The KIA Telluride in Gravity Grey

[Johndoe]

Looks great, is Gravity Gray a bit blue, or is it reflecting from the sky?

Reflecting from sky

 

[Johndoe]

Looks great, is Gravity Gray a bit blue, or is it reflecting from the sky?

Here's a different look. But yes, in angles, you will have that blue sky reflect.

 

[Butch Cassidy]

Here's a different look. But yes, in angles, you will have that blue sky reflect.

That looks great. I’ve got one on order.

 

[Hooper]

First car wash since ppf and ceramic pro.

Chemical guys suds ceramic +Optimum no rinse as water softener in both wash and rinse 2 buckets. Finished with Opticoat Hyperseal.

Tires finished with chemical guys PVR.

Car is resting under shade from noon sun.

That shine is amazing!

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[Jaggrey]

It really is! Wow. Makes me want to do more to my car aside from just washing it I do use Optimum No Rinse to wash it with the two bucket method.

 

[Socal949]

Recently added aftermarket running boards. Couldn’t be happier at the fraction of the price of OEM. I would highly recommend. Less than $250 shipped through Amazon. Self install

 

[Djames210]

What brand running boards, and how difficult was the install process?

 

[Socal949]

What brand running boards, and how difficult was the install process?

Here is a screen shot of the ones I bought. As for the install I took my time and read the instructions multiple times and researched on the forum for guidance. I did find another thread which helped me get started. Difficulty from a 1-10. I would give it a 5. Just need some basic tools. The only thing left for me is to measure and trim the bottom piece I had to take out at the beginning.

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[Djames210]

Well done. You were brave for cutting it to fit!

 

[RogersMJ]

Here's some quick snaps I grabbed after taking delivery of our rare GG/Dune combo. I'll be doing paint correction and ceramic coating this weekend.

Really loving the GG paint, has a nice flake in the sunlight. With Nightfall it looks kind of menacing but isn't just all black.

 

[Djames210]

Here's some quick snaps I grabbed after taking delivery of our rare GG/Dune combo. I'll be doing paint correction and ceramic coating this weekend.

Really loving the GG paint, has a nice flake in the sunlight. With Nightfall it looks kind of menacing but isn't just all black.

I’ll bet that Dune interior would look fantastic with Glacial White Pearl. I ordered a Gray interior since that’s what I got to see in person. I have yet to see Dune in person.

 

[RogersMJ]

I’ll bet that Dune interior would look fantastic with Glacial White Pearl. I ordered a Gray interior since that’s what I got to see in person. I have yet to see Dune in person.

I like the gray but since it's so very light, we decided the Dune would be a bit better at hiding dirt from the kiddos. If it was my car (not my wife's) and didn't have the kids in it much, I'd go for gray.

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[RogersMJ]

Our new GG after a 5+ hour session of clay bar, light polish, and two coats of Cquartz UK 3.0 ceramic coating.

I’ve done my own paint correction and ceramic on many new cars now and the Telluride had the best factory paint I’ve yet seen. It requires very little correction and there was almost nothing for the clay bar to pick up.

 

[Jurassic3k]

Our new GG after a 5+ hour session of clay bar, light polish, and two coats of Cquartz UK 3.0 ceramic coating.

I’ve done my own paint correction and ceramic on many new cars now and the Telluride had the best factory paint I’ve yet seen. It requires very little correction and there was almost nothing for the clay bar to pick up.

Can't believe you had to do any paint correction....I'll have to keep that in mind when I get mine. Planning on front film and ceramic coating.

 

[Djames210]

Our new GG after a 5+ hour session of clay bar, light polish, and two coats of Cquartz UK 3.0 ceramic coating.

I’ve done my own paint correction and ceramic on many new cars now and the Telluride had the best factory paint I’ve yet seen. It requires very little correction and there was almost nothing for the clay bar to pick up.

Does the ceramic coating take the place of wax? How will it hold up vs wax?

 

[Johndoe]

Does the ceramic coating take the place of wax? How will it hold up vs wax?

Car Wax vs Ceramic Coating - Which One is Best?

When you invest in a new car, truck, or SUV, you want to keep it looking sweet – right? Truthfully, we do – in fact, according to the IBISWorld Industry Report, the automotive paint protection, and car wash market, just in the USA, involved the spending of $10.2 BILLION by vehicle owners in 2016...

avalonking.com

Again opinions will vary on benefits VS cost vs time vs ease.

You will also have people who will put wax on ceramic coat... At that point I would say just forget the ceramic coat.

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[RogersMJ]

Can't believe you had to do any paint correction....I'll have to keep that in mind when I get mine. Planning on front film and ceramic coating.

Honestly I could have gotten away without it. Most people would never, ever have noticed. The paint was excellent.

Does the ceramic coating take the place of wax? How will it hold up vs wax?

Ceramic is different than wax. It's primarily about protection and making it easy to clean. A properly ceramic'd car will be super easy to clean -- virtually zero scrubbing required. I have ceramic on my BMW, and I can blast through the countryside at night collecting bugs, and the next day with a gentle swipe of a soapy cloth they all come off. No scrubbing. This also naturally means that stuff sticks to the car less easily in the first place, so the car will say looking cleaner longer as compared to a car without ceramic. The ceramic also protects the paint from etching by highly acidic things like certain tree sap, bird doo-doo, or bug guts.

Wax protects too...but not nearly as long. Ceramic will last 1-2 years (I coated my BMW over 2 years ago and it's just now starting to show signs of needing another coat) with the occasional supplement of a spray-on "reload".

Ceramic by itself looks nice but not quite as nice or "wet" as a caranuba wax. Once the car is coated, I usually finish my regular cleanings with a spray-on caranuba based wax as a drying aid, to add a bit more gloss.

 

[Djames210]

Honestly I could have gotten away without it. Most people would never, ever have noticed. The paint was excellent.


Ceramic is different than wax. It's primarily about protection and making it easy to clean. A properly ceramic'd car will be super easy to clean -- virtually zero scrubbing required. I have ceramic on my BMW, and I can blast through the countryside at night collecting bugs, and the next day with a gentle swipe of a soapy cloth they all come off. No scrubbing. This also naturally means that stuff sticks to the car less easily in the first place, so the car will say looking cleaner longer as compared to a car without ceramic. The ceramic also protects the paint from etching by highly acidic things like certain tree sap, bird doo-doo, or bug guts.

Wax protects too...but not nearly as long. Ceramic will last 1-2 years (I coated my BMW over 2 years ago and it's just now starting to show signs of needing another coat) with the occasional supplement of a spray-on "reload".

Ceramic by itself looks nice but not quite as nice or "wet" as a caranuba wax. Once the car is coated, I usually finish my regular cleanings with a spray-on caranuba based wax as a drying aid, to add a bit more gloss.

Thanks for the info. It sounds like if you have the time and money, ceramic pays longer-term dividends. The article makes it sound like applying ceramic requires expertise. Is it actually more difficult to apply than wax?

 

[RogersMJ]

Thanks for the info. It sounds like if you have the time and money, ceramic pays longer-term dividends. The article makes it sound like applying ceramic requires expertise. Is it actually more difficult to apply than wax?

Yes, it is more difficult than most waxes. It's very time sensitive -- you have to do a small piece, wait for it to flash, and then immediately (and thoroughly) buff it off. You must do this in extremely good lighting, and check many angles, because if you don't buff it completely, you'll have streaks or rainbowing visible after it fully cures, which can be basically impossible to fix unless you polish off the ceramic in that area and do it over again. Even though I've done this several times, I still usually wind up with one or two small spots where I didn't fully buff off the ceramic and in certain light you see a bit of splotchiness or rainbowing. I've gotten good enough that these areas are tiny though and literally no one sees them but me, I'm just a perfectionist.

 

[RogersMJ]

Thanks for the info. It sounds like if you have the time and money, ceramic pays longer-term dividends. The article makes it sound like applying ceramic requires expertise. Is it actually more difficult to apply than wax?

And just to reinforce the point about how good ceramic is...here’s a pic of the car this morning after driving around all day yesterday in nasty rainy conditions. It hasn’t been cleaned. Except for a bit of splatter on the black plastic bits you can barely tell it’s dirty.