Is PPF A Scam? (Paint Protection Film Discussed)
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- Опубликовано: 29 июн 2024
- It's everywhere online isn't it? People seem to be buying super expensive, nice cars and before they've even driven them they're shipped off to be detailed and PPF'd... but is it actually worth it?
I'm not so sure, so here's an open ended rant and my invitation for you to tell me if I'm wrong about it...
#PPF #Rant #waffle
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I have a Tesla model 3 which is truly the nicest car I've ever had by a wide margin. Buying such an expensive car for my budget made me feel like I needed PPF because it was the first time I'd ever had a "nice" vehicle. Because I was already stretched at spending almost $60k for my car, I opted to get the full front version of the PPF, not the entire car done. The full-front option was $2k which was still expensive, but much cheaper than $5k-$6k for the entire vehicle. I also did ceramic over the entire car (and over the part that had the PPF done).
It has been almost 1 year and I think the PPF has protected my car, but I don't think I would do it again. I just think that the price paid is not worth it. Having said that, I would probably have ceramic done because I think it makes cleaning so much easier. But I would skip the PPF and just get a good body shop that can do paintless dent removal or touch up if and when the inevitable dings come.
I think the $2k that I spent on PPF would have been better spent going towards a good detail shop that could do full details. Now that the car is 1 year old I still love it, but it's lost the novelty appeal a bit and I wish I had the $2k back in my pocket. We all live and learn and hopefully some people can learn from my experience. If you have unlimited funds, maybe the way to go is just PPF the entire vehicle and do ceramic on it. But if you are stretching a bit, I think the thing to do is ceramic, and even that is not necessary if you are regular on waxes/sealants.
I have a Model S with full PPF and totally agree with you. I am not doing it again.
Tesla has the softest paint in the market. I would not own that expensive of a car and not protect it.
@@minyoungan9515 just think tho, in five years you can remove the film and have paint that looks like it did the day you bought the car. That's where the real value comes in. Then again in five years you'll probably be buying a new car anyway so I see your point.
@@thewholeeventhorizon Just not true, PPF isn't perfect. There will 100% still be marks and dents through the PPF.
Mate this is the sort of review I have scoured the internet over I’m so so grateful you shared this view. I’ve just got an i3s and have the same exact thoughts. Because of the carbon bits I am a bit nervous about repairs etc but not sure 2500 pounds is worth it. Definitely will ceramics as I don’t wash the car often enough but I think but I’m starting to realise maybe PPF isn’t snake oil Thanks again. You saved me 2g!!
Great video James, good to see a RUclipsr bucking the current PPF trend and actually questioning the worth. Keep up the great content
Thanks for the discussion. I think that the assumption we make in applying PPF is that we will not have large impact stones or debris damage. Most of the damage we're trying to mitigate is the small stone damage that leaves less than 2mm "ding". I had 3M film applied to the front bumper and first half of my 2005 A4 and that area was perfect when I removed the coating this year.
Another great article! I have to say before going further, when it comes to my cars I am OCD. I’ve just succumbed to the PPF and ceramic coating for my Cayman, which I intend to put more mileage on and keep for a good few years. My daily which I’ve had from new has done 35k in 2 years up and down motorways and the front looks shocking. Every time I wash it (average every 2 weeks) I’m having to touch in stone chips. It looks plain ugly. Modern day paint is very soft.
I get the argument about respraying the front - but from my experience it’s never the same and I can spot it a mile away.
I hope I don’t regret it, but time will tell.
Keep up the good work on your channel!
I have my 911 Turbo S completely covered in paint protection film. I feel it is a worthy investment to protect the finish not only from chips but from swirl marks ( from careless washing)and even light scratches. That said it is not a force field. There are still some little marks from rocks that Have hit the car. My feeling is, that most of the damage has been absorbed by the paint protection film. At some point I may choose to recover that section. One thing that you did not talk about is if you have a car repainted often that will reduce the value of the car especially if it’s a high-end car.
Polish and compound the whole car. For 5000 euros 10 times for 10000 20 times. showroom ready. The ppf is clear wrap and overhyped..
@@Justbelievein what about door dings and chips? Those can’t be compound and polished .
my new 992 C4S its also fully wrapped in the latest Suntek and has a graphine coating on top to boot!
@@smellyhoney film won't protect you from door dings
@@Justbelievein how much topcoat do you think cars come with?
I was on the fence too. Bought a new car, got 6 rocks chips in the first week. :(
Took car in for a ppf quote, $600 for just partial front. Full front was $1000. I ended up buying a precut kit off eBay and doing it myself for $250. Some protection in my opinion is better than nothing. Plus it still looks good from 2 ft away.
I also drive freeways 95% of the time and rack on around 30k miles a year. So in my case, it’s worth getting a cheap ppf to reduce some of the damage.
Just did mine and I'd agree...it's the 2 foot rule. Up close I'd rather have bare paint with coating. It just doesn't look good or as good as just leaving the paint alone. Having second thoughts now but I'll leave it 'til the end of the year and decide.
I've installed ppf film for twelve years and Ive never seen an oem sprayed car have paint failure upon removal.
There are so many factors involved with ppf: installer skill, film quality, prep job, customer care quality, how old is the film, was it driven on dirt and environmental conditions. Any one of those issues can cause myriad of problems upon removal, so there's not just one problem area and in a perfect world a quality film on quality paint installed competently will come off perfectly clean every time. In my experience this is often the case.
I stress to my customers that ppf isn't a beautification product and it may look not pristine, especially if it's not cared for properly. It's a protective product and it best protects small chips but works best for the general sandblasting of the front of cars and trucks.
Now I live in a mountainous area where it's basically dirt road for nine months, and many customers live on dirt roads, so it's not the same conditions as say Miami. I routinely get brand new cars trashed in a few months under these conditions, so any protection is better than none. For my customers, they understand this is the best case of a bad situation. I don't care what's said, today's paint is super soft not to mention overall price of new cars and trucks has skyrocketed.
In my area you will be respraying that brand new painted bumper or flairs with out protection, and respray work in my experience seems to be even softer.
My customers do rarely get damaged hood film, but what I offer is a basic/cheap reinstallation and paint chip repair if applicable on newly installed film. I also prorate that over time and my customers seem to really enjoy a brake after taking a hit. I understand that spending this kind of cash only to get hit a day later is frustrating.
Sure it's not perfect, sure it's expensive, but I have hundreds of repeat customers that swear by its use over twelve years in business and around here it works well. Just have to stress the reality of the film up front, like anything in life. Interesting video.
Great post👍
Had it done to my Elise from new, front end only, after 10K miles it’s was very tatty looking. It was removed and it took all the stone chipped paint with it, leaving the front the same as it would have, it it wasn’t covered. The reason it came off was to repair a crack from some one reversing into me, and then drove off. I got it repaired and painted at a Lotus dealer, cheaper than the PPF cost. So I would never recommend it, or have it again.
Really good topic James, it mirrors my feeling exactly after giving this subject much consideration over the last 6 weeks or so. I have recently purchased a 997 Gen' 1 Turbo Cabriolet in Speed Yellow in exceptionally nice condition. The previous owner had spent (I have the invoice) in excess of £5k for a top detailing service and ceramic coating. Initially I thought that it would perhaps be wise to get PPF, certainly on all leading surfaces which would have cost circa £3.4k, for the whole car it would have been £4,6k. You are correct, that is an awful lot of money, and for what exactly? To put this into context, I have now owned 17 Porsche over the last 35 years. I did have the first generation of PPF done on the front of my 930 back in the later 90s. Yes, you are correct, on the way back to the North East of England from London where it was installed, I got hit by a stone and it penetrated the PPF and damaged the paint. Water found its way behind the borders of the damage along with road dirt. All I could see from then on was that ugly scarred area; such a shame! I have now decided, as you did, not to have the PPF installed. It's a great idea, but in reality I do not believe it to be "value for money".
When i bought my evora, the bumper was badly stonechipped. Managed to get it resprayed for £200.00, at the time i considered ppf but at 1000.00 it was very expensive, i could get that bumper resprayed plenty of times for less money. The bumper looks fantastic and the paint has held up great. I have a black pack style wrap on the evora, looks much better with the black pack however it is a vinyl wrap and is now stained and tatty. Considering getting it wrapped again but at around 1000.00 it seems expensive when i was quoted 600.00 to have those areas sprayed black.
PPF is great if you have an expensive Flip Flop metalic paint that is difficult to blend and expensive to buy. But if your car is a typical easy to match colour then you are throwing money away. Paint shops can do a fantastic job that is as good as new for reasonable money.
Have you been mis-sold PPF?
🤣🤣
🤣😂
Not a good ROI
🤣🤣🤣
Pretty much every concern raised in this is relating to old ppf products. It’s only really in the last 5 years that films have existed that offer the durability and visual stability that mean its invisible. You’re comparing poorly applied old OEM products to new professionally applied products. Literally no modern ppf will take paint or lacquer off if it’s removed correctly with heat and care.
Honestly, after 3 years and 25,000 miles the ppf is still invisible on the front of my car.
If you literally don’t care about paint, then ppf really isn’t for you. If you care about detailing and paint condition, and enjoy piece of mind, then it’s great. It actually means I enjoy my car more than I would if it wasn’t wrapped
Totally agree.
Good detailing and a ceramic coating for me, ppf has its use - a track car would benefit from it.
Mine does have some ppf on it from previous owner, isn’t great - discoloured, not smooth and tricky to clean
Very interesting topic. I have always thought that due to the high cost of PPF it was the exclusive preserve of Supercars only.
Only questions that matter. does it add 5k to the resale Price? Do I plan on keeping it for more than 10 years? If no then not worth it.
The paint is there to protect the metal.
The lacquer is there is protect the paint.
The PPF is there to protect the lacquer.
I see a gap in the market for a product to protect the PPF.
Ceramic coating protects the PPF
@@zombanator3000 So what is protecting the ceramic coating?
@@whynot1because2 wax
My gun
@@zombanator3000 Whats protecting the wax?
I had it installed on my Focus RS but after about a year it stated to bubble and the dealer would not fix it ever though it still had a warranty. I had to remove it myself, I was lucky it didn't damage the paint. To say I was an unsatisfied customer would be an understatement.
damn bro how much did you pay back then? i know its been 3 yrs but im interested in getting ppf in my 23 gr 86
No disrespect but why would you do PPF in such a cheap car? I hope your interior is as clean as you strive with outside. PPF outside will not give you more money when reselling your car but nicely kept interior will.
Jay raises many valid points. It depends upon the car, how used, how long kept, the value of your time in maintaining without ppf, etc. I sometimes get xpel ultimate but usually only have it put on the the front in a minimalist manner since that area gets the most damage. In one case it saved me from getting a repaint on the front fascia to to an unusual small collision/scrape, and in another case a neighbors cats claws dug into the xpel (which self healed perfectly) allowing the cat to climb on the hood (bonnet) where it left a minor scratch that mostly buffed out on the unprotected (non ppf) area of the hood. Had the ppf not been there I do not think the cat would have made it up the slick sloped surface.
I just bought a new 2020 Mustang Bullitt and am trying to decide if I should wrap it in 3M's top line PPF or just stick with the ceramic coat that it came with... since it's brand new and like a mirror finish-wise, the pre-wrap prep work would be super easy. I'm told that you need to ceramic coat the PPF as well...
Had the bonnet of my Merc 190E done. Big flat panel and very prone to small stone chips. £200 well spent and 2 years in still as new (40K miles).
I think people do it to protect resale values, especially on ultra high end cars.
Great vid. My Elise has it on the front clam and it’s a nightmare to clean! Would I do it again? Nope. Ceramic coat and don’t drive too close to the person in front! 😂
It’s because there was no Ceramic on the PPF on your Elise. I had an Elise with the same issue. You need Ceramic on top of the PPF. Ceramic alone will do nothing to protect from stone chips. Your car front end will look like sh!t after a year. I made that mistake on my next car after the Elise, and it was a big mistake.
Personal experience: Purchased a brand new car, ruined the hood in the 1st year from stone chips from daily driving on the HWY. Had to repaint the hood, and installed PPF. Drove the car for 9 more years and even tho some of the PPF still got damaged in that time, the damage was not noticeable from a far, and looked far better than 1 year of not having it in the first place. Got a new car this year, made sure to wrap my hood, bumper, mirrors and fenders before I took it on the HWY. Expansive yes, but well worth it if you drive on the HWY as much as I do, not really needed for city driving.
Totally agree. The car looks better every day of it's life while the PPF is on there, and it's easier to take care of than paint.
My mind is made up. Buy car, drive it, enjoy it, polish/protect it regularly (enjoy that), wear the odd stone chop with pride🤘🤘
i bought protex ppf for my porsche boxster, got the whole car done here for about 5k canadian in 2016, i love it for the ease of cleaning, can clean it with a dirty rag and not worry about the swirls or minor scratches
Porsche paint is also notoriously soft, chips just from looking at it.
dekster14LP old wives tale.
@@fishtherapy100 Own experiences (certainly compared to BMW paint) and other peoples tell different. On the contrary, paint finish of a Porsche tends to be nicer than other cars. I think it's a trade-off.
I have a paint protection layer on most parts of my mountain bike. I have generally found it to be pretty good so far. The paint on the bike that hasn't been covered is less reflective than it used to be, since its forever getting covered in gritty British mud, which when washed off, can be like taking sand paper to the paint. Whereas the protection layer that I have used seems to be holding up so far. The downtube (the tube between the pedals and handlebars) gets stones etc flicked up at it by the front tyre, and it doesn't have any visible markings on it either. Its also prevented the paint being worn off in areas that get rubbed by cables.
I didn't even use a branded product, half of it was helitape from ebay. Supposedly its 360micron polyurethane, but I haven't verified that claim. I wouldn't want to be applying it to a car though, because it wasn't stretchy, so must be a different type of plastic. The film is visible at the edges because its quite thick, but it seems to be doing a really great job. I just wish I had put it on the areas that have been chipped :p
So my guess is that it really depends on what product you are using and why. If you take your car along muddy and gritty tracks frequently, it might be a good purchase. If there is a bit of the car that you are afraid of scuffing, it might help a lot there too. Perhaps if you are planning on keeping a car for 20 years, and want to keep it 100% original, it might make sense.
If it is flexible enough to mold and stretch to really complex geometry, is it really gonna stop a stone travelling at >40mph? I'm not convinced.
Two of my coworkers had PPF front protection added to their new, black Tesla Model 3s. I bought a white Model 3 and have elected to not do PPF for many of the reasons you describe. Additionally, white should show less of the fine scratches that the PPF and its self-healing properties would help protect from. I did buy PPF bits to put over the headlights, foglights and on top of the rear bumper where putting things in and out of the trunk has often resulted in scratches despite of how careful I try to be with loading and unloading.
Have PPF for last 8 years on my GTI.
Front end looks perfect compare to my previous car that didn't. Car is black so it isn't so noticeable. I would do it again for sure.
Agree with you. For the cost of the PPF you can get a decent respray. Doesn’t make sense and the PPF doesn’t last that long and shows scratches too - it’s not a magic tool.
Great content James & good Q's to ask. My 125k mile ST is peppered with stone chips. However stand a few feet back & you can't see them, and it's still a hoot to drive!
you have made the most sensible video in this topic....i was confused about PPF-ing my motorcycle that i have just bought....i don't think i wanna do any PPF on it any more...thanks for the clarity...
Worth it imo, especially on something like a new lotus, only really necessary on the front, sills and rear guards though
Really proper original car stuff. Keep em coming!
Good point I just had three stone chips on my 997 repaired £295 I only do 4000 miles a year in this car so I just have it detailed and good quality wax
Not a fan of PPF myself. I had a full two day detail (996 C2) with an application of a high end Zymol glaze applied by Gurcharn at Elite Detailing and the car kept mint for two years, covered 40k miles & lived outside.
Glad that someone talked about PPF. I think on many cars if not most, the cost benefit ratio makes it a bad choice. That being said, one of my three cars is a 2015 ALFA Romeo 4C bought new. I had PPF on the entire front of the car from the windshield forward,front bumper, and both front fenders. Italian and German paint tends to be softer than American cars and more prone to chips. Also....any car as low as the 4C, and with all that surface area will get lots of sand blasting....even if you don't tail gate cars....and of course if you track your car it will get LOTS of sand blasting. After 4 years the parts covered with the PPF are pristine. The PPF was done soon as I bought it. I used Suntek Ultra and it ran $1200. I know that with my soft paint, if it weren't for the PPF, my car would look like a kid with acne by now. But as well as it worked for the 4C, I saw no financial benefit for my other two cars....a full size Ford Transit van and GMC Acadia Denali other than a couple of pieces I did myself. I put PPF on the door sills of all my cars to protect against shoe scuffs. I also did the sills and inner carbon fiber of the 4C.....flat panels are easy to do yourself but NOT compound curves.
As far as Ceramic coatings.....I consider those snake oil.....just do a good occasional wax job. Unlike the name implies....Ceramic is not ultra hard finish and YES it will chip just as easily as non coated surface. Also....if you ever get a chip you have to polish off the Ceramic coating to get the touchup paint to stick correctly. Also NEVER Ceramic coat and than plan on putting PPF over it.....it won't stick correctly. You need to do PPF first and than Ceramic coat over that....which I don't recommend.
Thanks for the great video. Getting decolorized and the potential to damage the paint is my biggest worry, as I see how the xpel store owner's Subaru looks, comparing to my same year cars. Maybe she got a better paint remains underneath, but like you said, it looks like dirt embedded into the film that cannot be washed clean. Plus the cost is just way too high, especially when I have bought 6 years paint protection from the dealer already. Guess I'll just do the window tint tho.
The issue with PPF is the cost to 'prevent' any damage from happening is actually more than the cost to fix the damage should it occur
With a slight difference. With ppf most of the damage heals while u wait to repaint on the other hand
@@ajalbani any rock chip will put a blemish in your ppf film
I see PPF a bit like wrapping a new sofa with plastic covers, or putting a bulky case on a new phone .. basically not enjoying the feel of something well made/finished, and preserving it for the next person to enjoy. I like the look and feel of paint, it's part of the appeal of enjoying owning a nice car. Enjoy it, and if it ain't broke .... (or if it chips, fix it).
That said, some of the aero on Shmee's Senna and Ford GT on the lower areas looked very vulnerable, especially being carbon fibre and costing a bomb to replace. It has its place i guess.
I disagree. PPF is virtually invisible and does not in any way affect the look of the vehicle. Sofa covers, phone cover affect the tactile experience of the object. I am not holding or sitting on the front of my car.
I agree PPF your new car for sure, u might want to look at your 1 year old car highway driven n trust me while washing it will turn u off, purchased yes / leased no
Had PPF on my Boxster S, never again. You still get stone marks etc and I had a couple of punctures to the front bumper which looked very unsightly. Now have an Elise R and I'm not having it fitted just Gtechniq ceramic coating. Saved me a fortune.
Makes sense. Raises many valid points. Best not show this to MrJWW who just invested in a massive PPF workshop 😂
Hi James is you know I had ppf taken off the front clam was warned it could damaged the paint but luckily it did not personally I don't think I would get anymore done on any car unless it was already on there. As people say if tracked them I would advise
I was annoyed with my 20 year old Elise having lots of little impacts on the front bonnet. For the Evora, I did not like PPF as this shows too much, I got tempted in covering the front in PPS instead. Does not show any edge so it will be interesting to see how it goes.
What is the cure time for a new vehicle or resprayed vehicle before application of PPF?
I was fed up with all the stone chips I got on my cars. My Megane RS is PPF´d (Body fence) and 2 years on I´m very happy.
Front bumper, head lights, mirror caps, wheel arch extensions, sills and the bit of the rear bumper where you get stone chips from the rear tires. The cost was ~ £600 at Sonax Center.
Interesting insight! I am now curious what you think about the ceramic coatings that are also flying around.
My mate gave me some for my car when I bought it, the passenger door has a scuff mark that won't clean off. I put the ceramic coating over the entire paint work. Is it different to ppf? I assumed they were the same.
Ceramic coating is for ease of maintenance. Just a fancier wax!
Really impressed with the ceramic coating on my car in terms of shine and staying clean longer. Applied it myself, but not sure I would pay the large sum of cash to have someone else do it.
I think I'm more inclined to give the "ceramic coating" another try before I go with PPF on a car. My Lotus has factory PPF still on the rockers and they never get fully cleaned as you talk about. Additionally, on a previous car I was getting ceramic coated, the PPF had to come off and it took a bit of the clear coat with it. When discussing my options, the installer said that if I get the panel resprayed, I would want to the paint enough time to fully cure before I did anything to it - PPF or ceramic again - so I wonder about the "just took delivery of my supercar - and right to PPF it goes!" what will happen when it's time to refresh or replace some of the PPF, how did the paint and/or clear coat hold up to the removal.
I know the RUclipsrs you're on about.
If you're like Shmee, have very expensive cars with custom paint jobs and you intend on using them properly then it makes sense to get PPF. The benefits of it have been shown. PPF has limited damage caused by stones, it prevents against keying, prevents the paint getting swirls & marks when being washed & helps against minor scrapes.
I have a wrapped car and that's held up very well. I've only had 1 chip in 2 years due to a massive stone that went through the wrap & down to bare metal.
Ultimately I think everything is relative, if you have a new £250k+ car full PPF & full detail is pocket money to the owners.
There are numerous videos showing the difference what a proper paint correction from high end PPF installers can make to a brand new car, no car has perfect paint from the factory.
Done the front bumper and mirrors to my 911, you can see the difference between panels that are not covered and over time you get peels and needs a full detail before application or you end up with air pockets and more peel. Didn’t like it tbh but everyone else does it seems. Extremely low cars do need it but then r.o.i seems pointless as you have already explained.
Good vid. I have it £4k for a full car (GTR). The main benefits.When I drive down a country listening to the grit pinging off the paintwork I can just smile and enjoy the drive. Same for track days. Also washing is a breeze. It comes up super glossy. While it is not a force field it does take the hit from impacts. Kerbed my carbon front splitter, the PPF took the hit saved me a £2k refit. The main thing is to get it done by a fitter who will guarantee thier work so you can take it off, as mine did. Procare in Horsham Surrey are great! Also there is an art to getting the edges right- exactly the issues you discribed. You need a really good fitter.
Agree with just driving it and cleaning it regularly and carefully. If you have an investment or appreciating vehicle then maybe consider ceramic coating and/or PPF. Other than that, cars are generally depreciating tools/toys that will only return a fraction of the PPF or ceramic coat investment.
I think it depends on the value of your car and where you primarily drive in my case a Golf R 7.5 I drive mainly country Australian roads and for me it's more a car as a hobby since I'm retired had it 18 months driven 16K not one paint chip. I had full bumper including black plastic trim VW badge light lenses guard front quarters and full hood boot lip b pillars done with XPEL the car still looks as new it is garaged which helps. It's peace of mind driving a car like the R stage 1 which can reach some speed not worrying about stones when moving at speed, yes it's expensive AUD1800 with 10 year cover for XPEL and best applied when the car is new also needs to be done well as you say no loose edges. Again if it's an everyday run about I wouldn't worry. But on the R a good investment. Appreciate your work.
I was in the pro PPF camp for my new Porsche, however, after careful consideration and thought process similar to yours I have decided to enjoy the car and cross the stone chip bridge if it comes up... until then the $$$ will stay in my bank. Partial PPF looks ugly and over time even uglier, poor installation, gaps, edge pealing, dirt accumulation on edges, etc etc etc. No PPF for my new car. Finally at peace.
I'm four years late to the party, but you my friend, are bang right.
Great insights. I was scheduled to have PPF done this morning on my new Genesis GV70 but now I have decided not to since this car will be babied and not driven that much. TY.
Great bit.............and glad someone is talking about this and making a debate of it.
I recently purchased a new vehicle. I hummed and haaa'd about weather I should have PPF installed on certain parts of my vehicle. In the end I decided not too.
For many of the reasons that you mentioned I feel the price delta is not worth it, especially when you think about the life span of the product and cost to have it removed (I think these are things that not everyone thinks about). All those cost would probably help finance the cost of having a new paint job done.
Then you have a repainted car....... and have to worry about who is painting and how skillful they will be in matching factory paint.
If you are a track day addict or do a few track days then it's worth it , I think if the paint is factory painted then removing the ppf will be ok if removed carefully, if the car has been repainted before then there is a danger as you cannot guarantee adhesion of paint , been a paint sprayer for years and I believe ppf is worth it as a real quality paint job is £££s and if you can protect a factory paint job then the car will remain it's value
Really appreciate the no nonsense honest opinion... priceless 🙌
I am someone who installs and sells PPF. The expense concern is easy... it's expensive on both ends. The installer pays lots of money for the film and plotters to cut patterns or custom install. Labor is through the roof on this stuff.
That being said...I completely agree that some tend to sell PPF with some fabrication. I am VERY realistic and honest with my customers about ppf. It is not a force field, it can be damaged. In most cases it will prevent damage though. Places at times also sell it as "invisible" and say their installs are flawless...which is just not true. Minor uncontrollable imperfections can happen during installations and these things are more or less visible on particular vehicles and colors. Obviously an experienced installer will have minimal of this going on, if hardly at all. Very tough to perform perfection.
To me, it's simple. If you want to avoid the inevitable damage to your OEM paint, there's simply one way to do that....and that's PPF. The biggest thing when shopping for film, is who you're dealing with. If you feel pressured into wrapping your whole car then something is probably up. Find someone who will listen to you and your concerns and make the best choice with you.
@Clay Burkhardt because it's hard to apply and it's hard to make. The fact it's expendable doesn't have much to do with the cost of production.
Subbed and liked for your opening remark on the RUclips comment section.
Depends on your perspective. I have a matte painted car (factory) and I paid $1400 to have the entire front ppf'ed. While not dent protection It gives me piece of mind driving it on the interstate where we have tons of construction in Dallas. Matte paint has limitations for repair so from that perspective it is worth it to me.
If it is likely to damage the paint when it's time to renew it, how is that protecting the paint?
Always a risk but there are films on the market designed to be applied on top of coatings which reduces and almost eliminates any risk of lifting paint. If it's a repaint thats when you might need to worry but factory paint will be better bonded.
I have never been happy with respray jobs, and the last time I had a car resprayed it took 8 trips in total, to 2 different companies to get a result I was satisfied with, and it still started to peel after a year and a half. I'm willing to pay a lot of money to avoid resprays, because to me that has been a nightmare, and I ended up selling my previous car because of it, because I started associating the car with driving to the paint shop, and I just fell out of love with it due to all that hassle and heartbreak...
I have a 3M protection film on my 2010 Elise for 8 years now. The dark grey paintwork still looks great after 40.000 miles. There are some small imperfections on the film and the area before the back wheels feels rough. Without the protection it would be a whole lot worse. . I bought the film custom cut online and it was installed by a advertising company. Less than €1000 for almost the entire car. Money well spend. I would do it again, and I can recommend it.
It reminds me of old people covering a Couch with a plastic sheet.
But you don’t sit on PPF? More like framing a photo.
@@jennypenny7243 true
Not sure what people are on about here. I had ppf put on the front of my rs3 saloon and it definitely has protected it, no stone chips in 18 months. Rest of the car has ceramic coating. You shouldn’t cost the ppf with ceramic coating. Bit pointless. Whereas my wife’s s3 has no ppf or ceramic coating and has quite a few stone chips on the bonnet.
Thought provoking vid - nice one 👍
If the installers stated beforehand; _'once we put this one, we can't take it off without a paint job',_ I think we all know what would happen to that industry ...
My Elise has it on the front, needs it 100% because front so low stops lots and massive paint chips.
I'm still on the fence about PPF but I believe in good old fashioned 3 stage polishing using a machine polisher then a wax after
0:56 M3 wrapped to match the shirt maybe? ;-) But seriously, a great video that informs of some of the problems with PPF that people should know. Every time I see a Porsche with the rear arches factory PPF'd I am amazed how the film sticks out like a sore thumb. It yellows with age, loses its shine so I think it would be far better without the film and just to get the chips resprayed even few years.
My GF has a 2017 CRV with PPF installed for two years now... still pristine condition. So yeah, it works. Super glossy as it was the day it came on. Houston freeways...horrible rocks and pebbles from construction. I am going to get the same PPF installed on my 2009 335i tomorrow - Friday Jun 27th, 2019. Just spent a whole month correcting paint and prepping for 22ple VX Pro 2 glass coating on the body. The PPF will be installed on entire front end and mirrors, full hood. Then VX Pro 2 triple coated on top of PPF and topped off with Finitura and then VS1 Final Coat.
Yes...I am insane.
In my case, I think it's a must: my merc has a matte paint, that cannot be polished, buffed out, etc. I was actually told that localised paint fixes cannot be done on my type of paint, so any damage actually requires a full paint job, which is almost £20K.
and I track my car 3-5 times a year.
I have a local PPF shop and I investigated their products and pricing. My car wasn’t new any longer so it was a much easier decision than I had thought. I agree 100% with you. Drive it and enjoy your car!
Thinking about getting PPF for the 2020 supra whenever i can get my hands on it. Honestly i think i'll skip it, get a ceramic coating, and touch up any rock chips as they come. I only drive 6k miles per year so i don't expect there to a huge accumulation of chips. I see it as a new phone sort of deal, when its new and shiny with 0 damage you care about the condition feverishly. Once you drop the phone once and get a little ding you start to care less and don't mind minor future damage the phone will incur. When the car is new you're tempted to get it protection, but PPF has its own cons, and there are instances where rocks have pierced the ppf and damage the paint anyways.
I had my new car (Genesis Electrified G80) fully covered from new 12 months ago. To me a lot depends on the standards of the company your using. I went to a small firm nr Fleet in Hampshire- Auto Protek who use Xpel self healing film. Being a bit of an OCD sufferer, that i choose a company where the quality of the work is more important than a high volume of cars going through on almost a conveyor belt. The two that run this business Danny and Scott have an almost staggering eye for detail, and are looking to achieve as close to perfection as possible in the work they produce!
In this respect it has to be remembered, as i heard in a US RUclips video, is that its 'paint protection not paint perfection' so whilst the odd blemish in the PPF is possible, what its doing is protecting whats underneath. As someone else commented, in this respect it protects against the tiny micro chips that are so common place on modern car paint finishes. Although even quite deep chips that you would think have gone through the PPF also seem to be resisted.
Finally the Xpel self healing feature does actually work, and light scratches etc really do disappear under the heat of say a hair dryer!
There is no magic answer to completely stopping stone chips, but currently this is the best solution, and it saves me the hoursxspent trying to produce a perfect repair to this unavoidable problem. Anyone in the South of the UK, i wold thoroughly recommend Auto Protek in Minley if PPF is something they are considering, as someone in service at Genesis UK said...this PPF application is the best they have ever seen!
Got one of my cars done at an accessory installer for less than 1/2 of what the dealer wanted. Just got a quote to do the front of another car and find it ridiculous that they want so much for some computer cut vinyl. I don't know which is the biggest scam, the install or the product. The only thing I know is that it won't affect the trade in value down the road !!
He makes very valid points, but then how on earth do you protect the painted inner wheel arch areas and the side skirts & lower door sections that cop all the road rash getting flung at it from the wheels on your own car!?
Thinking of doing the bonnet on out T5, mainly because it if being airbrushed and I want to protect the artwork, but it is a minefield!
I was thinking about having PPF fitted to my front bumper and possibly the rear bumper on my 1999 Jaguar XJ8. The whole car was totally resprayed two years ago and only done 4000 miles since. I noticed a very small scrap on the front bumper and tried to undertake a diy with a spray can. I masked the bumper area with masking tape. The repair wasn’t that good so after taking off the masking tape, the lacquer also came off. I had to send it to a professional body shop who did it properly for £120. I then thought I would have PPF fitted but looking at local supplier and fitters, they indicated a price starting from £850 just for the front bumper and partial front wings. What I can’t understand is that to get a roll of 3M PPF is around £130 - £150 for 5m roll. Then there seems to be a thickness issue to consider. I don’t see how the companies can charge £700+ to fit it when at the most it will take one hour to fit. In my case, at £120 to have it professionally re-painted, I could have the bumper done 7 times before I reach the cost of the PPF.
I was about to have pdf applied on my 6 year old R8, After inspection the detailer pointed out some stone chip repairs I wasn't aware of. Fair play to him he basically talked me out of it and told me I was better off investing the cash on a paint job if needed. While I'm getting the paint correction and ceramic coating done, a full paint job will cost me less in the long run. Meanwhile I will be using chipex for those annoying chips I pick up that I don't want to see. I've also had a brand new paint job done on my 20 year old 8 series and when I mentioned ppf the bodyshop guy nearly had kittens and convinced me he would happily do a cut price paint touch up each year on the panels if needed.Safe to say I won't be going the ppf route.
Yes by an approved Audi shop and it’s not that much more than a PPF
Btw just as a fyi in case it helps I ended up getting my front bumper and bonnet repainted by the Audi approved shop instead of the stone chip filling - again worked out about the same / slightly cheaper than a ppf
I’m coming in very late to this discussion as I’ve only just seen the video which I found excellent and thought provoking to decide weather or not to install PPF. Over recent years I have had PPF installed on several new cars I have owned with varying degrees of satisfaction of the installation and product quality. Also you need to realise that you need to keep the car at least 5 years to get economic benefit to justify the expense.
The problems I’ve encountered with installation include returning to the installer to fix bubbles that don’t settle down, edges that lift and dust showing through the film. On some occasions I have also found that some of the joins were very visible and some paint colours manly whites and some silvers can look a little yellow or if wearing Polaroid sunglasses the film looks very patchy after application.
I guess you have to ask yourself is it really worth it , it can be if you can afford the more expensive thicker self healing film which will help prevent chips etc as the budget film which is a few hundred dollars cheaper as it is not quite up to this standard as stones can easily damage and pierce the film resulting in original paint being damaged.
My final opinion is that PPF will work in protecting the original paintwork against the elements, bird droppings etc and will assist in preventing some stone chipping etc.
Would I get it done again? My answer is “ I’m not 100% certain that I would “ unfortunately we only have one installer in my area and feel that the jobs I’ve had done could have been a whole lot better leaving me better satisfied with the overall outcome.
Just as you said, PPF is basically same as repainting your car cost wise, and as I bought a Tesla model 3, my choice was paying at least $1000 for a color i did not want, have it black or get it painted afterwards. My decision was that I could just as well combine the wrapping with changing the look of the car.
Secondly I am less concerned about rock chips though I live in Anchorage Alaska, than people scrubbing tier, jackets, purses bicycles etc against the car creating lots of fine scratches that then eventually will start rusting etc. All my earlier cars here have that as an issue.
Anyways, for me it was a combo decision with changing the look and protecting it.
Depends what car you have and what paint is on it. Supercar with a 10k paint job then ppf anything less just drive and enjoy 👍
good point tbh, Mercedes have 12k paint options these days
Most paint jobs from factory are the most expensive part of the vehicle anyway. Protect it as a repaint will rarely be as good quality and unless stripped to bare metal or plastic it'll never bond as well as the OEM paint.
After looking at all the options I I decided it’s better off spending the cost of Ppf or ceramic on investing in a. Quality pressure washer and kit - use good spray on paint protection good for a couple of months - your car paint can take over 60 major serious cut and polishes before you hit the actual paint - that’s more than several lifetimes of polishing - spend the extra money saved on detailing every few years Thanks for sharing
I had it put on the front of my VX220 in 2007. I've done 75k miles in it and (no kidding) over a hundred track days. It has one or two small tears (2mm) which are hardly noticeable and just recently a large rock flicked up (probably from one of the massive potholes round our way) and damaged the ppf, paintwork and the bodywork. So not bad for 16 years use. My Cayman recently had bird crap on the bonnet (looked like it had come from a seagull to me) . It had been on for sometime and was baked on, took 10-15mins of careful soaking and rubbing to get rid of it. When it was removed it had eaten into the ppf! Left it out in the sun for half hour and it self healed and you wouldn't know it was there. So I'm sold on the idea but I can see your point, although the fact that your Evora only had half dozen chips is irrelevant unless you would be able to compare if it hadn't had ppf applied. Keep up the good work James, always enjoy your frank approach.
I had full ppf on my previous car, In terms of protecting it is the best hardly any damage to the paint but man does the car gets dirty very easily and it looks awful.
@Abdulrahman Almutairi
Have the PPF ceramic coated and this will solve your dirt problem
I PPF the front of every car I buy. I pay around $300 for a precut kit and do it myself. I wouldn’t pay a shop to do it. Not enough difference to justify the cost. I think the real scam is Ceramic coatings.
The pro grade ceramic coatings couldn't be less of a scam. There is one specific coating on the market that protects against ALL, and I mean ALL, chemicals. PH 0-14. Pour acid or bleach on it and it won't damage it at all. Bug guts won't etch, bird crap won't etch no matter how long it's left on the paint. Prevents oxidation and chemical damage permanently. Lasts for the life of the paint if you look after it as only abrasion will remove it. Not a con at all. Repainting your car costs tens of thousands. Getting a pro coating costs a few hundred quid. No brainer. It wont break down with anything other than abrasion which means your car stays as glossy as it was when the coating was applied and stays that way permanently. Roughly 2 microns thick compared to wax or sealant which is 0.02 microns (100 times thinner!). Wax and sealant are not chemical proof and will etch in a matter of hours, pretty much the same goes for consumer coatings. UV will degrade wax or sealant in months and they sit on the paint instead of mixing with the substrate like the pro coating does. Nothing better for surfaces than ceramic coatings. Also makes washing easier as the coating has release properties which help make washing a breeze. And no need for toppers or waxes ever again for the life of it while consumer coatings need topped every year or so as they degrade with exposure. Sorry but your statement couldnt be less true.
Forget PPF, I rather C-Coat, So if you have a car that is not driven as much then it does not have a shelf life of when it needs to come off, it comes off on its own after multiple washes and the amount of time it is driven. A friend had PPF done to a new car and when it was removed after 5/6 years the PPF left some sort of marring stain on the clear coat so technically it needed a 2/3 stage polish.
I had my Vantage AMR ceramic coated (£1k). The dealer asked for £6k for PPF which was rather salty to say the least. I agree with your analysis that you can fix a lot of stone chips for that kind of money. I have had a motorcycle fully PPF' d but the cost was reasonable and has fully protected it having covered 13,000 miles thus far.
Ooooh a Vantage AMR. Rare beastie there
Dear Vantage AMR owner - am jealous - may I suggest that JayEmm could perhaps review it some time for our viewing pleasure? Best Regards!
@@smario2820 ruclips.net/video/F6DU6HxKZEM/видео.html
Nice thought but it's already been done as per TGE TV link here. Mine has the Automated Sequential Manual though rather than just the straight manual. Mine is claimed to be the very last naturally aspirated ever built so an historic car.
I had it applied to the front of a previous car. The edges collected dirt. You’ll notice it. I wouldn’t do it again. Not for the prices. People are being robbed for the prices. If we’re 500 or a grand for the full car, then cool. 5 grand+, nah.
I’ve been installing 3M venture shield for a few years. Paint condition is paramount...any damaged areas will compromise the paint.. yes, it probably will come away when ppf is removed. Said that, if the paint is perfect, cured & clean then ppf will do it’s job. But, like wraps, material quality is key. I’ve had no issues with 3M, yes it’s expensive but you only do it once. Getting cheaper ‘eBay films’ that are a tenth of the cost will lead to failures in one way or another. As the old adage goes, ‘buy cheap, pay dear’.
This other than your McLaren videos is probably your best ever !! Got a brand new Porsche 718 arriving from factory in October, been quoted between - 4 / 5 thousand pounds for PPF, even vulnerable areas looking at £2,000, Road and Race in Bolton, Porsche approved paint specialist re sprayed large areas of my Porsche I have now that got stone chips in the usual areas of a Porsche and the lovely job only cost me about £1,200 , so PPF is for me just an expensive Fad, watching this has made me yo decide to Not bother and just have the areas re sprayed if needs be !!!
It depends what you pay and what you expect. I generally don’t go for those kind of things. However, this time, rather than £480 for fabric and paint protection, they offered it for £240 for both. Since it’s a nice car and my partner is a bit messy (it is her daily commute), I went for it. I don’t expect that it will do much..... it will make the fabric a bit easier to clean... it will allow the outside to be cleaned with Just shampoo and water. That is all. The thing is VW didn’t make any great promises or claims, so that’s it really. I also got £3K off list price!
WHAT IS DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HOUSE WINDOW Solar Protection Films ANC CAR PAINT PROTECTION FILM
What do you think about sealants like cquartz or something?
I applied Cquartz myself. The shine and hydrophobic properties seem to last longer than standard sealants I have used. Would not pay someone $1000+ to do it though.
I like it for the thousands of sand size rocks it keeps from damaging my paint. I live in Washington State and after they sand in the winter they don’t clean it off the roads for months. You can hear it sandblasting your car on the freeways.
Seems like the main benefit of ppf. Will prevent against chips from sandblasting, but not any considerable sized stones.
My new 2023 White Diamond Corvette was $2750 for the 12yr Kavaca PPF "track package" plus $200 for full doors ($3300 after tax) . That included what I would call "clear mud flaps" down the bottom half of the side & wrapped around rear bumper a little, plus the full front, top trim above windshield, mirrors, and A-pillars. They said, "PPF hides swirls and people who paint correct a new white car are basically scamming people out of extra money they don't need to pay. You need paint correction for things like ceramic coatings that will make the swirls look worse." Hopefully when the rocks being thrown from the tires tear the PPF up, I can pay a little bit of money to have it replaced without the paint coming off lol. Not sure how much respraying the front bumper from rock chips on 3 stage paint would be though because if it costs $5k for PPF, I would have to think a lot harder about it. It's a gamble like buying the extra 6yr bumper-to-bumper warranty for 60k miles for $4300 when 3yr 30k miles comes free.
I was having this exact conversation with myself (it's been lonely in lockdown :)). I have a factory order Exige 390 Final Edition being delivered this month and was considering PPF. I just can't see the value though, with the limited mileage and relatively similar cost of a respray, I can't see that it makes sense.
By the way, if you want to review the 390 Final Edition when it arrives (I'm Sussex based), just ping me a message.
The new 3M pro series is much easier to clean and maintain. It’s self healing so small scratches will heal themself. And also my company offers a 5 year service agreement which says if something punctures the film and damages the paint 3M will pay $3500 to repaint your car