Anyone else less than impressed with the scratch resistance offered by ceramic coatings?

Agreed. They can still mar and get scratched up but like stated. If properly maintained and cared for the less marring will occur. I tell clients all the time with jet black daily drivers that it almost impossible to keep it 100% all the time and eventually little love marks will happen.


That being said the only coating I have legit had experience with that has unbelievable marring resistance is IGL Eclipse industrial coating. It's technically not for show cars ect but I have tested it on a few areas of my GTO and it is definitely much much tougher. But it's a royal PITA to install lol

"Scratch proof" = you're unable to scratch it
"Scratch resistant" = it's harder to scratch / less prone to getting scratched

Coatings are usually advertised as "scratch resistant", not "scratch proof". However, most people think of "scratch proof" even then when they're reading/hearing "scratch resistant".

Hope this explains the confusion.

So I have my new, jet black car protected by a pro-only coating that tosses about phrases like "diamond infused 10h hardness" and top with WG SiO2 spray that describes itself as "rock hard" and "hard as nails" only to find it getting marked up cuz my kid dried it after washing with his mother's finest Turkish terry cloth bath towel.

My paint is supposedly as hard as (take your pick) diamonds, rocks or nails but will still be gooned up with a plush bath towel.

Oops.

IMO, I dont really even consider scratch resistance as a true benefit of a coating, much less choose one based upon that marketing drivel. Besides, it would render all the money spent on air blowers and expensive drying towels pointless if there was any significant scratch resistance to be had [emoji38]

While I'm sure they do provide some minuscule measure of scratch resistance, it is (to me) more of a marketing tool.

Imagine having a certain pro only coating applied (5-10 layers) then going back a year later for a 'warranty' claim on swirled up paint, mentioning your bath-towel drying methods and getting laughed outta there. "Uh, so 10 layers of your super-nuclear coating wont protect me from a bath towel...great, thanks for nothing"

Additionally, if coatings were actually able to provide a significant resistance to marring/scratching, why the need/desire for 'self healing' coatings?

My personal hope for self healing is it will provide some remedy for self-inflicted marring, the kind that can occur even with the 'best' dedicated drying/microfiber towel in existence. I dont expect it to fix any scratches inflicted from my carelessness loading boxes into my trunk which have occasionally marked up my paint.

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Originally Posted by the guz

scratch resistance is completely over rated with coatings. Proper care is still needed and improper care is going to scratch anything.

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this

How about this for scratch resistant. I’ve been using Sonax Speed Protect for about 10 months now. I got it before AG started carrying it. I have seen it’s scratch resistant properties first hand. I stripped it in Sept to do a quick polish for the winter. The paint was still perfect. I just put another coat of Sonax Speed Protect back on with a Sonax BSD topper for the winter.

All from a spray wax. But it is much more substantial. I love it for daily drivers.

Naser Mustafa - Test new Sonax Speed protect
#SonaxProfiLine😉 | Facebook

Todd Brown - Ok everyone heres the Sonax Speed Protect...





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Hmmmm... interesting. So many of you seem to also agree that ceramic coatings offer very little in the way of scratch resistance from typical day-to-day car operation and care.

My point I guess is the frustration consumers and customers must feel upon learning of yet another over-hyped product feature. Where does the misleading end when it comes to product performance in our industry?

I'm certain that it adds a degree of scratch resistance, however, it is the media hype of some companies that show it being virtually impervious to practically everything! Hit it with a hammer and set it on fire...no worries it will take it. It's all marketing and misleading IMO to the general public and wish it would stop.

"Caveat emptor"

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Originally Posted by Sizzle Chest

I'm certain that it adds a degree of scratch resistance, however, it is the media hype of some companies that show it being virtually impervious to practically everything! Hit it with a hammer and set it on fire...no worries it will take it. It's all marketing and misleading IMO to the general public and wish it would stop.

"Caveat emptor"

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:iagree::iagree::dblthumb2:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by itsgn

"Scratch proof" = you're unable to scratch it
"Scratch resistant" = it's harder to scratch / less prone to getting scratched

Coatings are usually advertised as "scratch resistant", not "scratch proof". However, most people think of "scratch proof" even then when they're reading/hearing "scratch resistant".

Hope this explains the confusion.

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The term scratch should not even be used. In the mind of the average car owner, when he reads or hear scratch, he thinks of deep scratches done by rubbing something sharp against the car. A coating might help a little bit against that, but it's gonna be very little if it does. When people call me for a coating I always take the time to explain in detail what scratch resistance really means. I don't people to think I install a magical force field on their car like a lot of ads are showing.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sonic Pilot

Hmmmm... interesting. So many of you seem to also agree that ceramic coatings offer very little in the way of scratch resistance from typical day-to-day car operation and care.

My point I guess is the frustration consumers and customers must feel upon learning of yet another over-hyped product feature. Where does the misleading end when it comes to product performance in our industry?

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It's only misleading if the installer doesn't explain what the coating actually does. Coatings are the best protection you can put on a car short of putting a paint protection film on. So while one aspect if overhypered, the product still remains the best one that can be used. So it's all in the way it is perceived.