How Long Does It Take to Ceramic Coat a Car?

By Mike Holland, Owner

A professional ceramic coating takes about 48 to 72 hours at our Lexington shop. That’s the honest answer to how long does ceramic coating take at Level Up Detailing in Lexington, NC, for a warrantied exterior package. An interior package takes about 24 hours, and a Wash & Coat takes about 5 to 7 hours.

Package	Time at our shop	Price by vehicle size
Wash & Coat (no warranty, lasts up to 3 years)	About 5 to 7 hours	$699 / $699 / $799
Owner’s Pride interior coating (7-year warranty)	About 24 hours	$699 / $775 / $799
3-year exterior coating	About 48 to 72 hours	$1,199 / $1,499 / $1,699
5-year exterior coating (most common choice)	About 48 to 72 hours	$1,349 / $1,649 / $1,849
7-year exterior coating	About 48 to 72 hours	$1,499 / $1,899 / $1,999
9-year self-healing exterior coating	About 48 to 72 hours	$2,099 / $2,299 / $2,599

Prices run coupe or sedan / midsize SUV or small truck / large SUV, van or truck, and match our online shop (shown for price reference only). Every warrantied exterior package includes single-stage paint correction. To set up an appointment, call or text (336) 780-7868.

If you live in Stokesdale, our shop is a bit under an hour away, so the real question isn’t just the price. It’s how long you’ll be without your car, and how many trips you’ll make. The short version: two trips, with a two-to-three-day wait in between for a full exterior package. In this blog, we’ll walk through where those hours go, the faster option, and what to expect in the first week after pickup.

Key Takeaways: How Long Ceramic Coating Takes

• Exterior package: about 48 to 72 hours at our shop, including the wash, decontamination, single-stage paint correction and the coating itself.
• Interior package: about 24 hours for the cleaning and the coating on fabric, carpet, leather, vinyl and plastic.
• Wash & Coat: about 5 to 7 hours. It’s a ceramic coating too, lasting up to 3 years, with no warranty and no paint correction.
• After pickup: you drive the car home that day. Go easy on water and washing for the first few days, and wait 7 days before the first wash.
• Plan two trips: one to drop off and one to pick up. All the work is done inside our Lexington shop.

What Happens During Those 48 to 72 Hours?

Most of the time goes into prep, not the coating itself. A warrantied exterior package at our shop starts with a careful hand wash and decontamination, then single-stage paint correction to reduce swirls and light scratches, then surface prep. Only after all that does the coating go on the paint, trim, wheel faces, and head and tail lights.

Here’s the order we follow on every warrantied exterior job:

1. Hand wash and decontamination: a careful wash, then decontamination to lift the bonded grime a normal wash leaves behind, so nothing gets trapped under the coating.
2. Single-stage paint correction: a machine polish that reduces swirls and light scratches. It’s included in every warrantied exterior package.
3. Surface prep: the corrected paint is prepped so the coating goes onto a clean surface.
4. Coating: the coating goes on the body, trim, wheel faces, and head and tail lights.
5. Pickup: we walk you through the simple aftercare when you come back for the car.

Why not rush it? A coating locks in whatever is under it, which is why we correct the paint first. If the swirls are still there when the coating goes on, they’re sealed in for years. That’s also why a real coating package isn’t a one-afternoon job.

If your paint has heavier defects, two-stage correction (a full cut and polish) is available at an additional charge. We quote it after a visual inspection, because no two cars are the same. Not sure what your paint needs? Our checklist on how to know if your car needs paint correction is a good place to start. To compare the 3, 5, 7 and 9-year options, read our guide on how to choose a ceramic coating warranty.

How Long Does an Interior Ceramic Coating Take?

About 24 hours. Our Owner’s Pride interior package starts with a full interior detail: vacuuming, shampooing and hot water extraction of fabric and carpet, hand cleaning of leather, and cleaning of the hard surfaces. Then the coating goes on the fabrics, carpet, leather, vinyl and plastic. Every interior package carries a 7-year warranty.

Interior packages are $699 for a coupe or sedan, $775 for a midsize SUV or truck, and $799 for a large SUV, van or truck. If you’d like the inside and outside done on the same visit, tell us when you call or text, and we’ll plan the drop-off around both packages.

Is There a Faster Option Than a Full Package?

Yes. Our Wash & Coat takes about 5 to 7 hours, so plan on most of a day instead of two or three. It’s a ceramic coating too, applied to the paint, the faces of the wheels, and the head and tail lights. The trade-offs: it has no warranty, and it doesn’t include polishing or paint correction.

Wash & Coat starts at $699. It lasts up to 3 years, and it fits best on paint that’s already in good shape, like a newer car or one that’s been well kept. If your paint has swirls you’d like gone, a warrantied package is the better fit, because the correction is already included. See the Wash & Coat page for what’s included, or our side-by-side on Wash & Coat vs a warrantied coating.

How Long Does Ceramic Coating Take to Cure?

A fresh coating needs a little time to fully harden, so go easy on water and washing for the first few days after pickup. We don’t give a set number of cure hours. Instead, plan your appointment around the weather, and we’ll walk you through the simple aftercare when you pick up the car.

You don’t have to leave the car parked, either. You drive it home the day you pick it up. Just skip the hose and the car wash for now. For a plain-English look at this and the other trade-offs, read what’s the downside of ceramic coating.

How Long Before You Can Wash a Car After Ceramic Coating?

Wait 7 days after the coating before the first wash. After that, hand wash with a clean mitt and a pH-neutral car soap, rinse well, and dry with clean microfiber towels. Skip brush car washes, which can leave swirl marks on any finish, coated or not. A touchless wash is the safer choice when you’re short on time.

We break down the options in can you take a ceramic coated car through a car wash. For extra care, our optional $199 Ceramic Maintenance Wash is recommended every 3 months. It’s never required for your warranty.

Planning the Drive From Stokesdale

Stokesdale sits in the northwest corner of Guilford County, where US 158, NC 68 and NC 65 cross the town. From there, our shop is about 33 miles away, a bit under an hour each way. Because the work happens inside our shop and not in your driveway, you’ll make two trips: one to drop the car off, and one to pick it up.

Here’s how to plan it:

• Exterior package: plan to be without the car for two to three days.
• Interior package: plan for about a day.
• Wash & Coat: plan for most of a day.
• Timing: we’re open Monday through Saturday, 9 AM to 6 PM, and closed Sunday. Ask about drop-off and pickup times when you call or text.

Winter is a good reason not to wait. When roads get treated, NCDOT’s brine is a mix of water and 23% salt, and a coating makes that grime easier to wash off. Here’s what a coating does and doesn’t do against road brine. Next door, our Oak Ridge ceramic coating page lists the same packages and times. If you’re closer to Summerfield, see our Summerfield car detailing page for detailing, coating and tint.

Why Choose Level Up Detailing?

• Authorized Owner’s Pride installer: 3, 5, 7 and 9-year exterior coatings, each with single-stage paint correction included, plus a 7-year interior coating.
• No shortcuts on prep: the 48 to 72 hours go into washing, correcting and prepping the paint before anything is coated.
• Indoor work: every car is done inside our shop at 275 Crystal Ridge Dr, Lexington.
• Proven local shop: 10+ years of ceramic coating experience and more than 200 customer reviews.
• Owner-run: I’m Mike Holland, and when I’m not at the shop, I fly as an emergency rescue helicopter pilot. Attention to detail is part of the job in both places.

Areas We Serve

We work with drivers from Lexington, Winston-Salem, Clemmons, Lewisville, Kernersville, High Point, Thomasville, Greensboro, Summerfield, Oak Ridge, Stokesdale and Salisbury.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts on How Long Ceramic Coating Takes

So, how long does ceramic coating take? Plan on about 48 to 72 hours for a warrantied exterior package, about 24 hours for an interior package, or about 5 to 7 hours for a Wash & Coat. Most of that time goes into prep and correction, which is what makes the finish look right and last.

Want to know how long your car would be with us? Tell us the year, make and model, and we’ll give you a straight answer. Call or text us at (336) 780-7868, or send us your info through our contact page, to set up an appointment. You’ll find us at 275 Crystal Ridge Dr, Lexington, NC 27295, open Monday through Saturday, 9 AM to 6 PM.