3m vs Xpel PPF

[PerennialTears]

Receiving my Y roughly next week. Either places near me do 3M or XPEL. Which brand is better. Some of the sites show that 3M and Tesla have an official partnership.

 

[ElectricPeril]

I just had my car done with XPEL. The guy who did it highly recommended it over 3M, especially for white cars. He found XPEL doesn't yellow as quickly as the 3M, so much so that when customers "forced" him to use 3M he couldn't garauntee it wouldn't yellow on them.

 

[iamec]

3M guys will say XPEL will yellow. XPEL guys will say 3M will yellow. Learned that much while calling around yesterday. Also 3M seems to be cheaper.

I personally am choosing XPEL because I have that on my other car and like it.

 

[jerry33]

3M guys will say XPEL will yellow. XPEL guys will say 3M will yellow. Learned that much while calling around yesterday. Also 3M seems to be cheaper.

I personally am choosing XPEL because I have that on my other car and like it.

That's as good a reason as any. The Suntek I had on the S didn't yellow in seven years and was not garaged. Installing PPF is still as much an art as a science so the expertise of the installer is really the key to happiness with PPF--as long as you choose a quality film. e.g. Suntek, 3M, Xpel, Stek. I went with Stek for the new X, but the installer was the same.

 

[acarney]

After a two year battle on a patent infringement lawsuit (3M brought against Xpel) it was finally settled outside of court with Xpel agreeing to purchase a license to the 3M patent... so...

I believe 3M and Xpel largely have the same length warranties... and 3M does have a long history of adhesives and vinyl products, but 3M doesn’t advertise nearly as much as Xpel. So... who knows...

 

[NudleBoy]

I just used both products. 3M Pro Series is thicker and a bit harder to maneuver and fit around, but the thickness is pretty good with protection. It's smooth and I find the self healing works pretty well. XPEL has phenomenal water beading, and doesn't need to be ceramic coated over, but I find it thinner. Definitely easier to install though.

3M now provides installers with precut templates for free and we're able to cut them using our plotters and choose what we want, i.e., I didn't want to remove my emblems and side cameras when I did my car, so I selected cut outs for both front emblem and side camera. XPEL is subscription based.

Both are great options. I can't comment on yellowing, as I haven't noticed either do that. Go with whatever you want. I personally went with 3M Pro because it's thicker, that's really it. I ceramic coat myself.

EDIT: Forgot to add. 3M was 2/3 the cost of XPEL

 

[PerennialTears]

Great! Thanks for the info!

 

[stactum]

I had Xpel Ultimate on my Ibis White Audi S4 for 5 years and had no yellowing whatsoever. I did use Xpel sealant on it from the day 1 though.
Look at some YouTube comparisons. Here's one:

 

[PerennialTears]

Didn’t have time to watch all the parts, but if appears Xpel did better than 3m on the 6m test

 

[pt19713]

I went with Kavaca just to be different.

But, the hydrophobic layer works great

 

[N1L CO2]

I've done a handful of DIY installs on my cars of both and I prefer Xpel over 3M. The surface finish on the Xpel is much more consistent and thus makes it shine better (less light refraction). It's also far more malleable/pliable when working with it and goes around curves easier without having the stretched look on the film.

 

[_OD_]

I have clear xpel on the front only of the Model 3 and full xpel stealth on the Model Y. The stealth wrap is gorgeous and EVERYONE comments on it. I mean everyone.

 

[N1L CO2]

I have clear xpel on the front only of the Model 3 and full xpel stealth on the Model Y. The stealth wrap is gorgeous and EVERYONE comments on it. I mean everyone.

I LOVE the Xpel stealth PPF. I didn't put it on my MY this time because the pearl would have an inconsistent look with the matte finish but it looks so awesome with with the black or the midnight silver.

 

[acarney]

I have clear xpel on the front only of the Model 3 and full xpel stealth on the Model Y. The stealth wrap is gorgeous and EVERYONE comments on it. I mean everyone.

I couldn’t bring myself to spend the extra $1,000 just for the Stealth look. It looks great, but I’m already in for $7,200 for PPF, tint, and ceramic.

 

[maximus96]

diy'ed with precut 3m film, then bought some 6" xpel strips from amazon for the top of the bumper and behind the rear wheels. 3M is definitely thicker than xpel and xpel is easier to stretch.

 

[Maverick22]

I couldn’t bring myself to spend the extra $1,000 just for the Stealth look. It looks great, but I’m already in for $7,200 for PPF, tint, and ceramic.

$7,200? Damn that ceramic snake oil in small bottles lol! But seriously I did full xpel ppf on my M2 comp couple years back and paid about $4200. No ceramic coating and water beeds just as well as it would had I done cc on top. Now with MY I’m planning to leave naked with just tints. Not expecting normal road debris to do much damage and Y is not spending nearly as much time on track as my M2c.