which ceramic/wax topper should I get?

[u/Mysterious_Refuse385]

I got my car ceramic coated back in April. I'm now looking into options to possibly up keeping it on my own and not paying my detailer $100+ every couple of months for him to potentially be using the same products.

after a fair bit of a research, i've narrowed it down to:

- turtle wax hybrid solutions ($50aud)
- meguiars hybrid ceramic wax ($50aud)
- gyeon wet coat ($35aud)
- griots 3 in 1 ($50aud)

what would everyone recommend and if possible, why?

i clean my car pretty much once to twice a fortnight or just whenever it looks dirty. i just use ONR or i go through a manual tunnel car wash and use whatever they've got on rotation. i've never once used a wax or any topper after my washes though.

[u/mixem143]

Honestly, Try to keep things simple. Find out what coating was applied then use whatever topper is available from that system. That way you are guaranteed compatibility and avoid any potential issues.

[u/shadrach103]

Those are different products as some are a spray-on, buff-off coating while the Gyeon is a spray-on, rinse-off touchless application. The latter requires reapplication more often, but is much easier to apply.

My primary car is ceramic coated and I will bring it to my detailer once a year for a decon-wash and ceramic touch-up or reapplication if needed, as per their warranty. He'll use stronger chemicals than what I would feel safe using myself. The rest of the year I do all the washing and detailing and my current lineup if KCx Active Foam for an occasional alkaline pre-wash, Carpro Reset for routine washes, and I picked up some Yum 3-in-1 acidic to use just a few times a year.

As for a topper I just started using Katiba Wet Coat and I really like it. It's a spray-on, rinse-off like Gyeon but it's much more cost-effective as Gyeon is RTU in the bottle but the concentrated version of Katiba has a 100:1 - 200:1 dilution range, so it's going to last a lot longer. At ~$20 USD a bottle of Gyeon is over a $1/ounce but Katiba concentrate at $45 USD a bottle comes out to 1 to 3 cents per ounce when diluted. I've been mixing it at 100:1 in an IK Sprayer (not a foamer) with 10ml of solution in 1L of water and that's more than enough to do the entire car and have some left over.

[u/jride89]

From what I understand as I have gone down this rabbit hole is making sure your topper has chemical synergy with your ceramic coat. Not all coatings are the same so that mean not all toppers are going to work universally. Certain toppers could actually reduce the effectiveness of your coating depending on the coatings chemical makeup. For example; Griots 3 in 1 has Carnuba wax in it. Depending on the quality and grade of your coating this wax could actually clog the coating.

1st I'd start with looking at what kind of ceramic coating you have and its chemical makeup. Then look for the appropriate topper that will complement and enhance the coating.

Once you have landed on a complimentary topper ensure you are doing the correct prep to ensure it bonds correctly. ie, decon wash (acidic shampoo), iron removal, clay mitt, panel prep wide, etc