I plan to order a Tesla this week. As a result I've been doing a lot of reading about the need for PPF on Teslas in general. It seems like the general consensus is while the new paint is better, on the M3 and MY, that almost mandatory to do PPF. So when I looked at the cost of doing PPF, I was shocked at how bad the Tesla Tax is.
I had another car done not long ago as it was going to see a lot of highway use and doing a lot of towing. It had more frontal area and cost less than half to do what I was quoted for an M3 or MY. So honestly the pricing seems borderline ripoff for what most places are charging.
So I went to my local paint magician. That is the best name to call this guy. All the Lambo, Ferraris, Bentley's, Ford GTs, etc, seem to end up at his shop. He almost always has a few Teslas outside his shop as well. So I asked him straight up should I do PPF or not. His recommendation was that the multicoat finishes seem to be much better than the others.
He said he would recommend PPF but he also mentioned, that if I had an M3, he could respray the entire front bumper for about $500. The last quote I got was $1900 to do the full front and 5k to wrap the entire car. Based on that pricing, it seems at best maybe a little economic advantage to wrap. The last car I had PPF on, someone backed into the front and I pretty much had to repaint the bumper and throw away all the PPF on the bumper. If I didn't have any PPF, I would have come out ahead financially. I didn't bother having PPF put back on after that.
So I am really thinking about just rolling the dice on whatever Tesla I end up ordering and maybe just deal with respraying it down the road if really needed. Then of course you have the hole issue of if you had any paint work question to answer but before and after pictures can satisfy that. If I save 2k on the front, that goes a long way toward any repainting I might need or touch-ups by this guy.
I almost feel that the costs charged for PPF film are crazily high. It is like the feed off your fear. Maybe if I didn't have someone awesome near by I might lean more toward it. All the guys running the PPF shops in my area are driving pretty high end cars so apparently it must be a pretty profitable business. I did window tinting in college so I must just buy the pre-cut kit and give it a shot. Even if I waste a kit or two getting it right, I'd still come out at least a thousand or more ahead.
At this point I'll shop around a bit more but I think as soon as you say you have a Tesla, they double the price quote. I think some of these shops prey on FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt). If the shops keeping asking that kind of money, and people keep paying it, then obviously there is enough value for someone. I would urge you to ask around and see what a good shop would quote to respray your bumper.
The best way I've found is go to the dent repair shops. They usually don't do any painting but they normally have some guy on speed dial so to speak that is basically a paint magician who can help out. That is the guy you want. I've used that approach in 4 cities and it has always panned out. These guys almost never advertise and all their clientele is word of mouth. That is how I found the guy I use. I knew I had the right person when I saw some cars that were going to be shown at the Concours d'Elegance at Amelia Island. The one where you see old Bugattis and Talbot Lagos like at Pebble Beach.
For those of you on the fence about PPF, get the additional data points of what it would cost to paint the areas most likely to be impacted. I was shocked at how little it was. Maybe it is worth it in your area. Maybe you don't want to deal with repainting. Maybe you'll never have anyone back into your car. It is your money to spend how you want.