DIY ceramic graphene or pro recommendations

[optronix]

It sounds like a lot, and it is. However, I don’t think it’s going overboard. The proper prep is required for great lasting results. What steps would you cut out?

Depends on the condition of the paint before you start, but multiple washes is pretty absurd, especially if you're using an IPA spray after clay.

For my car, it is brand new with no defects I care enough about to correct, and it was pretty well decontaminated by my PPF installer so my process was this:

Wash with "Clean Slate" from Chemical guys
Dry with leaf blower + microfiber waffle weave towel
Apply Reflex Pro Enamel Coat

Done.

It turned out as expected; exceptional. Hopefully the pictures capture it enough to get the point across that you don't need to spend $1500 for your car to look good for long periods of time.

My son's Si was well taken care of, but was still 10 year old paint. For that one I did the same Clean Slate + dry, but clayed then corrected with an orbital buffer, then IPA, then Reflex Pro. Probably took me 4-5 hours total. I really wish I took pictures when I was finished because that car looked fantastic and then he subsequently didn't wash it for a year, and it still somehow looks pretty decent. This is how it sits right now, parked outside and not being touched since June 2022.

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[GTO]

Depends on the condition of the paint before you start, but multiple washes is pretty absurd, especially if you're using an IPA spray after clay.

For my car, it is brand new with no defects I care enough about to correct, and it was pretty well decontaminated by my PPF installer so my process was this:

Wash with "Clean Slate" from Chemical guys
Dry with leaf blower + microfiber waffle weave towel
Apply Reflex Pro Enamel Coat

Done.

It turned out as expected; exceptional. Hopefully the pictures capture it enough to get the point across that you don't need to spend $1500 for your car to look good for long periods of time.

My son's Si was well taken care of, but was still 10 year old paint. For that one I did the same Clean Slate + dry, but clayed then corrected with an orbital buffer, then IPA, then Reflex Pro. Probably took me 4-5 hours total. I really wish I took pictures when I was finished because that car looked fantastic and then he subsequently didn't wash it for a year, and it still somehow looks pretty decent. This is how it sits right now, parked outside and not being touched since June 2022.

Civic looks impressive! ITS looks gorgeous

 

[ZeroGSR]

It sounds like a lot, and it is. However, I don’t think it’s going overboard. The proper prep is required for great lasting results. What steps would you cut out?

I concur, it's a pretty standard prep list, only thing I dropped were your final 2 washes. What I wish I did was more taping prior to polishing, especially around the rear hatch and taillights.

 

[GTO]

Extremely late reply to this thread but I wanted to share the results in case it helps others.

I ended up using Adam’s Advanced Graphene Coating and have been very pleased with the results. I’ve never seen water beading like this before!

The whole process took me a weekend but the results were well worth the effort. As others have said, the preparation is important and while it may have been overkill, these were the steps I took:

1. Wash then rinse
2. Spray Adam’s Iron Remover then rinse
3. Wash then dry
4. Decontaminate with Mother’s Clay Bar System
5. Wash then dry
6. Light polish
7. Wash with Chemical Guys Clean Slate then dry
8. Wipe with Adam’s Surface Prep
9. Apply Adam’s Advanced Graphene Coating
10. Let the coating cure for a few weeks then applied Adam’s Graphene Boost

Maintenance since has been the typical wipe down with detailing spray whenever needed to keep things clean. Months later, the gloss is deep, the shine is brilliant and the hydrophobic properties impress.

 

[2015FB6]

Dont have any great after pictures but figured I'd add as well since I enjoy detailing.

I put Gtechnic Crystal Serum Light and Exo v4 on my wife's Grand Cherokee and Ammo Reflex Pro 2 on my Type R last year. I was a bigger fan of CSL/EXO compared to the Ammo due to the observed hydrophobic properties, depth of gloss (both cars were white), and back of the hand slickness. Not sure why I went through all the effort as both cars were sold last fall for a Pilot and Type S .

So on the Integra I went with CSL/Exo v5. Liking the results so far. I also tried out Armor glass and Armor wheel coatings. We'll see how it all holds up. Process was as follows:

Wash
Ironx (wheels and paint)/rinse
Clay/rinse
Dry
Polish
Carpro eraser wipe
Apply CSL/Exo v5
Apply Armor glass coating
Apply Armor wheel coating

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