Cheap DIY Paint Protection Film Project

[Thomas Edison]

Does anyone think it's worth pulling the front bumper to get the PPF all the way around the edge and also allows you to get around the corner of the fender too?

 

[duckm4n]

Here's my install....



Got the film... getting ready to go!
View attachment 311937


Decided to do the front bumper first.
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Finished product. Not gonna lie, the picture looks awsome, however there are many cut lines because I couldn't get the fingers/wrinkles out and gave up so I just cut slits to make it fit. From a distance it looks alright but up close you would be like WTF is up with this bumper..... haha
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Here's the finished hood. Didn't take before pictures considering it's pretty straight forward.
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Tips:
Swipe with even pressure to get the initial water out, then go again with much more pressure to get all the water and bubbles out.

Make sure you keep the PPF wet. If you don't think you will get to a spot in time, make sure you go back and spray it again or else it will dry and tack. Once it does, you will get finger prints or lines from having to peel it back out. Also when you have to pull to peel it, the film stretches. This will cause more trouble, it will shrink back but it takes a bit of time.

Make sure you have a heat gun or at least a blow dryer for the edges. Most of the vids don't show this step, it's important to heat and press down on the edged so they stick well or else they will peel later.

Don't do the front bumper in a full sheet! You have been warned. Buy a pre-cut kit. Your back will thank you and the time savings will be more worth it. It was hard and getting all those wrinkles out was a nightmare. The videos make it look super easy but it was NOT easy.
If your cutting skills might not be good, get a pre-cut full front kit. It's about $500-700 on ebay. Most places charge about $1500+ do do the whole front. The cost savings is worth it if you can tackle the job.

Fusion, what was the dimensions of the sheet you used for the front bumper? I'm considering giving it a try and don't want to spend on excess material. Thanks!

 

[Fusion]

Fusion, what was the dimensions of the sheet you used for the front bumper? I'm considering giving it a try and don't want to spend on excess material. Thanks!

30" x 110" You could probably go slightly shorter. I had excess on both sides.

 

[Audan2009]

How welll does the suntek precut fit around the hood emblem for those who had that precut?

 

[Lanzer]

Does anyone think it's worth pulling the front bumper to get the PPF all the way around the edge and also allows you to get around the corner of the fender too?

I don't think it's worth it. Any edges that are near the panel are hardly noticeable, and from what I see on Youtube that seems to be the norm from professional installers. Having the bumper installed also aid in stretching the film at the right places as the bumper is firmly mounted, and you can use the panels outside of the bumper to keep the film stretched. Good luck!

 

[Audan2009]

Thanks! About to buy the film!

 

[Fusion]

Anyone here looking to get film in the bay area? The main supplier that I used online is no longer carrying Xpel. I found a place to order a full roll but I don't need that much. It's gonna be at 60" x how many foot you want. I would have to order a 100' full roll.

 

[juanmedina]

Out of curiosity I got quote to install PPF on entire hood and front bumper. The quote came at $1200 for Xpel Ultimate Plus and that's with me prepping the paint for the installation.

They are out of their mind when materials cost 300-400 bucks.

 

[JeanKam]

i'm planning on doing a DIY not sure i would go with pre-cut kits or actual rolls any recommendation i'm planning on spending 2-4 hours every weekend for almost 3-4 weekends to wrap the car.

Is eBay the perfect place to get the rolls/kits ordered?

 

[Audan2009]

i'm planning on doing a DIY not sure i would go with pre-cut kits or actual rolls any recommendation i'm planning on spending 2-4 hours every weekend for almost 3-4 weekends to wrap the car.

Is eBay the perfect place to get the rolls/kits ordered?

I got my precut kit from ServPro. I asked him to leave out some precuts like the emblem and fender cameras.

I’m going to install this weekend I hope depending on how long prep takes!

However my car came with a pen head sized chip on driver fender and I’m waiting Tesla to fix it. It’s infuriating.

 

[JeanKam]

I got my precut kit from ServPro. I asked him to leave out some precuts like the emblem and fender cameras.

I’m going to install this weekend I hope depending on how long prep takes!

However my car came with a pen head sized chip on driver fender and I’m waiting Tesla to fix it. It’s infuriating.

Cool..! Please post the pictures once you are done, i'm inclining towards purchasing the kits too how much did that cost you?

 

[Audan2009]

Cool..! Please post the pictures once you are done, i'm inclining towards purchasing the kits too how much did that cost you?

Will do. It was $675 for the full frontal kit. Spent about 8 hours today prepping paint. Still need to polish before I can put it on.

 

[Terthen]

I don't think it's worth it. Any edges that are near the panel are hardly noticeable, and from what I see on Youtube that seems to be the norm from professional installers. Having the bumper installed also aid in stretching the film at the right places as the bumper is firmly mounted, and you can use the panels outside of the bumper to keep the film stretched. Good luck!

Just had to say good work man. I love the DIY attitude and sharing for the rest of us. Haven’t decided yet whether to tackle this even just for my hood like you did but all the pics and info is great

 

[duckm4n]

Anyone here looking to get film in the bay area? The main supplier that I used online is no longer carrying Xpel. I found a place to order a full roll but I don't need that much. It's gonna be at 60" x how many foot you want. I would have to order a 100' full roll.

Would you be willing to ship?

 

[CrazyCoconut]

Has anyone tried doing the entire doors themselves? Seems fairly straight forward - not many curves. I'm having my installer do the full front, but contemplating doing the doors and rockers myself to save some money. Thoughts?

 

[Fusion]

Has anyone tried doing the entire doors themselves? Seems fairly straight forward - not many curves. I'm having my installer do the full front, but contemplating doing the doors and rockers myself to save some money. Thoughts?

Doors are easy. I wouldn't hesitate to do them myself.

 

[CrazyCoconut]

Doors are easy. I wouldn't hesitate to do them myself.

Ok, you've convinced me!

 

[Lanzer]

Has anyone tried doing the entire doors themselves? Seems fairly straight forward - not many curves. I'm having my installer do the full front, but contemplating doing the doors and rockers myself to save some money. Thoughts?

The door is fairly straight forward, the tricky part is cutting out the door handle and making it look professional is gonna be tricky. I suggest planning ahead of time on where you want your sheet to go, then cut out the door handle portion before installation. If you want to print out the shape, you can use this file here:

tesla door handle.png

 

[CrazyCoconut]

The door is fairly straight forward, the tricky part is cutting out the door handle and making it look professional is gonna be tricky. I suggest planning ahead of time on where you want your sheet to go, then cut out the door handle portion before installation. If you want to print out the shape, you can use this file here:

tesla door handle.png

Thanks! I actually got a pre-cut kit to make things even easier

 

[Hkbruin]

I'm in the middle of installing the pre-cut Suntek full hood/fender/bumper from ServPPF. I like the quality of the packing. material, and instructions. The front fender and headlights went on pretty well, save for some specs of dust I got under the film due to a hasty and less-than-ideal work space with 2 cars in the garage I'm on to the hood which I clay barred last night, and now needs a polish before putting down the film. I'll report back how the pre-cut emblem looks upon install.