Yep, PPF is a waste of money if you don't take pride in vehicle ownership, care about vehicle protection, your paint, or getting rock chips. Why waste money on PPF when you could get the same protection for $5 with blue painters tape.... Your money, your choice........
Just kidding about PPF being a waste of money - I've had PPF on the Z06 in the background for over a dozen years and would not have had it installed on the CR-V if I thought it would damage the paint or not protect it from scratches and rock chips. On the CR-V, I have XPEL PPF on the front portion of the hood, fenders, grill, bumper, "A" pillars, and roof cap between windshield and sunroof.
Yep, PPF is a waste of money if you don't take pride in vehicle ownership, care about vehicle protection, your paint, or getting rock chips. Why waste money on PPF when you could get the same protection for $5 .... Your money, your choice........
I take pride in vehicle ownership and care about protection. For that reason, I am not installing PPF, I don't think I will at least. I hear a lot of horror stories upon removal. The worst thing is to protect your car that will cause more damage than not protecting it.
My ideal would be a factory nosemask for long trips, but Honda decided not to offer it on this car. Terrible move.
I watched the 3M product get removed from my hood on a previous vehicle and replaced and the paint underneath looked identical to that that wasn't covered. Took them about 2 hours to remove and replace it. If I hold onto my CR-V long enough I will have the hood repainted and the 3M product applied. It is worth every penny IMO.
I take pride in vehicle ownership and care about protection. For that reason, I am not installing PPF, I don't think I will at least. I hear a lot of horror stories upon removal. The worst thing is to protect your car that will cause more damage than not protecting it.
My ideal would be a factory nosemask for long trips, but Honda decided not to offer it on this car. Terrible move.
Everyone makes their own decisions. I have no experience with PPF, but I can tell you, that 3M will NOT crack or peel or yellow and will be NO problem removing it, and will NOT damage the original paint. I have had it on six vehicles in our family. NEVER an issue. And I bet the product gets even more improved every year.
Considered doing it myself, but get it done by a pro. Have had mirrors, front of fenders and bumpers done, but on my latest cars, I only get the leading edge of the hood done. 14 inch 3M off a roll. Less than $100. Fully intend to have it done on whatever I buy next. Don't like plastic hood deflectors.
I'm starting to come around to the idea that maybe removal wouldn't be an issue if the material is taken care of and kept moist once in a while. Waxing it and what not.
What brand would be best, XPEL or 3M? It's like a never ending debate. I hear XPEL Ultimate doesn't yellow and offers a 10 year warranty. 3M offers a 5 year warranty and I'm told 3M is more prone to yellowing.
I had a high quality OEM vinyl bra on my Saab 900 Turbo and found that no matter how well it was anchored it would still vibrate at speed. The vibration was not detectable to the eye, but the clear coat paint under the bra was "sanding" away over time, especially at the contact points on the edges. I ended up not using the bra at all. That was in 1983 and maybe the contact surface materials have changed since then to mitigate the sandpaper effect. on several vehicles since then I have had hood deflectors. One thing I have noticed with the hood deflectors is that the curved rear edge changes the air flow over the car and saves the windshield from getting small stone chips and getting pitted from small dust/sand particles. I know this because if you have a deflector you have to re-aim the windshield washer nozzles lower because at speed the air current carries the fluid over the car.
I'm starting to come around to the idea that maybe removal wouldn't be an issue if the material is taken care of and kept moist once in a while. Waxing it and what not.
What brand would be best, XPEL or 3M? It's like a never ending debate. I hear XPEL Ultimate doesn't yellow and offers a 10 year warranty. 3M offers a 5 year warranty and I'm told 3M is more prone to yellowing.
3M has 3 levels of PPF. Ventureshield is the lowest model. Scotchgard is the middle level with a 5 year warranty. Scotchgard Pro is the top level with a 7 year warranty that is advertised to be more stain resistant.
You could do what S2K_Dude posted, where he has a complete replacement warranty with his installer where he intends to replace the film within 5 years if it has excessive wear and tear.
3M has 3 levels of PPF. Ventureshield is the lowest model. Scotchgard is the middle level with a 5 year warranty. Scotchgard Pro is the top level with a 7 year warranty that is advertised to be more stain resistant.
You could do what S2K_Dude posted, where he has a complete replacement warranty with his installer where he intends to replace the film within 5 years if it has excessive wear and tear.
Not just excessive wear and tear, but ANY wear and tear according to the owner of the PPF shop. When I asked specifically if there are any blemishes on the film, will it be replaced? He responded with, "they will replace any and all film that has any damage on it, up to five years." The way it was explained is it was a one time replacement, they would not replace a piece of film each time a rock hit the film and left a mark, only once at the end of 5 years. The shop has been in business more than 10 years, with the same owner and installers, so I'm fairly confident the shop should still be there in 5 years when I go to get the film replaced.
I've never seen nor heard of clear coat separating or being peeled away from the painted surface, I've only seen clear coat issues from those who have had body work done to their car. I would not recommend having PPF installed over freshly painted body panels. As for scratches, the installers only use a plastic squeegee and I've never noticed any scratches on my cars as a result of PPF being installed.
Not just excessive wear and tear, but ANY wear and tear according to the owner of the PPF shop. When I asked specifically if there are any blemishes on the film, will it be replaced? He responded with, "they will replace any and all film that has any damage on it, up to five years." The way it was explained is it was a one time replacement, they would not replace a piece of film each time a rock hit the film and left a mark, only once at the end of 5 years. The shop has been in business more than 10 years, with the same owner and installers, so I'm fairly confident the shop should still be there in 5 years when I go to get the film replaced.
I've never seen nor heard of clear coat separating or being peeled away from the painted surface, I've only seen clear coat issues from those who have had body work done to their car. I would not recommend having PPF installed over freshly painted body panels. As for scratches, the installers only use a plastic squeegee and I've never noticed any scratches on my cars as a result of PPF being installed.
What about when they cut the film? Blade next to the body.
Also, how do they clean and dry the surface they work on? My paint had no swirl marks because I wash it myself and I'm very systemic and meticulous when wading my car. What if they just roughly wash and dry the car prior to working on it? What's the protocol on delivering a clean surface to work on to the shop?
What about when they cut the film? Blade next to the body.
Also, how do they clean and dry the surface they work on? My paint had no swirl marks because I wash it myself and I'm very systemic and meticulous when wading my car. What if they just roughly wash and dry the car prior to working on it? What's the protocol on delivering a clean surface to work on to the shop?
What if? What if? What if the installer chews gum? Dribbles spit on your paint? Or farts? What it there's a power outage that day and he can't see? What if he has to go to the john in the middle of this job? Will he wash his hands?
I think you better forget about getting this done. Far too many things can go wrong.
What about when they cut the film? Blade next to the body.
Also, how do they clean and dry the surface they work on? My paint had no swirl marks because I wash it myself and I'm very systemic and meticulous when wading my car. What if they just roughly wash and dry the car prior to working on it? What's the protocol on delivering a clean surface to work on to the shop?
Most installers use computer pre-cut film specific to each car. So no blades or knives are needed. It's usually when you have the entire vehicle covered would they use any blades near your vehicle to cut the roll of film by hand. It's within the installers interest to carefully clean and prep the surface before applying the film. They don't want customers coming back because the film starts to peel or bubble without a proper prep. I would just review these good questions with the installer before making a choice.
As for cutting the film on the car, one installer showed me their fancy X-acto knife that he can set the depth of the cut. All they need to do is score the top surface of the film to make the cut. It's very easy to not cut through the film and damage the car. As FreshlySqueezed stated, these days the installers are pre-cutting the film prior to installing on the car. They have their own patterns or they can buy patterns from the film companies. The shop I used has their own X-Y cutter and they do their own or modify existing patterns.
What if? What if? What if the installer chews gum? Dribbles spit on your paint? Or farts? What it there's a power outage that day and he can't see? What if he has to go to the john in the middle of this job? Will he wash his hands?
I think you better forget about getting this done. Far too many things can go wrong.
Most installers use computer pre-cut film specific to each car. So no blades or knives are needed. It's usually when you have the entire vehicle covered would they use any blades near your vehicle to cut the roll of film by hand. It's within the installers interest to carefully clean and prep the surface before applying the film. They don't want customers coming back because the film starts to peel or bubble without a proper prep. I would just review these good questions with the installer before making a choice.