Mud Flaps? Rear Door Chipping Bad :(

[GlmnAlyAirCar]

Yikes. I just waxed my car for the first time this weekend. Delivered in 11/20, one winter of driving. I had noticed this by the back door as well. Since my car is white it doesn't show as much. I assumed it was some paint imperfection I missed upon delivery. Now I realize it was likely from road debris. Maybe I'll try the PPF route to keep it from getting any worse.

 

[iamnid]

I'd go with the PPF. I have both the PPF and the front mudflaps from Basenor. After installing the mudflaps and while waiting for the PPF to arrive in the mail, I noted that there was still mud that splashed up on the area of the rear door despite the mudflaps. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure the mudflaps do anything to protect the rear doors.

 

[Pianewman]

I also did the PPF myself. First time for me. Best advice I can give you is prep, prep, prep. The cleaner you have the surface where the film is going, the better it'll turn out. Otherwise, it's straightforward and simple.

Oh yeah, the sticky side (the side you peel away from the 3m paper) is the side that goes against the paint. (I learned the hard way - not enough sleep I guess?)

I just used some dish soap and water solution in a spray bottle. Worked great.

Set up good lighting, as well. Prepare for a bit of frustration as you're getting the film stable, as it slides around while applying. Visually check lower edge alignment, and curved alignment on the rear edge of the door, prior to using the squeegee to work bubbles out..
Patience.

 

[SvenG]

Instead of trying to align all the edges, I would suggest that wrap around them. Have not tried that with the Tesla provided PPF but had no issue doing that with XPel. All pictures of damage show damage right to the edges making wrapping around a requirement.

Makes the install process a bit easier as well: Align the panes so that there is app. a 1/4" overlap, squeegee all in place (other than the overlap), cut a "V" at the single corner, flush the overlap with IPA/Water mix and let it try for app. 5 minutes before wrapping the PPF around the edge. Works well with your thumb. Take your time. This sounds a lot harder than it really is.