Ceramic coating vs. Si02 rinseless washes

[TGates]

Something I`ve been thinking about lately and I`m probably way off base here, but I am curious what others think. Let me preface this by saying I`m not necessarily a ceramic coating fan. I haven`t had the best experiences and I don`t enjoy the process of application and removal. I did apply one to my current vehicle, and it`s been fine but there are things I do not like about it. Namely, susceptibility to water spotting and bird bomb etching.

I maintain the coating with weekly rinseless washes as my car just doesn`t get that dirty. I drive it around town, to and from work, etc. My wife`s family wagon is used for vacations and stuff.

So, my question is this... what is the benefit of applying a high solids ceramic coating to a vehicle vs. just using a weekly wash with something like Wolfgang Uber Si02 without the ceramic coating base. Obviously the Si02 content is going to be higher in a ceramic coating. Okay, I get that. But what functional improvement/advantage does that provide over a weekly wash/application of Si02 with something like the Uber? Wouldn`t the amount of ceramic protection in the Uber be enough to get you from week to week and last indefinitely? In other words, you should never "run out of protection" with this method. Too antectodal/subjective to know? Maybe.

I will say that my car looks its best (most gloss/reflection) right after a wash with Uber so to me, the nod goes to the frequent rinseless for appearance, too.

Anybody care to chime in?

Side note-- I have often wondered if the Si02 left behind by a ceramic rinseless wash would offer more, less or equal protection to a traditional paint sealant. Yeah, I know, the only way to know is to test. I don`t have the time or patience for that these days. I just want somebody to tell me

 

[981 Cayman S]

Ceramic-infused Sealant/Wash



Ceramic Coating


Maybe? Possibly? Absolutely off base?

I`m a bit puzzled that this analogy came to mind :crazy:

 

[TGates]

Okay, so what is the ceramic coating protecting from at a higher level than the ceramic infused rinseless washes? More protection from bird bombs?? Is the protection left behind from the Uber not enough to protect from bird bombs?? I`d argue it may be easier to address them with the latter because in my experience, the coating requires a pretty aggressive machine buff to remove the etching which leads me to believe the etching may be in the coating itself, which is great for your clear coat, but it`s an eyesore.

 

[dgage]

Coatings are high solids so durability is on the order of years for many coatings. Ceramic infused shampoos have some protection but it is a couple orders of magnitude less in that it lasts for a couple weeks if you’re lucky. A ceramic infused shampoo is a type of topper for a coating or a basic coating for a car if washed regularly. I use Uber SiO2 Rinseless and like it but the protection and effect is short-lived and as a shampoo, it is pretty weak. N-914 (among others) is a much more effective rinseless wash.

Regarding bird bombs, they can be very acidic and if a coating has issues, a ceramic infused shampoo will have issues. And some coatings are better than others at handling bird bombs (CarPro SiC) but all should be removed as soon as possible.