Ceramic coating at our Harrogate unit
- What the water does
- Water stands up in tight beads and rolls off, taking the dirt with it
- Protection
- 2 to 5 years
- Price
- £450 to £1,200
- At our unit
- 1 to 2 days
- What the water does
- The same water lies flat, clings to the paint and dries into spots
- Protection
- None
- Price
- Included in every coating
- At our unit
- Nothing to fit
What a coating actually is
A ceramic coating is a liquid that bonds to your lacquer and cures into a hard, slick, transparent layer around two microns thick. It is not a wax sitting on top; it is chemically attached, which is why it lasts years rather than weeks.
What it changes is how the surface behaves. Water pulls into beads and runs off instead of clinging and drying into spots. Road film, brake dust and bird lime release with far less effort, so the car gets washed more gently, and gentle washing is what keeps paint free of swirls.
The 9H claim, honestly
Every coating on the market is sold as 9H. That number comes from a pencil hardness test on a flat panel, not from anything that happens on a road. A coating will not stop a stone chip and it will not stop a key. Anyone telling you otherwise is selling.
What it does resist is the light marring that comes from washing and drying, which is the damage most cars actually suffer.
Why the paint is corrected first
A coating is completely clear and it locks in whatever is underneath. Every swirl left on application day is still there, under glass, for the life of the coating, and it cannot be polished out without removing the coating you paid for.
That is why our coating prices assume at least a single-stage correction first. If the car is brand new and the paint is clean, that step is short. If it is three years old and washed at a brush wash, it is not.
How long it really lasts
Ours are rated two to five years depending on the product, and that rating holds if the car is washed properly. A coated car put through a brush wash every fortnight will look tired inside a year. The same car washed with two buckets and a pH-neutral shampoo will still be beading years later.
We inspect every coated car once a year at no charge, and top it up if it needs it.
What it looks like in the rain
This is a coated bonnet under the lights, rinsed. The water cannot wet the surface, so it pulls into round beads and rolls off, carrying the road film with it. On uncoated paint the same water spreads, clings and dries into spots.
- Contact angle 7575° Bare lacquer, then the same panel coated
- Wash time 6060min A safe two-bucket wash, before and after coating
Both are typical figures from cars we have coated, not laboratory numbers.
How we coat it
Five steps, the same on every car.
- 01
Measure and inspect
Paint depth readings on every panel, and a look under the inspection lights, so we know what correction the paint needs and can safely take.
- 02
Wash and decontaminate
A safe wash, iron fallout remover and clay. Anything left bonded to the paint gets sealed under the coating.
- 03
Correct
At least a single-stage polish, more if the paint needs it. This is the step that decides how the coating looks for years.
- 04
Panel wipe
Every panel stripped of polishing oils. Oils left behind stop the coating bonding, and that shows up weeks later as patchy beading.
- 05
Coat and cure
Applied panel by panel, levelled by hand, then left in the heated bay overnight so it hardens before it meets weather.
What would it cost for your car?
Three answers. The figure you get is not a formula — it is what we actually charged on the jobs in our own book that match yours.
Typically £865, across 4 jobs in our book.
Paint correction
Depth readings first, then two or three stages until the paint is right.
Every figure here is what we actually charged for work like yours. Yours is confirmed on the paint, with depth readings, before anything is booked.
In every coating
- Paint depth reportReadings for every panel, before and after.
- Correction firstAt least a single stage, included in the price.
- Wheels coatedFaces and barrels, off the car where needed.
- Glass treatedScreen and side glass, so rain clears at speed.
- Trim sealedExterior plastics and rubbers protected against fading.
- Overnight cureInside the heated bay, not on your drive.
- Aftercare kitThe shampoo and mitt to wash it safely.
- Annual inspectionBring it back each year and we check it, free.
What coating customers say
Live Google reviews, straight from our own profile.
Two-stage correction on the RS6. The black finally looks black.
Ceramic on a new Macan before its first winter. Beads like glass.
Tom showed me the paint readings before touching anything.
Coating questions
Including the parts most places leave out.
Will a coating stop stone chips?
No. A coating is about two microns of hard film: it resists marring from washing and road grime, not impact. Film on the bonnet, wings and mirrors is the answer to chips, and the two work well together.
Do I still have to wash the car?
Yes, but it gets much easier. Dirt releases with far less agitation and water sheets off, so a safe wash takes half the time and puts in far fewer swirls.
Can you coat a car that is not perfect?
We can, but we will tell you what will be locked in. Usually we correct first: a coating over swirls keeps those swirls visible for years.
How long does the car stay with you?
One to two days for the coating itself, plus however long the correction needs. It stays inside overnight to cure before it meets rain.
Is it worth it on a lease car?
Often yes. It keeps the paint in handback condition and makes washing quick, and we can take the film off at the end if you have both.
Coating for drivers across North Yorkshire
Every coating is applied at the unit in Harrogate. We collect and return from all of these.