What is the primary difference between a ceramic coating and a clear bra?

It is true: Both ceramic coatings and paint protection films that we install here at Chicago Auto Pros provide protection for your vehicle’s paint and exterior surfaces. However, the most notable difference is that our ceramic coatings are mostly designed to lower daily maintenance routines, keep stains at bay, and add gloss. Paint protection films are polyurethane vehicle wraps that prevent light surface damage and resist defects caused by unpredictable hazards.

Ceramic coatings are low-maintenance, so why do they need to be detailed?

Because ceramic coatings are not completely indestructible against swirls, scratches, paint chips, or abrasive surface damage, keeping them clean when the need arises keeps them looking high quality and staying effective. Likewise, ceramic coatings require professional detailing to maintain their lifetime warranties, as opposed to public car washes, as those drive-thru efforts can and will scratch them or cause marring.

Can I cover my paint protection film in a ceramic coating?

Absolutely! Utilizing both a ceramic coating and a paint protection film to give your automobile the ultimate in value, shine, and perfection is an extremely proactive effort. Here at Chicago Auto Pros, our paint protection films keep defects from reaching your actual finish, while the ceramic coating on top of them will further enhance the quality of your vehicle's paintwork.

Porsche 911 Turbo S - Xpel Ultimate / C.Quartz Professional

August 11, 2017

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CERAMIC COATINGS

We received this brand new 2017 Porsche 911 Turbo S almost straight from the dealership. It's undeniable, this car is gorgeous and who wouldn't want to protect something that looked this good? In order to give this car the best protection it was decided to wrap the entire car in XPEL Ultimate paint protection film and follow that with C.Quartz Professional ceramic coating to the paint, wheels, calipers, glass and trim. Follow along below as we take you through our process of making this car "road ready".

If you have read our blogs before you know first things first, paint correction. This car had very minimal defects in the paint from the factory and cleaned up very easily. We've noticed most new Porsche cars have some of the best condition paint of any manufacturer we've seen and generally clean up quickly. This is good for us and better for the customer.

A man is kneeling down in front of a blue porsche 911.

A man is working on a blue porsche 911 turbo s in a garage.

During a normal coating process we remove the wheels to clean and coat them. This car, however, features center-lock wheels and we're not capable of removing them so we spend extra time cleaning and polishing them on the car before coating them with a sprayable coating.

A man is cleaning a car wheel with a spray bottle.

After the paint has been corrected comes the XPEL process. This step is very time consuming and it's the installers job to make sure the film is virtually invisible once applied to the car. This means taking extra precautions to make sure seams are hidden and the film is laid down cleanly and smooth. It takes many years of training to be able to install clear bra properly.

A man is applying a protective film to the side of a blue sports car.

A blue car with a blue cloth on the windshield

A man is kneeling down next to a blue car in a garage.

Once the film has carefully been applied we move on to the coating application and curing process. The coating is delicately applied by hand to ensure full and even coverage. The coating is then cured to it's maximum hardness using heat lamps.

A man is polishing the side of a blue sports car.

A blue car is sitting next to a yellow machine.

And just like that, this car is ready to be driven with the piece of mind knowing this car is protected to the fullest. The best part about projects like these is that to the average person this car just looks like a very clean and well kept car. What they don't know is that owner doesn't spend every weekend washing and detailing it for hours upon end, it stays clean with minimal effort and will look flawless for many years to come.