Must wrap areas on MX

[rainforest]

Hi there, looking for recommendations on must-wrap areas on the Model X. I know it will be nice to wrap the entire car but I am looking for insight on those areas that suffer the most. Like the front of the car, I saw a post about the falcon door panels as they seem to get chipped by rocks thrown by the front wheels.
Thanks in advance, Martin

Take my advice. I was cheap too, and only do the front hood, and both front and rear bumpers (rear because people rub up against it when accessing the trunk, and for bad parallel parkers). You will also want to do the 4 doors because of the rock spray (mine are already chipped somewhat, so don't believe people who say it doesn't happen) and because of peace of mind when people park next to you. Also, you'll find the paint around the handles gets scratched by finger nails when opening and closing every day.

If you want to save money, I would skip all 4 of the panels above the wheels (quarter panels?) because they are easy to clean and because very little is exposed to the front of the car so they won't get hit by rocks. I also skipped the mirrors and the rear hatch.

But I realize I am so OCD that I will fully wrap all my future cars. I regret not doing this from the start on my X, but I never really knew about wrap until after I got the car and started going on this forum. Hope this helps.

 

[Anzir]

Are there any negative effects of wraps covering the proximity sensors?

 

[rainforest]

Are there any negative effects of wraps covering the proximity sensors?

Nope. None.

 

[Jayrod]

Nope. None.

Correct no issues.

 

[Yinn]

Are there any negative effects of wraps covering the proximity sensors?

The answer is it depends.

When I first got the wrap, there were no noticeable differences. Caked with dirt, they still worked. Somewhere along the line the sensitivity changed, or Tesla tuned their software.

Now, I have no issues as long as the car is clean. If I gets dirty like the picture I attached, the sensors detect an object whereas it didn’t before. Otherwise everything functions normally..but more tuning could make it better or worse

 

[DinoJuice]

The answer is it depends.

I strongly agree with this, and yet I plan to do a full paint-protection wrap on my X.

We have plenty of evidence that Tesla recommends against putting anything over the door sensors.
They make it clear that even an extra layer of paint will cause the sensors to malfunction.
These ppt films are often ~8 mils of plastic plus adhesives, they certainly exceed the maximum specs for the sensors.

Of course getting false positives is one concern, but at least that is the "safer" of the failure modes.
I'm much more concerned about the plastic attenuating the signal and causing the FWDs to be "blind" to their surroundings.
That seems like the much more expensive failure (having the FWD open into an obstacle).

At the end of the day I'm willing to take the risk, and will take responsibility if anything goes wrong (and not blame Tesla or the FWDs for the failures).

Nick

 

[bairesman]

Can I at least rull out the roof? I am trying to save some money here!

 

[TexasRat]

I really want the protection, but I'm scared to death of the sensors not working at optimal efficiency and accuracy. I've read enough horror stories about the sensors not working properly that I really want that to be the best. It's unfortunate because I do want a wrap on the doors since it should help with door dings.

I may at least opt for a ceramic coat so I can wash the car more easily. I'm still not sold on the wrap, one for the price but two for the sensors

 

[Super_Popular]

I really want the protection, but I'm scared to death of the sensors not working at optimal efficiency and accuracy. I've read enough horror stories about the sensors not working properly that I really want that to be the best. It's unfortunate because I do want a wrap on the doors since it should help with door dings.

I may at least opt for a ceramic coat so I can wash the car more easily. I'm still not sold on the wrap, one for the price but two for the sensors

Almost all cars these days have sensors of some sort, just use someone who is familiar with Tesla's and you will be fine.

 

[Shock-On-T]

Just use no wrap, and learn to appreciate the wonder and majesty of road chips. An expression of the randomness and chaos of the universe, right there on your own car!

Then, withdraw the money the wrap would have cost as cash and walk down the road until you see someone who just feels right (you will know). Silently hand them the cash with a paternal smile, and go about your day.

They will have a story to tell their grandchildren, and you’ll still have your gorgeous car with its indelible link to the universe.

 

[Yinn]

Can I at least rull out the roof? I am trying to save some money here!

Yes. A full wrap includes the a and c pillars. Those aren’t needed. And the fenders/quarters can be skipped as well.

I really want the protection, but I'm scared to death of the sensors not working at optimal efficiency and accuracy. I've read enough horror stories about the sensors not working properly that I really want that to be the best. It's unfortunate because I do want a wrap on the doors since it should help with door dings

It won’t protect against dings. My X has a dimple from one, but it will protect against scratches. I felt the same about the sensors. I can say I got the wrap on my X but didn’t on the S...I wish I got it on the S as well.

My S has visible marring and chips that requires paint correction to fix. It requires a full polish/detail to look as good as the X going through an auto car wash. For the sensors, there’s an impact but not enough for me to ever have said - gee shouldn’t have gotten the wrap.

 

[Jayrod]

I really want the protection, but I'm scared to death of the sensors not working at optimal efficiency and accuracy. I've read enough horror stories about the sensors not working properly that I really want that to be the best. It's unfortunate because I do want a wrap on the doors since it should help with door dings.

I may at least opt for a ceramic coat so I can wash the car more easily. I'm still not sold on the wrap, one for the price but two for the sensors

It will be fine. Bunch of people have it with no issues. Car will thank you.

 

[rainforest]

The answer is it depends.

When I first got the wrap, there were no noticeable differences. Caked with dirt, they still worked. Somewhere along the line the sensitivity changed, or Tesla tuned their software.

Now, I have no issues as long as the car is clean. If I gets dirty like the picture I attached, the sensors detect an object whereas it didn’t before. Otherwise everything functions normally..but more tuning could make it better or worse

Can I at least rull out the roof? I am trying to save some money here!

Why would you wrap the roof? It's glass! Nobody wraps the roof.

 

[TexasRat]

Why would you wrap the roof? It's glass! Nobody wraps the roof.

The main thing I care about is making it easy to wash. A ceramic coating might just help me do that without a wrap. I want a surface that's easy to basically wipe off bugs, bird droppings, pollen, etc. I don't know of a good protection reason to wrap the roof (especially if it doesn't prevent impact dings like hail, etc). I don't know about this person's reasoning, but glass + ceramic coating on the paint may be sufficient.

 

[rainforest]

I just spoke to my service centre, and they said wrapping the doors doesn't affect the sensors "because the sensors are in the black trim piece at the bottom of each door. " But I remember clearly Elon saying they developed sensors that see through the door metal. Anyway, he says the wrap doesn't affect the sensors.

 

[Jayrod]

The main thing I care about is making it easy to wash. A ceramic coating might just help me do that without a wrap. I want a surface that's easy to basically wipe off bugs, bird droppings, pollen, etc. I don't know of a good protection reason to wrap the roof (especially if it doesn't prevent impact dings like hail, etc). I don't know about this person's reasoning, but glass + ceramic coating on the paint may be sufficient.

The ceramic coat will help you wash it to an extent. I’ve had many of them. But scratches, rock chips, bird poop will still effect the paint over time. The wrap is clearly the better option. A lot of people do a ceramic coat on top of a wrap for extra ease of cleaning. No amount of paint correction or ceramic coating will help rock chips and nicks in your paint.

 

[TexasRat]

The ceramic coat will help you wash it to an extent. I’ve had many of them. But scratches, rock chips, bird poop will still effect the paint over time. The wrap is clearly the better option. A lot of people do a ceramic coat on top of a wrap for extra ease of cleaning. No amount of paint correction or ceramic coating will help rock chips and nicks in your paint.

That's good to know. I think I mostly have accepted that dings, chips and scratches will happen. What I really care about is being able to wipe down/clean the car as easily as possible. Then I will try to find the happy medium in value.

When I inevitably trade this car in (I never do private party sales because I'm too lazy), no one is going to care that the paint is pristine and doesn't need touching up. At least that's my opinion, feel free to disagree. Every time I've upgraded something in a car in the past (premium audio, better leather, all from factory btw) it has never been worth a dime 5 years down the road. Most people just don't care about those things. I just got a quote for a full Xpel wrap in Austin for $4400-$5500. That's like almost 5% of the car. I doubt it'll pay for itself over time, as the car will depreciate and I doubt you're going to get your money back on a trade in (like I said before, if you sell private party and find the right buyer you should).

I think if you're buying it because you're OCD and want a beautiful car and really care about protecting the paint, then it should totally be worth it.

Personally, I'm trying to find out how much I care. I care about dings and nicks, but at the end of the day, even though this is a $100k car, it's just a car. I won't be taking it to car shows or anything fancy, nor would I want people to be staring at me everywhere I drive (though they might anyway).

I'm torn, this is just free-flowing rambling I am leaning towards not getting it done though. A ceramic coating and rinse-free car wash sounds great though.

 

[Jayrod]

That's good to know. I think I mostly have accepted that dings, chips and scratches will happen. What I really care about is being able to wipe down/clean the car as easily as possible. Then I will try to find the happy medium in value.

When I inevitably trade this car in (I never do private party sales because I'm too lazy), no one is going to care that the paint is pristine and doesn't need touching up. At least that's my opinion, feel free to disagree. Every time I've upgraded something in a car in the past (premium audio, better leather, all from factory btw) it has never been worth a dime 5 years down the road. Most people just don't care about those things. I just got a quote for a full Xpel wrap in Austin for $4400-$5500. That's like almost 5% of the car. I doubt it'll pay for itself over time, as the car will depreciate and I doubt you're going to get your money back on a trade in (like I said before, if you sell private party and find the right buyer you should).

I think if you're buying it because you're OCD and want a beautiful car and really care about protecting the paint, then it should totally be worth it.

Personally, I'm trying to find out how much I care. I care about dings and nicks, but at the end of the day, even though this is a $100k car, it's just a car. I won't be taking it to car shows or anything fancy, nor would I want people to be staring at me everywhere I drive (though they might anyway).

I'm torn, this is just free-flowing rambling I am leaning towards not getting it done though. A ceramic coating and rinse-free car wash sounds great though.

Yeah in that case I wouldn't do the wrap. It sounds like you just want it to be a little easier to clean and are ok with the normal wear and tear. I totally got that. I am incredibly OCD so I do a wrap on all my vehicles with a ceramic coat on top. However, where I am a full wrap is not as expensive as most places like Cali, the NE, etc. I can get out the door for about 3800$. Most car dealers will take the paint into account somewhat but expect normal wear from insert amount of years. I do know that my Raptor fetched more money because it was flawless.

 

[bairesman]

I just spoke to my service centre, and they said wrapping the doors doesn't affect the sensors "because the sensors are in the black trim piece at the bottom of each door. " But I remember clearly Elon saying they developed sensors that see through the door metal. Anyway, he says the wrap doesn't affect the sensors.

This is great news! Thanks for taking the time to ask the SC, I will confirm once I take delivery on Sat

 

[bairesman]

Why would you wrap the roof? It's glass! Nobody wraps the roof.

Not saying I want to wrap the roof, but when I spoke with a vendor he said that is one of the areas I can cut if I wanted to save money. I assumed the full wrap included the roof.