Best Ceramic Coatings for Cars – Buyer’s Guide

Best Ceramic Coatings

Best Ceramic Coatings of 2020

ProductTypeSizeType of coating surfaceUV protectionAnti-corrosionDurability
Color N Drive Kit (Editor's Choice)Color N Drive KitCar ceramic coating kit1.7 oz.Painted surfaceYesNoNo informationCheck Price
CarPro C.Quartz KitCarPro C.Quartz KitCar ceramic coating1.7 oz.Paint, glassYesNo3 - 12 monthCheck Price
HydroSilex RechargeHydroSilex RechargeNano spray ceramic coating16 or 32 oz.Paint, glass, wheelsYesYesNo informationCheck Price
Ethos Handcrafted Car Care Ceramic Wax Top CoatEthos Handcrafted Car Care Ceramic Wax Top CoatAnti-corrosion ceramic coating16 oz.All types of surfacesYesYes12 monthCheck Price
Gtechniq Crystal Serum Light KitGtechniq Crystal Serum Light KitLong lasting ceramic paint coating kit1.7 oz.Painted surfaceNoNo3 - 5 yearsCheck Price

1. Color N Drive Kit – Best Overall Coating Kit

With long-lasting results and easy application, the Color N Drive Car Ceramic Coating Kit will give your vehicle a flawless look. Giving your car a protective top coat, this coating kit will keep your vehicle safe from UV light fading, iron powder, stone chips, bird droppings, and scratches. You also get an impressive shiny gloss from this do it yourself Nano bionic kit that gives you easy to use application steps.

Nano Technology

Using 9H nanotechnology, the Color N Drive Car Ceramic Coating Kit is durable in a unique way. The gloss coat will look flawless for up to 5 years. With a hydrophobic paint sealer, it will help keep your vehicle clean longer as well as easier to clean, staying intact for up to 150 washes. Creating a dirt and water repellent, the ceramic coating creates a protective layer on the surface of your car.

Great Results

This is also an easy to apply the product. With a specially formulated coating, the Color N Drive Car Ceramic Coating gives you great results without a lot of hassle. You can easily correct mistakes and doesn’t require multiple coatings to finish it. If you follow the user-friendly application steps, you won’t need any experience to use it safely.

Easy Application

This kit comes with everything you need to polish two cars with a coating and comes with a premium coated sponge that gives you an even application without scratches. The Color N Drive Car Ceramic Coating Kit gives your car a 3D deep gloss and has a 9H hardness rating that resists scratches while also preventing fading, water spots, and oxidation.

PROS:

Works really well
Easy to apply
Water runs right off of it

CONS

Preparation to apply it takes hours
You use a lot of microfiber towels

2. CarPro C.Quartz Kit – Best for Professional Results

Featuring superior protection, the CarPro Cquartz gives you an impressive gloss finish better than if a professional had done it. This is an easy to use detailing product that gives you a deep gloss that is long-lasting. It also comes with an enhanced formula that works quickly and doesn’t require a lot of effort or complicated machines.

Cleaner Longer

The CarPro Cquartz Kit has properties that make it almost self-cleaning since it stays cleaner longer than other products on the market. It is resistant to contaminant, dirt, oils, water, UV rays, low and high temperatures, bird dropping, and marring that happens when you are washing it. This product is often used by professionals and car enthusiasts the world over.

PROS:

Easy to apply
Long-lasting results that last for months
Bugs wash off like magic

CONS

Can only wash the car with their shampoo

3. HydroSilex Recharge – Most Versatile Result

A universal product that will protect almost protects virtually any type of surface, the HydroSilex Recharge is very easy to apply and, once it is cured, generates a transparent top layer that will give your vehicle additional gloss and protection from the elements. This can either be used by itself or alongside a maintenance coating when revitalizing other ceramic coating brands. It is so simple and easy to use, you do not need to be trained or certified to apply it.

Versatility

HydroSilex Recharge will work with any coating brand to provide a slick surface feel, UV protection, self-cleaning, and to help maintain gloss. Since it generates an extremely slick surface, it becomes a repellent from contaminants in the environment while also providing UV protection against fading. With its design, this product gives your vehicle an instant hydrophobic effect right on contact, and it actually has Nanoparticles that fill in the pore of the paint to create a deep mirror finish.

Self-Cleaning

Even though you apply it dry, you can actually expose your vehicle’s surface to water immediately. With its slick surface, your vehicle will become very hydrophobic with a self-cleaning surface that needs less maintenance. This anti-oxidation and anti-corrosion product is used by the public as well as professionals, and one bottle provides enough product to use on ten cars.

PROS:

Smooth to the touch
Good results with decent luster
The color of the vehicle really pops

CONS

The nozzle doesn’t spray, but the product comes out in a stream
Water beading is different than other waxes
How to Apply HydroSilex Recharge

4. Ethos Handcrafted Car Care Ceramic Wax Top Coat – Best for Surface Protection

Bridging the gap between ceramic paint and carnauba waxes for cars, Ethos Ceramic Wax is as easy as a liquid wax to use but gives you the durability, shine, and gloss of a professional ceramic coating. You actually end up saving time by giving your vehicle’s surface a semi-permanent coating without having to worry about paint damage. This enables you to save time by providing a semi-permanent coating to your vehicle’s surface without fear of damaging the paint.

Protection

Enhancing and protecting any vehicle surface, Ceramic Wax Top Coat generates a superior hydrophobic protective layer that will repel stains and water while enhancing the surface with a great shine, clarity, and reflections. You also get up to twelve months of protection from environmental contaminants, corrosion, oxidation, and UV rays.

Durable and Easy To Maintain

With easy maintenance, Ceramic Wax provides a non-stick water-repellant surface that lessens the amount of time you have to spend washing your car. This is also a durable and long-lasting product that won’t wash away with detergents or car shampoos. It is safe for fiberglass, acrylic, chrome, single-stage paint, ceramic coatings, and clear coat finishes.

Safe To Use

Giving you professional quality results, safely and easily, Ethos Ceramic Wax was created for car enthusiasts that want a professional level of surface protection that is safe and easy for a do-it-yourselfer to apply. It doesn’t include waxes, silicones, or cheap fillers and is blended with pure Sio2 chemicals to give you durability, slickness, and shine for year-round protection.

PROS:

Easy application
Dirt and sand won’t stick to the finish
Water beads off nicely

CONS

A little on the pricey side
Takes several passes to wipe off all the residue
Ethos Product Release - Ceramic Wax Paint Sealant

5. Gtechniq Crystal Serum Light Kit – Most User-Friendly Product

GTechniq Crystal Serum Light provides you with up to five years of protection, giving your superior gloss while protecting your vehicle’s surface from dirt and everyday contaminates. Giving you the best chemical and swirl mark resistance you will see from a prosumer grade product, GTechniq Crystal Serum Light is thought to be the most durable and thickest true ceramic coating on the market. This product achieves a new level of durability, gloss, and chemical and scratch resistance.

Protects Surfaces

When you compare Crystal Serum Light to typical ceramic coatings, you will see a pretty thick combined film that truly reduces any surface hazing and increases the gloss of the surface. This product also comes with 3 VViViD Microfiber towels for product application.

PROS:

Gives your vehicle a great shine
Very user-friendly
Good durability

CONS

The towel that is included not exactly great quality
Crystal Serum Light Promotional Video

Buyer’s Guide

What is Ceramic Coating?

A ceramic coating is actually a paint coating and is also known as quartz, glass, and Nano coating. This is a pretty new product that is applied to paint like a sealant or wax. It is intended to give you an added layer of protection for your paint.

They differ from sealants and waxes, though, since they were created to bond to the paint, plus they last a lot longer. Once a paint coating is cured, it acts as a second clear coat. Many of these coatings will last from a year to over three years before you need to apply another coat.

How are Ceramic Coatings Made?

Either quartz or resin-based, most ceramic coatings have nanoparticles that are usually suspended in a solvent that will flash off or evaporate when you spread it thinly across your paint.

How do Ceramic Coatings Work?

A ceramic coating works by bonding to the paint on your car. In comparison, sealants and waxes actually sit on top of your paint job while a ceramic coating will adhere to your paint. You apply a standard coating by wiping it onto the vehicle’s paint and then removing the excess as the solvent in the coating evaporates.

As the thin layer cures to the paint, it will become hard, giving you a hard and semi-permanent layer of protection. This protection includes buffering against light scratches, shedding or sheeting of water, UV resistance, chemical resistance as well as a high gloss appearance.

Ceramic Coating vs. Wax and Sealants

When comparing sealants, waxes, and ceramic coatings, the wax will last the shortest amount of time on your vehicle’s surface. However, it is the most forgiving when you consider the amount of time it takes to apply and surface prep. Providing a soft and warm glossy appearance, the wax is very soft to the touch.

Engineered to last longer than typical waxes, the sealant will last several months longer and are often easier to apply. Made with man-made chemicals, sealants will give your vehicle a glossy wet look.

Of the three, ceramic coatings are the least forgiving during the application process, but it will last the longest. If you want it to last as long as advertised, make sure to take care with the surface prep. It isn’t hard to apply and it gives your vehicle a shiny, candy coating look.

Hydrosilex Recharge vs. Car Wax

Benefits of a Ceramic Coating

UV Damage and Oxidation

When a vehicle is often sitting in the sun, the paint on the vehicle’s surface will start to oxidize, creating faded or dulled paint. With a layer of ceramic coating, you can protect a car’s paint from UV rays and reduce the amount of oxidization.

Chemical Stains and Etching

Naturally, acidic contaminants in the environment which is another danger to your car’s surface. A ceramic coating will create a surface that is chemically resistant, keeping some contaminants from bonding to your car’s paint, making it more resistant to etching and staining as long as the contaminant is removed in a timely manner.

Ease of Cleaning

Being hydrophobic is one of the best features of a ceramic coating. Repelling water and creating a surface where water beads and slides off easily means that grime and mud will have a harder time bonding to your car’s paint. So, when you wash your car, you can remove contaminants with less effort.

Car Ceramic Coating

Enhanced Gloss

You can also add a ceramic coating if you want your paint to be glossy, a ceramic coating enhances the reflective properties in your car’s paint as well as a clear coat that adds to the clarity and depth of your vehicle’s paint.

Ceramic Paint Protection