If the car is prepped correctly, a ceramic coating will look great and protect the paint for a long time. I was at a national car show about 6 years ago and watched a professional detailing team do an amazing job of paint correction followed by ceramic coating. The cars looked fantastic. I made a deal with the detailers to do a paint correction and ceramic coating on my 2010 Phantom drophead. The key according to the head detailer was to get the paint correction perfect so that there are no scratches or swirls. He was so confident in his work he told me he would take $100 of the job for every swirl I could find when the job was done. I thought to myself, he doesn't know how anal I am; he is going to end up owing me money. The Phantom is a big car, 221" long and 78" wide.
I ended up paying him the full amount. A ceramic treatment will usually last 2-5 years depending on the car's environment, use, etc. I am in the 6th year, bugs and tar come off easily, water still beads well off the paint and the car still looks fantastic. Of course, if I had done it myself, I doubt that I could do the same quality of work with so little experience.
Larry
Larry Durocher
1956 Mark II C5601429
1962 RR Silver Cloud II drophead
2006 Ford F150
2010 RR Phantom drophead
2013 Bentley GTC
2015 Lincoln MKT