TL;DR -- A professional detail with the Gtechniq C1 lacquer and EXO v2 hybrid coating is worth every penny.

Some background: I recently got a new-to-me 997.1 that was in pretty decent condition... but the paint was looking a little tired, and I've been agonizing over whether to do a simple detail job, or go all out with full paint enhancement with once of those fancy coatings.

After doing tons of reading up on the usual forums (as well as the car detailing specialty forums), I decided to bite the bullet and go all out with a 2-stage paint enhancement and a ceramic coating. Either this would be the best detail ever, or a very expensive lesson in how not to spend my hard-earned money. I hope my experience can help someone out there who's in the same boat I was.

Since I'm in Los Angeles, I had a few choices of Southern California detail shops. I contacted several, got quotes, researched Yelp, and asked around for recommendations. In the end, I decided on Private Collection Auto Care (www.pcautocare.com), and it turned out to be the best decision of 2015. Daniel, the owner, came out personally to do the job with his assistant, and they did an absolutely amazing job. And they stand by their work 100% with a satisfaction guarantee... if there's anything wrong, they will fix it until you are happy. (If you give Daniel a call, tell him Allen with the Carmon Red 997 sent you! THANKS DANIEL!)

Here is the car right after they finished... all the surfaces are 100% swirl free and reflect like polished mirrors. This is something I absolutely never could have done myself, with any amount of time or product. For things like this, you gotta go with a pro.


Here's a test of the water beading up and sheeting off the car, using a low-pressure de-ionized water spray at the local coin-op car wash. Car washes are going to be a whole lot easier for the next 3 years (which is what the coating is rated for):


The water just beaded up and slid off like it was in fear for its life on the surface of the car. The dust, hand smudges, pollen, and dead bugs on the surface came right off really easily, practically with just a rinse. I'll keep tabs on the performance as time passes, but from my research it seems like this will be pretty durable.

 

Photos after applying the C1 + EXO stack: