Hawaii Owners - Wrap, Opticoat, CQuartz, or other? Where?

[Papafox]

Nanimac, Thanks for the additional photos. I can see the mirror effect very clearly, so the car must indeed shine! I'll likely do xpel as soon as I have a breather on the mainland. Hopefully, the trip will be underway next week!

After browsing the forums, I see that some people have done xpel on the front of the car and then Opticoated the whole car after the xpel is wrapped. It might be fun to look at some cars at TMC Connect and see what they look like in person.

 

[nanimac]

Nanimac, Thanks for the additional photos. I can see the mirror effect very clearly, so the car must indeed shine! I'll likely do xpel as soon as I have a breather on the mainland. Hopefully, the trip will be underway next week!

After browsing the forums, I see that some people have done xpel on the front of the car and then Opticoated the whole car after the xpel is wrapped. It might be fun to look at some cars at TMC Connect and see what they look like in person.

I'm still trying to decide what I'm going to cover the rest of the car with. There's a new version of 22PLE that lasts longer but still interested in Opticoat or cQuartz...decisions..decisions

 

[dsmith2189]

Hopefully, the trip will be underway next week!

I'll be on my way next week too.:smile: if you do get delayed, I would be happy to take care of your "other" MS for you until you arrive.:love: (if you can catch me)

 

[Papafox]

Decided to Xpel coat the vulnerable forward areas of my sky-blue mainland ride, then have Cquartz installed over everything. This should give me the needed protection for a long, highway road trip. The installer suggested Cquartz over Opticoat because he believes it has a glossier finish. An installer in Walnut Creek, CA., is doing it. He comes highly recommended by other Tesla owners and puts a great deal of work into prepping the paint prior to Xpel. I drop off my car on Monday and get to see the finished product by that weekend. Eye candy photos will be posted. Dang, I'm gonna do Boise in style!

 

[nanimac]

You won't regret the xpel..I love how it looks :smile:. Had 22PLE done on the parts not covered by xpel.

 

[StephenM]

Wow!! Stunning photos!

 

[Papafox]

You won't regret the xpel..I love how it looks :smile:. Had 22PLE done on the parts not covered by xpel.

Nanimac, Gorgeous! I can't wait to see my sky-blue beauty in little over a week. I'm glad this discussion has pushed me towards doing something to safeguard the appearance of my car and give it extra shine. It's common for aluminum light airplanes to still be going strong after 60 years. I see no reason why our Teslas will be junked by then. Add a new battery, spiff up the interior, and she's ready to keep going for decades longer. I mean, decades from now, will anyone ever call a Tesla Model S ugly? No way, it's a classic beauty. Why not protect the paint as best possible, because these cars simply aren't going to fall prey to obsolescence anytime soon.

 

[spleen]

Gorgeous Nan! I'd love to see your pics too Papafox once your car is done.

 

[Papafox]

OK, Nanimac, you have some competition for shiniest blue 70D in the group. On Saturday I picked up my car from OCDetailing of Walnut Creek. They really did a fabulous job of installing the xpel and then applying the Opticoat Pro. I switch from CQuartz to Opticoat because with all the driving the Opticoat offered a bit better resistance to insects and other challenges of the road.

The cool thing is that in California there are so many Tesla owners that you can get some really great recommendations from other Tesla owners. Some detail shops do nearly half their business with Tesla owners because referrals are sending in the Model S cars on a regular basis. These installers in turn are extremely knowledgeable about working with Teslas and can tell you over the phone which parts of the car can support a wrap of the Xpel and which parts need a cut. I was so happy with the results that I left 5 bags of mac nuts for the crew!

Will get some better shots of the car before long.

 

[nanimac]

Wow!! Looks almost as good as the ocean blue in my garage :wink: what did you wrap?

 

[StephenM]

Very slick Papafox!!! :love:

 

[Papafox]

Wow!! Looks almost as good as the ocean blue in my garage :wink: what did you wrap?

I wrapped all the standard frontal areas and mirrors, door entrances, handles, etc. I also went with an option to wrap the forward pylons heading up to the roof and the painted area on the sides of the roof because I didn't want a line above the pylons but I wanted to protect the pylons. Ten miles before I reached Walnut Creek I saw a truck ahead launch a small rock, which looked like it bounced off the pylon between the windshield and driver's windshield. Oh [please insert the swear word of your choice here]!! Fortunately, no paint was chipped. Placing Xpel on a Tesla Model S makes sense because these cars are going to retain very significant value ten years from now.

 

[nanimac]

I wrapped all the standard frontal areas and mirrors, door entrances, handles, etc. I also went with an option to wrap the forward pylons heading up to the roof and the painted area on the sides of the roof because I didn't want a line above the pylons but I wanted to protect the pylons. Ten miles before I reached Walnut Creek I saw a truck ahead launch a small rock, which looked like it bounced off the pylon between the windshield and driver's windshield. Oh [please insert the swear word of your choice here]!! Fortunately, no paint was chipped. Placing Xpel on a Tesla Model S makes sense because these cars are going to retain very significant value ten years from now.

Good idea on the pylons...lots of big trucks out there on the roads..one thing I don't miss about the mainland :smile:

 

[spleen]

That looks gorgeous as well Papafox!

 

[dsmith2189]

Good idea on the pylons...lots of big trucks out there on the roads..one thing I don't miss about the mainland :smile:

pylons = "A" Pillar (forward most)
"B" Pillar (between driver and rear passenger windows)
"C" Pillar (behind the rear passenger window)

 

[Papafox]

pylons = "A" Pillar (forward most)
"B" Pillar (between driver and rear passenger windows)
"C" Pillar (behind the rear passenger window)

Let me be more precise. They Xpeled the "A" Pillar. Being a pilot, I have aviation terms such as "pylon" on my brain. Zoom !!!

 

[nanimac]

pylons = "A" Pillar (forward most)
"B" Pillar (between driver and rear passenger windows)
"C" Pillar (behind the rear passenger window)

now I know where all the pillars are :biggrin:

 

[nanimac]

so new car...new paint protectorant...what's the latest and greatest? Cquartz still? any others and recommendations for vendors?

 

[gmtom1]

Bump..... With my 3D on the way, I'm researching paint protection options again....

I'm definitely doing Xpel on the front again with Jun's. I'm also interested in CQuartz, but from the manufacturer website, it appears PakShak is the only authorized distributor here, and I'm not sure if they just sell it, or will do the "installation" too.

Any recommendations?

 

[RodF]

You can get in touch with Juns? I can’t get a response to phone or email.