Difference between Teflon and Ceramic Coating

The first time your new car arrives from the dealership, a big part of its appeal is its shiny coat of paint. While other vehicles on the road seem dirty and drab, your new car outshines them all.

Unfortunately, your vehicle does not remain in this stellar condition for long. Eventually, it starts picking up dust, or the paint undergoes scratches.

Around a year of buying the car, it loses almost all of its aesthetic beauty. These signs of wear and tear remain even if you clean the vehicle regularly.

At such a time, you have two options to consider, you can either reclaim its lost beauty through a Teflon coating or a ceramic coating.

However, understanding the difference between Teflon coating and ceramic coating is crucial as a car owner, to determine which one you need for your vehicle.

Let’s start with Teflon coating first!

Teflon is the brand name for a chemical coating, whose real name is polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE. Besides automobiles, this type of coating is also common in certain types of kitchen utensils. 

1. Process of Teflon Coating Application on Your Car

Before we can proceed to the difference between ceramic coating and Teflon coating, you must first understand how this Teflon is applied to your vehicle.

The procedure starts with a thorough cleaning of the car to remove all dust particles from its body. After it has been washed properly, a technician will then wipe off the water and dry the entire vehicle.

Teflon is applied on the car body in a lubricated state and left to dry. Around 20 minutes later, when this coating has set, a buffing machine is used to remove the excess Teflon coating and leave your vehicle with a glossy finish.

Apart from bringing out the shine, this buffing process can also remove any pre-existing scratches on the surface of your car.

However, buffing does take some time to finish, which is why you may need to wait an additional 30 minutes 

2. Advantages of Teflon Coating on Your Vehicle

Teflon coating comes with several aesthetic and utilitarian advantages for your vehicle. These are as follows:

• If you love the shiny look on new cars, you would want to get a Teflon coating on your vehicle. It brings that same kind of glossy look back even on aged cars.
• The coating prevents fresh scratches from developing on this vehicle’s body.
• Also, previous scratches will disappear during the buffing process of Teflon coating application.
• After undergoing Teflon coating, you would need to bring the car to the garage frequently. Thus, this follow-up procedure ensures increased durability of your vehicle’s paint.
• Teflon coating prevents the vehicle from scratches and makes the surface of it hydrophobic.

Still, this procedure does have some drawbacks as well. As a car owner, you must be aware of these shortcomings too.

3. Disadvantages of Teflon Coating on Your Car

Even though Teflon coating gives your car a brand new look, you must consider the following aspects before undertaking such a process:

• Teflon coating is not a one-time procedure. To ensure long-term gloss and shine, you would need to apply a fresh coat every few months. For most regular commuters, three fresh Teflon coatings a year are necessary to maintain this scratch-free and shiny look.
• While a single session is affordable, recurring Teflon coating processes in a year can burn a hole in your pocket. At such a stage, financing these sessions can become challenging for most owners.
• If you are not vigilant, some garages will wax the car or polish it, instead of applying the actual Teflon coating. These alternatives make the vehicle look just as glossy as the coating does, but they wear off in just a few days.
• Though Teflon coating is cost-effective. However, frequent application of Teflon coating adds to the expenses in the long run.

Now that you know all about this Teflon coating process, you should also assess what the ceramic coating involves. This can help you understand the difference between Teflon and ceramic coating.

Ceramic refers to any non-metallic material, which is first shaped and then hardened through firing. Such ceramic tends to possess corrosion-resistant properties.

If you are wondering whether a ceramic coating on your vehicle is the best option, here is what you should know:

1. Procedure for Ceramic Coating

The car is pre-washed to remove all dirt, dust and any other foreign material. Next, it is washed once again with a soap water solution.

After thorough washing is complete, this vehicle is rinsed properly. After this, the ceramic solution is applied all over the vehicle’s body.

This solution is kept on for some time, before being rinsed off. With a buffing machine, technicians will start working on your car.

After buffing is complete, a polishing compound is applied on the metallic outer body and polished using an appropriate machine. The last part of this procedure involves wiping off your car for the final time. 

2. Ceramic Coating Pros

Ceramic coating is considered a valid alternative to Teflon coating for the following reasons:

• Protects a vehicle’s surface from basic contaminants
• It has almost no unforeseen reaction with the car’s paint coating
• Vehicles with this kind of coating are easier to clean, as dirt and dust come right off.
• Due to chemical bonding, such coatings are longer lasting.

• Ceramic coating is UV resistant. UV rays oxidizes the paint of the vehicle; however with ceramic coating the paint remains intact and make the vehicle look new for a long time.

Lastly, it boosts the overall appeal of your bike and car through its shiny and glossy finish.

3. Ceramic Coating Drawbacks

Although ceramic coating can leave your car feeling new, here are some cons of this process you should know about:

• Ceramic coating procedure is highly expensive when compared to Teflon coating. Therefore, it may not be affordable to all.
• Only qualified professionals can perform this particular coating. If the same is done by untrained technicians, the results may not be as impressive as intended originally.
• Ceramic coating is a lengthy process, which can take up to three days to complete. Therefore, you would need to make other travel arrangements for these days.
• The coating does not protect the vehicle from all sorts of scratches and requires high-maintenance.

If you are fine with these drawbacks, a ceramic coating may be the best option for you to consider.

Also, when assessing the difference between ceramic coating and Teflon coating, you should know that the exact cost depends on the size of your vehicle.

Smaller cars or bikes are more affordable to coat when compared to vehicles of bigger sizes.