and take your time, its really is a rewarding skill to learn.
 
Tinders said:
Sheesh, £8-900 is mad. Even if you get 3-4 years out of it, its still a daft amount of cash. I'll be a cheapskate and stick to my collinite 915 hard wax:p

Joking aside, i appreciate the work they do for correction, but that is something that you can do quite well yourself, the outlay for a rotary isnt all that much, and if you use a decent set of pads and take your time, its really is a rewarding skill to learn.
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£800-£900 is about double what it should be and they are really racking it in. I dont mind paying somebody skilled £150 per day to do the hard graft but like you said you can buy the rotary polisher and pads and compound and spend 2 to 3 days doing it yourself and save a lot of money. I just dont ever have 2 to 3 days spare plus I would hate it after about 2 hours
 
Greebo said:
£800-£900 is about double what it should be and they are really racking it in. I dont mind paying somebody skilled £150 per day to do the hard graft but like you said you can buy the rotary polisher and pads and compound and spend 2 to 3 days doing it yourself and save a lot of money. I just dont ever have 2 to 3 days spare plus I would hate it after about 2 hours
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when I was single I’d happily spend 3 days polishing the beast, now I’m lucky to get a day lol. To be fair I tend to do it over a week or 2, say 2 panels at a time, but then my cars are never that bad to require lots of correction.
 
That’s my issue at the moment, back in the day I’d have had all the time in the world to spend on cleaning the cars.

Now not so much do would rather pay someone to do it for me.

Wife’s new car will be going in for a paint correction (as VW seemed to have washed it with rocks before giving it to us) which is costing £150, then a Matrix black coating which is £400.

The Black comes with an 8 year warranty, so if the coating fades in that time it gets topped up. This makes the what feels like unrealistic claim not so bad as if/when it does start to wear before 8 years it gets sorted.
 
Drollic said:
It's correcting/cleaning the clear for the most part. If the scratch is through the clear and into the paint or worse then it's likely respray. If your vehicle is old and the paint is heavily oxidised, it's possible there isn't much clear to work with. Oxidisation and poor cleaning will eventually just leave chalky paint and no clear coat remaining. Red is the most susceptible.
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Thanks makes sense to me!
 
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Ev0 said:
That’s my issue at the moment, back in the day I’d have had all the time in the world to spend on cleaning the cars.

Now not so much do would rather pay someone to do it for me.

Wife’s new car will be going in for a paint correction (as VW seemed to have washed it with rocks before giving it to us) which is costing £150, then a Matrix black coating which is £400.

The Black comes with an 8 year warranty, so if the coating fades in that time it gets topped up. This makes the what feels like unrealistic claim not so bad as if/when it does start to wear before 8 years it gets sorted.
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Where you getting this done?
 
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