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Does anybody NOT wrap their cars?

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I'm not convinced that any clear plastic, regardless of what it is made of, can remain perfectly clear after being on a car that is exposed to the elements for years. That's probably why most wraps come with a 5 year warranty.

That's assuming you pay to reverse it. If you sell your car in 5 years a yellowish wrap could be more costly than a few paint chips but in most cases you just sell or trade-in your car and don't incur the costs to repair paint chips in any event.

"XPEL ULTIMATE comes with a full 10-year warranty against yellowing, discoloration, peeling, cracking and hazing. If it fails, we’ll replace it—labor included."

ULTIMATE - XPEL
 
I have literally scratched mine off with my fingernail. Yes it's that bad. Almost as if parts of the car are missing clear coat. Not too happy about it.

Wow, that is awful! Have you considered putting something on top like Wolf's hard body? If you've had the car awhile, do a polish, then glaze with their hybrid stuff, then put on the hard body nano sealant. They aren't as big in the states as they are elsewhere, but they have really great stuff for cars with soft paint. Random Youtube example:

 
"XPEL ULTIMATE comes with a full 10-year warranty against yellowing, discoloration, peeling, cracking and hazing. If it fails, we’ll replace it—labor included."

ULTIMATE - XPEL

That's a pretty dang good warranty...although I enjoy waxing & the results I get DIY far too much to ever put a wrap on any of my cars. Get an MT300 from Meguiar's & go to town! A nice trick I learned from a car show guy is a 3-day split cure..use synthentic wax the first day, and carnauba the second & third (3 coats total). Gives you the wet-look plus the depth & shine!
 
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I washed the MS 90D today and found a small chip on the lower front edge of the frunk hood about 900 miles. Time to compare with the original P85. Since Tesla didn't wrap around the front hood leading edge in 2012, sure enough, I found a few chips where the surface was exposed after 65,000 miles. Never noticed any of this until careful examination today.

One more subject to mention. When the corners get wrapped, there is a higher chance for bubbles to form around the sharper bends. This problem is dependent on who does the work and the material used. They can be worked out at a future visit, depending on the detailer.
 
Apparently our local Tesla SC does. I just noticed today that our loaner has a full wrap. Which reaffirms two things that others have mentioned:

- no interference with AP1 or FWD sensors
- it blends in very well; it looks like regular, unprotected paint

Could the car have been a trade-in from a customer? It would be very odd for Tesla to pay the cost to wrap a car.
 
Taking it to the extreme to prove a point never proves the point.

I put 22ple on my car the day I got it, and every six months since. It's now over three years old and there's no paint swirls and it looks good as new -- actually better since the glass coating gives it a shine that looks better than when it came from the factory, and not dulling like a plastic wrap.

I still remember getting in my grandparent's car as a kid and there was plastic wrap on the seats. That's what a wrap reminds me of. I like to ride bare... (get your minds out of the gutter).

No ones trying to prove a point. People are different, they want different things. I will never understand paying $40K for performance model that's why I got a inventory 90D with $20K discount. That allowed me to justify powder coating 20" wheels and paint calipers (AWESOME, by the way!), install a dash cam and now spend another $5K on a Xpel Stealth (which looks great with midnight silver).

Plus, you can take this detail/wrap thing as far as you want. I know people spend $15-$20K for this stuff. There will always be someone wanting to take you $$$.
 
We just got Llumar Films Platinum Wrap put on the front of our 90D. It also has a 10 year warranty and our detailer likes it better than Xpel. We also had Crystal Serum done on the entire car, along with over the Llumar Films wrap which also carries a 7 year warranty. We plan on keeping our 90D for at least 5 years, so it made sense for us to do it. If I had the car on lease, I can't see justifying wrap or paint protection.
 
I'm not convinced that any clear plastic, regardless of what it is made of, can remain perfectly clear after being on a car that is exposed to the elements for years. That's probably why most wraps come with a 5 year warranty.

That's assuming you pay to reverse it. If you sell your car in 5 years a yellowish wrap could be more costly than a few paint chips but in most cases you just sell or trade-in your car and don't incur the costs to repair paint chips in any event.

No one has ever said that every film or any film will remain "perfectly clear", as stated in my post i mentioned that no solution is ever perfect or without downsides. My point is that technology has improved to the point where modern films with proper installation, major discoloration over a short period of time should be a non issue, especially with every major film having 10 Year warranties backing this.

5 years is a pretty blanket statement as everyones use of their vehicles is different, as I said as well that this technology is not for everyone. Old technology films (Venture shield or Pre 2012 3M for example) will surely look discolored after 5 years. But unless your vehicle is pure white, "yellow" is a relatively small thing to claim for loss of value of a vehicle and surely not valid with modern film technology.

Not everyone has to agree, just further explaining my reasoning based on many years of experience in this industry. Im not here to sell anyone, proper education is what is most important.
 
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It's not snake oil. You can't get rid of swirl marks and have rain beading months after application with snake oil. Read the reviews:

22ple VX Pro Glass Coating Product Reviews - Detailed Image

You can also watch the Youtube video I posted above to see how it looks before/after.

I looked into a number of glass coating products before deciding on this one. This thread convinced me to try it and I'm glad I did:

This product is a game changer! - 22ple VX1 Pro Coating



To 3M or Not 3M a White Car - beyond.ca car forums community for automotive enthusiasts

Clear bra - yellowing? - 6SpeedOnline - Porsche Forum and Luxury Car Resource

I'm not convinced that any clear plastic, regardless of what it is made of, can remain perfectly clear after being on a car that is exposed to the elements for years. That's probably why most wraps come with a 5 year warranty.



That's assuming you pay to reverse it. If you sell your car in 5 years a yellowish wrap could be more costly than a few paint chips but in most cases you just sell or trade-in your car and don't incur the costs to repair paint chips in any event.
FWIW Dave Freed - the body shop owner in Los Angeles who gets almost all the Ferrari work in our city - told me to go ahead and put film on my sports cars. He said they don't yellow any more. He also doesn't or install any so I don't think he has a dog in the fight.
 
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One thing I can say for sure is modern paint films do not dull the paint. The shine they offer is as good or better than the factory paint. Also important to note you can apply wax or nano coatings on top of film.

Here are a few photos of my wrapped Teslas, both have Xpel Ultimate:
DSCF3021.JPG
DSCF3022.JPG

IMG_20150109_193419.jpg
 
I think I'm going to go full Xpel so I don't have to worry about being so careful washing my black car. I can just do a quick one bucket method or do a waterless in the winter in my garage. The installer said it would be ok to take my car through the automatic car wash once it's fully wrapped. That would be the quickest and easiest but I have my doubts about this being a good idea. If I can just drive through the car wash, it would definitely be worth $4,000 for the full wrap. What do you guys think?
 
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I think I'm going to go full Xpel so I don't have to worry about being so careful washing my black car. I can just do a quick one bucket method or do a waterless in the winter in my garage. The installer said it would be ok to take my car through the automatic car wash once it's fully wrapped. That would be the quickest and easiest but I have my doubts about this being a good idea. If I can just drive through the car wash, it would definitely be worth $4,000 for the full wrap. What do you guys think?

I'd say maybe to taking it through a drive-through car wash. It would probably be best to reach out to Xpel directly on this one. 800-447-9928 or [email protected].
Contact Information - XPEL Technologies Corporation

Xpel's FAQs do not address drive-through car washes, but they do say carefully using a pressure washer is acceptable:

“Can I use a pressure washer, and how soon after install?”
Yes. But wait 48 hours after installation and be mindful of the edges not to get too close as it could cause the edge to lift up.

If you can get a full Xpel Ultimate wrap for $4,000, then I think you have found an excellent deal. Just be sure to do your homework on the installer. It requires a lot of skill and experience for a proper application.

“How much does it cost?”
Cost varies based on location, labor rates, and installer experience.
  • Full Vehicle Wraps: This is typically every painted surface for $5,500.00 – $9,000.00
Paint Protection Film FAQ - XPEL
 
I'd say maybe to taking it through a drive-through car wash. It would probably be best to reach out to Xpel directly on this one. 800-447-9928 or [email protected].
Contact Information - XPEL Technologies Corporation

Xpel's FAQs do not address drive-through car washes, but they do say carefully using a pressure washer is acceptable:

“Can I use a pressure washer, and how soon after install?”
Yes. But wait 48 hours after installation and be mindful of the edges not to get too close as it could cause the edge to lift up.

If you can get a full Xpel Ultimate wrap for $4,000, then I think you have found an excellent deal. Just be sure to do your homework on the installer. It requires a lot of skill and experience for a proper application.

“How much does it cost?”
Cost varies based on location, labor rates, and installer experience.
  • Full Vehicle Wraps: This is typically every painted surface for $5,500.00 – $9,000.00
Paint Protection Film FAQ - XPEL
Two of the places near me were a little over $4,000 and one was a little over $5,000. They all have really good Yelp reviews, but other than that I'm not sure how to know how good they are at installing Xpel. Wouldn't they have to redo any pieces that they didn't install properly?