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- Florida
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- 2020 CX-9 GT AWD
Hello all - I figured I would share my experience with coating my CX-9 using a ceramic and hydrophobic solution.
Products
I was blown away at how glossy and water like the paint surface was. I've used a lot of products over the years - though never a ceramic - and I really can't believe how the paint turned out. In terms of repelling properties, I could set the box that the EXO came in on the hood and it would just slide right off. Unreal. I am hoping this will make washing much easier and of course protect the paint over the course of a few years. GTechniq claims a 5 year protection with the C1 + EXO combination. The EXO layer is supposed to last 18-24 months. Time will tell.
I have enough of the ceramic and hydrophobic left over to coat the wheels, so I plan to one of these days remove each wheel and coat the outer and inner rim for protection and ease of cleaning.
A few pictures below - of course they don't replicate what the eye sees in person. The wheels, tires, plastic trim is untreated/no dressing.
Products
- GTechniq C1 Crystal Lacquer (ceramic base)
- GTechniq EXO (hydrophobic topper)
- Wash - I used a pH balanced wash solution (Chemical Guys CWS_1011_64) using a pressure washer and foam cannon technique along with a microfiber mitt and rinse bucket with grit guard.
- Clay - I used a traditional clay bar (as opposed to a mitt), medium grade, and used an Optimum No Rinse solution (diluted as instructed) as my lubrication.
- Polish - I used Sonax 4/6 polish with an orange pad and random orbital tool. I honestly didn't spend a ton of effort in this stage since the vehicle is pretty new and my purpose for the ceramic was paint protection, not paint perfection. It's just a family hauler, not a show car, so minor surface scratches were acceptable. Most of them should be gone with the polishing step.
- Tape - Looking back I probably didn't need to worry about this. I taped off all of the plastic trim and roof rails. It only took about 25 minutes to do the whole car, so not a big investment, but likely something that can be omitted.
- Panel Wipe - This is probably the most under looked step in the process. I used GTechniq's panel wipe, but any IPA/water mix on a clean microfiber will work. The purpose of this step is to remove any remaining product on the paint surface (i.e. left over polish, etc.). You want the panel absolutely free of any chemicals or dust before applying the ceramic.
- Ceramic - I used GTechniq C1 Crystal Lacquer. I applied it using a foam applicator block wrapped in some sort of soft soft cloth. To buff, I followed the instructions and used a two-microfiber towel approach to prevent any smearing.
- Hydrophobic - I used GTechniq EXO. This product applied very easily (I used the included applicator). Again, I followed the instructions to buff away. The vehicle will need to sit garaged for 12 hours - it cannot get wet before then.
- Use gloves starting with the panel wipe stage all the way through to the end so you don't contaminate the paint with any oil from your hands.
- The C1 was a little tedious to apply. I found the EXO to be easier to work with, though neither were bad at all.
- I applied the ceramic/hydrophobic coatings to the head and tail lamps.
- It took about 11 hours to work through the entire process.
I was blown away at how glossy and water like the paint surface was. I've used a lot of products over the years - though never a ceramic - and I really can't believe how the paint turned out. In terms of repelling properties, I could set the box that the EXO came in on the hood and it would just slide right off. Unreal. I am hoping this will make washing much easier and of course protect the paint over the course of a few years. GTechniq claims a 5 year protection with the C1 + EXO combination. The EXO layer is supposed to last 18-24 months. Time will tell.
I have enough of the ceramic and hydrophobic left over to coat the wheels, so I plan to one of these days remove each wheel and coat the outer and inner rim for protection and ease of cleaning.
A few pictures below - of course they don't replicate what the eye sees in person. The wheels, tires, plastic trim is untreated/no dressing.
Posted a link to this thread in our Resources section... 
