[Nikhilb2008]

Originally Posted by Sahil

I beg to differ on this. I trust the smaller/individual shops on their process and skill to execute the job well. But I do not trust that they can make a better product as often they don't access to the level of R&D and technology that biggies like 3M have.
There is a trust factor developed based on the history of the company based on their track record, that they will do proper longer term testing before launching a product/technology. Whereas a XYZ brand might not do so and look at short-term objectives. Ofcourse this is highly subjective and not every case is the same.

Sure, you have a point.

But if that's the case, why did it take 3M the better part of 5 years to come up with an alternative?

Also, I no longer believe in the power of biggies. Today, all the big companies especially in the industrial sector seem to be losing their edge. Or maybe I'm just influenced by seeing GE's stock price plummet when the Dow Jones is up.

Tesla, a small company disrupted the market.

There are many examples.

Anyway, if it was a debate, it can go on!

[Dr.Naren]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

But if that's the case, why did it take 3M the better part of 5 years to come up with an alternative?

I had asked same question to an owner of 3M store .

Answer :

1. 3M thought that PPF was better option for Indian conditions. It is easy to replace if damaged.

2. Every detailing shop started offering Ceramic / Nano / Glass coating. 3M did not have any such option and the dealers were not happy. They were requesting 3M to get something similar. 3M Hypershield is glass coat. It was available since many years, but not in India. Finally 3M launched it in India.

I have no idea about the product. But, most of the 3M stores do very bad job . 3M has to look into their dealers properly and improve the service.

[Nikhilb2008]

Originally Posted by Dr.Naren

I had asked same question to an owner of 3M store .

Answer :

1. 3M thought that PPF was better option for Indian conditions. It is easy to replace if damaged.

PPF is good but the problem with PPF is that it focuses only on protection. You dont get the gloss, shine and wet look you can get with a good ceramic coating.

Of course, Parry's car looks stunning with whatever 3M has done

I didnt know 3M had this offering earlier abroad. If that's the case, my bad!

But it was silly of them to delay it for so long. If 3M had introduced the glass coating earlier, many people would have continued to be patrons of 3M (maybe me too!)

[Dr.Naren]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

I didnt know 3M had this offering earlier abroad. If that's the case, my bad!

Yes, 3M had introduced this around 5 years back.

But it was silly of them to delay it for so long. If 3M had introduced the glass coating earlier, many people would have continued to be patrons of 3M (maybe me too!)

Exactly. I just hope that their dealers provide better service.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Dr.Naren

2. Every detailing shop started offering Ceramic / Nano / Glass coating.

Ceramic is the new "Teflon" coating.

No one knows what it is, or which brands are good or how many coats can actually be done. But everyone is willing to pay up for bragging right of getting 10 coats, 12 coats etc of ceramic coating!

The costs associated with such coats in most of the shops are atrocious!

[Dr.Naren]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

No one knows what it is, or which brands are good or how many coats can actually be done. But everyone is willing to pay up for bragging right of getting 10 coats, 12 coats etc of ceramic coating!

The costs associated with such coats in most of the shops are atrocious!

Hahaha!! I would say better to avoid shops who charge more saying more number of coats are stronger. That is nonsense.

I am very interested to see the official pricing by 3M for Hypershield coat .

[Sankar]

I am the odd one here, I have never got any detailing done to my current or ex-cars so far. I know that it offers some level of protection to the paint and definitely makes the car looks glossy and good. But for me the coatings are a no-no, I am against the idea of applying expensive things on paint only for it to get scratched by some cycle/rickshaw/motorbike/pedestrian which then calls for panel repainting and again getting the expensive coat done on the repainted panel. Then for the bats (we have a bats nest tree near our home) and the birds to crap on. I know the coatings offer protection against bird poo but I don't think it will be able to protect against our cat's claws if he decides to sleep on top. So I have stayed away from coatings so far.

But anyway its nice to see 3M also launching their glass/ceramic product. No 3M product (electrical tape, splicing tape, other tapes, epoxy resin, cleaners, shampoo etc) has disappointed me so far and I hope this one also will have proper research backing it.

[snaseer]

Pretty Neat Job .

Any idea if they have a store at Mangalore?

[parrys]

Originally Posted by Dr.Naren

Hahaha!! I would say better to avoid shops who charge more saying more number of coats are stronger. That is nonsense.

I am very interested to see the official pricing by 3M for Hypershield coat .

Yeah. On point.
Exactly why I trusted 3M with just 2 coats applied per setting. What is the point of simply increasing the microns over the paint with these coats. If that was the case, car companies would have themselves applied multiple clear coats over the paint so we could simply keep buffing it and removing minor scratches.

The paint is going to bond only to a limited amount of the ceramic / hyper shield. So it doesn't really matter if you apply 1 coat or 100. The residue which doesn't bond with the paint is going to be washed away anyway.

Once I am back, this treatment will be around 20 days old. Will wash & share pictures.

[Dr.Naren]

Originally Posted by snaseer

Pretty Neat Job .

Any idea if they have a store at Mangalore?

3M car care was there in Mangalore. The service was pathetic. I believe it is shut down now.

[adneeraj]

That's a wonderful job done, Parry.
This is something that I'll be looking forward to. Just called up at my local 3M store and they said it has not been officially launched yet. Unfortunately, for me, no testing happening here so cannot avail of any early bird chance like yours.

I agree with Nikhil here. Local offerings have certainly upped their game or do as good a job as the 3Ms do. But I'm still wary of the ceramic coatings on offer.
Like what Dr. Naren and Crazy Driver mentioned - the brands of the liquid to be used are still unknown. How many coats? Youtube is flooded with DIY ceramic coating videos. Ceramic Pro is one of the internationally trusted brands, but their pricing is atrocious. A Grand i10 coat goes for like INR 28,000 - which is just too much to accept - this for the Gold package. Silver is cheaper by 4000, I guess.

Now, I don't know how much of this is true, but the 3M guy mentioned that ceramic coating binds itself to the paint and if anything goes wrong, like ceramic coating not done properly, droplets accumulated and solidified etc., there is no way to reverse that damage but to repaint that panel. Is this true or just a marketing gimmick?
He said, 3M on the other hand, is just a coat on top of the OE paint which can be replaced if gone bad or removed altogether.

[//HB]

Originally Posted by Sankar

I am the odd one here, I have never got any detailing done to my current or ex-cars so far.

Completely agree, and count me in the same category. When reading the prices on this thread, i couldn't help but wonder why people would spend amounts like 25K (and one even mentioned 72K ) when
1) these apparently last for only 1 year at best,
2) no one seems to hold on to their cars for more than 4 - 5 years,
3) would re-painting cost near about the same amount (or less) ?

[gkveda]

Originally Posted by Dr.Naren

Hahaha!! I would say better to avoid shops who charge more saying more number of coats are stronger. That is nonsense.
.

+1.

In fact, it is detrimental to the paint coating if multiple coats are applied. Considering the ceramic density and weight of the layer, I am not surprised, if the ceramic layers peel off the paint coating due to it's own weight.

[Mission_PGPX]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

PPF is good but the problem with PPF is that it focuses only on protection. You dont get the gloss, shine and wet look you can get with a good ceramic coating.

I recently sailed in this boat of ceramic coating. I wanted an easy maintenance process to keep car look clean even when dirty. Trust me i know what i am talking here. My purpose of going for ceramic (or whatever they call it) coat is that it should take a good 2 bucket wash without having to apply polish and rubbing the paint surface to get the gloss and shine for hours. After a simple wash the car should shine in all its glory.

hence, i thought bit the bullet and went ahead with crystal shield at Carz Spa, ahmedabad. Paid 16000 for complete treatment on my Jetta. They applied X1, Y2 and Z3 with one night interval for curing. Pictures for your preview.

Now, my personal view:
1) The key is surface preparation depending upon the age of your car and what kind of maintenance it has gone through.
2) Applying ceramic coat is a nice DIY on dust free early sunday morning. No expertise required. Considering 80% of boys at detailing centres are getting paid on per day basis wedge. They dont have a career in professional detailing. If they can do it, i am pretty sure we can do it as well.
3) The best value for money idea is to get the paint surface prepared (i.e. sanding, claying, compounding to remove all swirlmarks). Get the ceramic coating kit from car pro or equivalent, which is used worldwide and has good reviews). Use the eraser to remove oil and other left out polishes. and then apply the ceramic coat. 50 ml bottle is more than sufficient to cover 2 coat including all glass, paint surface and alloys. Its just take 3-4 drops on applicator pad and apply on 2 x 2 ft area. wait for recommended time and then buff the surface. Let the complete car cure for 4-5 hrs or overnight and then apply another coat.

This will give a satisfaction of having applied your wished product and the results as well. By the way mine is now a 5 year old Jetta and driven over 80000 kms.

[parrys]

So, the official pricing is as follows:
For single coat - Rs. 13,000, Rs. 16,000, Rs. 20,000, Rs. 24,000 for small, medium, large & x-large sizes respectively.

For double coat - Rs. 21,000, Rs. 27,000, Rs. 35,000, Rs. 44,000 for small, medium, large & x-large sizes respectively.

So for a double coat for my Jazz, which is medium size, the rate is INR 27,000. This is on par with other detailing service providers quoting close to INR 25 - 30k.