Opinions on PPF options

[Ramsman]

My plan for next week is full nose, A pillars & leading edge of roof (I have sunroof), rockers, & full doors; my thought for the latter is to help with door ding protection. Won't prevent a dent but should help with scratches that go with the dent.

I was thinking about the A Pillars also. I have a sunroof too and thought it might be a good breaking point for the film. When I stop by the shop, I am hoping to see an example of the PPF ending mid panel. He said it's not very noticeable, but I would like to see an example. I'll ask about doing the doors too. I want to do what makes sense but need to decide where to draw the line.

 

[BW56M]

Just playing devils advocate here:

If you do get a small dent on a panel that has PPF on it, more than likely, paintless dent removal companies won't be able to repair it, without first removing the film. Not saying that this is a deal breaker, just something to consider.

 

[coffee_time]

I'm going to have to disagree with the collective here. Stay away from Xpel PPF unless you like the look of orange peel. On the car I had it on it also yellowed slightly. There are several better options out there (Legend or Prestige for example). The only reason Xpel is so popular is they have a large advertising budget, pay Google to put them at the top of searches and have no problem leveraging installers to eliminate the competition and hype their product.

I wonder if that was due to a bad install? I've only had Xpel on my car for a month or so, but there is zero orange peel on this one. On my previous CTS-V, I had front clip done and 4 years later it had zero of these issues.

I will also say that if you google (I know, I know) xpel yellowing, the incidents that pop up are 1) pretty rare, and 2) get replaced for free under warranty.

 

[coffee_time]

Just playing devils advocate here:

If you do get a small dent on a panel take has PPF on it, more than likely, paintless dent removal companies won't be able to repair it, without first removing the film. Not saying that this is a deal breaker, just something to consider.

I have first hand experience with this!

The problem is the answer is complicated. They CAN still do PDR for the most part, but you're right that it complicates the process. I had a fender ding on my 2017 CTSV and they were able to get it out. When I received the call to pick it up they said something like 'sorry we couldn't get it perfect because of the PPF' but when I picked it up I couldn't find any evidence of it. As with anything, YMMV, but I had a great experience.

 

[BW56M]

The product itself is as smooth as a newborn babies ass. It all boils down to the existence of orange peal in the finish before it was applied. If orange peel is your concern, have paint correction performed first.

 

[Ramsman]

I decided to stick with my original shop that is close to me. We checked out the shop in PA and I was a little disappointed. In emailing them they said they use STEK but when I stopped by I found that they only use STEK for non clear PPF and use Legend for their clear PPF. (Legend may be fine but I had never heard of it). I also found out that they do not wrap the edges like the local shop does.

I am scheduled to drop it off in two weeks. It is killing me not driving the car but I want to be safe until it is protected. I'll be getting the XPEL Ultimate Fusion PPF and XPEL Fusion Plus Premium ceramic coating on the non PPF areas. I'll decide how much PPF when I drop it off. I am definitely doing the Full Front (front bumper, hood, fenders, headlights and mirrors). I am seriously considering adding the rocker panels and rear bumper. I mentioned the A Pillars and they said they would include that if I do rockers and rear bumper. I'm not crazy about having a seam line on the top of the A pillars but I think it may be worth it.

 

[FoleyAMG]

Full disclosure...expensive route...

Full car stealth PPF, self healing with 10 year transferrable warranty

Roof is Black Gloss Wrap

All Carbon Fiber is Gloss PPF

Powder Coated Rims - Black Gloss

Painted Calipers - Cadillac Yellow

Everything is 5 year ceramic coated

 

[FLYARMY]

My shop did ceramic coating on my wheels also. I bring it back once a year for a going over. They charge $500 for that.

 

[so 650]

Full disclosure...expensive route...

Full car stealth PPF, self healing with 10 year transferrable warranty

Roof is Black Gloss Wrap

All Carbon Fiber is Gloss PPF

Powder Coated Rims - Black Gloss

Painted Calipers - Cadillac Yellow

Everything is 5 year ceramic coated


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Bravo! That looks very nice.

 

[Fnfast]

My local ppf company uses Uppf. They say it's more clear that Xpel. Somewhat newer to US market.

I'll let you all know in a couple weeks.

 

[Yo Nadz]

Money well spent. And they threw in a black roof color change as well as tinting all the reflectors.

 

[Neveready]

When I shopped for PPF, I went to a STEK installer who had been around for years. They said they were switching to this new PPF company because it was a superior product. Another guy that worked there said that STEK had been authorizing too many small shops with low overhead and it wasn’t profitable to compete with would be installers. They left me with the impression they didn’t want to be known as a low quality fly by night shop. I wasn’t buying into that bullshit. STEK is a great product and so is XPEL. I tried researching this new company and it was a Facebook page website with very little information. Even though I believe it’s more important to go with the best installer over the product itself, it still left me with a bad taste. Not only that, they expected me to pay STEK prices for a no name product.

I called another installer who had been around for 20 years. I talked to him about the other dealer’s new product and what they said about STEK. He explained to me that the product is their own Chinese made PPF that they get at the fraction of the cost of STEK. They warranty it themselves, it may be ok but when he tried to get a sample of it at SEMA they wouldn’t give out any or sell him a sample and they were very secretive about the specs. He said they were quite a few companies that were trying to pull this off.

i ended up going with XPEL installer that I’ve used before and he did a great job. Although, the product isn’t as resistant as some of my other cars that have had XPEL on for 5 years it works well enough.

 

[Slick Blackwings]

Full Ultimate+PPF&CERAMIC and than some

 

[ssmike]

Bravo! That looks very nice.

Agreed, I wish I had done matte finish on mine!

 

[Bulletbling]

Some of these rates seem quite high. I have a reputable installer I use (A2 Customs - Ann Arbor) and the front bumper is $600 here in SE Michigan. I understand many are doing more than just the front bumper however. Just tossing a number in here for comparison.

 

[ssmike]

Some of these rates seem quite high. I have a reputable installer I use (A2 Customs - Ann Arbor) and the front bumper is $600 here in SE Michigan. I understand many are doing more than just the front bumper however. Just tossing a number in here for comparison.

There are huge differences amongst: (1) the specs of the material, (2) the quality of the material and (3) quality of the installation. And of course, installers have their own side deals with the manufacturers to make the most money.

My "track" PPF is thicker than traditional PPF and comes with a 12 year warranty. Only the best brands can afford to offer such favorable warranty cover. I have already had an entire panel replaced due to track rock chips. etc.

 

[dizz81]

Just dropped mine off to get full PPF and tint. I was planning on only doing front but someone already tagged my lower rear bumper (literally only had the car 3 days). So that's getting fixed and I'm not going to chance some other idiot putting a mark on the car. So going full PPF instead.

Repeat customer at the shop so it's 5800$. Includes full paint correction, fixing the bumper mark, ceramic coating, tint on all windows including the windshield (clear UV protection film) and a full interior detail.

 

[FI Fiend]

Full disclosure...expensive route...

Full car stealth PPF, self healing with 10 year transferrable warranty

Roof is Black Gloss Wrap

All Carbon Fiber is Gloss PPF

Powder Coated Rims - Black Gloss

Painted Calipers - Cadillac Yellow

Everything is 5 year ceramic coated


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Looks great man. Which rims did you have to start? And how much did they charge to do the gloss black?

 

[Bulletbling]

There are huge differences amongst: (1) the specs of the material, (2) the quality of the material and (3) quality of the installation. And of course, installers have their own side deals with the manufacturers to make the most money.

My "track" PPF is thicker than traditional PPF and comes with a 12 year warranty. Only the best brands can afford to offer such favorable warranty cover. I have already had an entire panel replaced due to track rock chips. etc.

Fair enough. My shop (A2 Customs) provides a lifetime warranty on their ppf and I just had my front bumper done. They did a perfect job. It's the first time I've had a PPF applied, but for the blackwing, it's well worth it for $600. My last few car's bumpers got quite nicked up. Apparently it has ceramic "built in" but may be just marketing.

 

[FoleyAMG]

Looks great man. Which rims did you have to start? And how much did they charge to do the gloss black?

They charged me $800 to powder coat to gloss black and then the shop threw in a 3 year ceramic coat since I had the entire car PPF with the ceramic coat. My car is one of the Elevation Edition and the rims were Satin Graphite finish