Interesting topic I have been wondering about myself. There is so much hype about ceramic sealants it certainly begs the question.
I have not yet seen any boat manufacturer endorse it, so that always leaves me concerned about any impact to the warranty should you then have any problem with the fiberglass such as blistering or such. Who will blame who???
I cannot speak to boats/fiberglass, but having worked in the automotive industry for many years, I can say with 100% confidence most such products were huge profit items for the dealer and were pushed hard on older buyers and woman and anyone deemed an easy sell, and were virtually 100% snake oil. Not saying they did nothing, but they were not even close to the hype the customers were told.
In my most recent experience, I bought a 2 1/2 year old Dodge Challenger with X-Brand sealant and a its fancy forever warranty that had pages of purported benefits, and at that 2 1/2 year mark, I saw no difference than any other car in the parking lot. if there was a benefit to the original buyer, it was short lived. The original buyer bought everything the dealer sold, tire and rim insurance, a full maintenance plan, he had the dealer add a MOPAR cold air kit & performance exhaust - the works. The out the door price was over $45K, and 2 1/2 years later and only 13K miles he had just upgraded to summer only performance tires and then sold it for less than 1/2 of what he paid for it.
The dealer saw him coming and hit him hard!
In my experience (on cars) the only thing less valuable than paint and interior treatments was the engine additives, pure fantasy. No value whatsoever.
That all said, cars are coated in paint not fiberglass and gelcoat, and they are different! And with few exceptions, boats are not painted.
So if I were seriously considering such a treatment, I would thoroughly research the products. Does the boat manufacturer endorse it, will it have any potential impact to the warranty. How long has the ceramic company been in business, how long has the installer been using the product, what is the cost of a do-it-yourself version (short version how much is the dealer making on you) ETC, Etc, etc,,,
Again not saying it does nothing, but I am hesitant to hear from other owners who say I spent $2K plus and love it, what else are they going to say, I got screwed over,,, In the end how much better is this than a top-shelf wax? Thousands of dollars better? That would have to be a whole bunch better for me.
Wishing you the best, hoping you make the right choice for you, and regardless of what you do, look forward to seeing pictures and hearing about your experience with the new boat!
ATB
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