Coating Degradation Question

[The Critic]

I have a question about coating degradation. Let's assume these two scenarios:



Vehicle A has been coated for 1 year. It gets parked indoors and has been properly hand washed 25-30 times. It has also been driven for 15K miles during this 1-yr period.



Vehicle B has been coated for 2 years. It is also parked indoors (when not in use) and has seen 10-15 proper hand washes. It has only been driven for 10K miles during this time period.


Wash regimen: "ph neutral" soap at 1.5x the recommended dosage, occasional snow foam with degreaser, microfiber wash mitt.
Drying method: Contact drying using a waffle-weave towel. Never use shop air or blower due to noise issues.
Environment: typical suburban, no excessive exposure to contaminants or salt. Area is fairly dry with minimal exposure to rain.



Based on the described scenario(s), which coating should have more wear?

[TTQ B4U]

IMO Vehicle B will likely be holding up better. The wear and tear of driving and road rash and dirt impacting the surfaces and the higher touch rate via washing will impact the first vehicle more. Time as a factor really isn't going to do much.

[The Guz]

Depends on the use, the environment it is exposed to and maintenance. With them being in the garage, it helps in that they are not exposed to the elements 24/7 which will degrade a coating faster.

How does the water behavior look on both of them?

[Bobby B.]

Do both vehicles have the same ceramic coating applied? Have any toppers been used after the maintenance washes?

[The Critic]

Do both vehicles have the same ceramic coating applied? Have any toppers been used after the maintenance washes?

Same coating.

For the purposes of this discussion, let's assume that both vehicles receive the same maintenance practices.

[The Guz]

Technically they can last forever if parked in the garage and maintained. Not the answer you want to hear but that is the reality. It is too hard to predict the life of a coating once applied. Which also leads me to another thought and that is the prep for each one. For example flash times if the coating is removed too soon.

[Bruno Soares]

I also think vehicle B will be doing better with everything else being the same. Less miles and less washes means less abrasion which is what will wear/remove the coating over time. If it had been outside most of the time then it could be a different story as it would be exposed for an extra year.

[Bobby B.]

Same coating.

For the purposes of this discussion, let's assume that both vehicles receive the same maintenance practices.

IMO vehicle B's ceramic coating would hold up better.

[Desertnate]

Here is my personal experience very similar to the scenario you lay out. Both cars wore CQuartz UK 3.0 coating and are in the same household.

Vehicle 1: Daily driver. Sees 30K a year and parked outside 90% of the time
Vehicle 2: Daily driver. Sees 10~15K a year and garaged at night.

Both vehicles are washed with the same car wash soap, both get an occasional post-wash wipe down ECH2O as needed, and both see the same bug remover. The vehicles both get washed every 2~3 weeks as time/weather permit.

From my experience, there was no difference in the behavior and appearance of the two vehicles for the first 18 months. Somewhere around the 24 month point, the difference is noticeable on the car with the harder life.

As another data point. A third car in our family is driven about 10K miles a year, garaged at home and at work, but only washed about once ever 1~2 months in a slightly more harsh climate has far outlived the other two vehicles and the coating is going strong at 3+ years.