No PPF....Are you Happy?

[toolman335]

OP, you have a white MY. So without PPF or ceramic coating, you will get paint chips. I have a white M3 without any protection for 4 years and there are quite a lot of paint chips. They are located mostly along the front spoiler lip, front bumper. The chips are black/dark color so they are easy to spot on a white car. On our blue Tesla, there are also paint chips but really hard to see them unless you are really close. I think someone with Midnight Silver, the paint chips will just blend in.

I agree with this post. I'm going from white to Midnight Silver....this week! The white is great for not showing dirt, but blemishes show up easily. I'm undecided on what to do for PPF/Ceramic Coating with the new car.

 

[EL CapiTRAN]

I don't think PPF is worth it. If you get into a small fender bender that tears through the PPF then it now costs more to fix the bumper + the PPF.

If it's the other parties fault you can submit a claim against their insurance to replace the PPF. Some I've known have been successful.

 

[gx9901]

I'm at over 17k miles with no PPF. I hand wash the car and apply Zaino products when the weather allows. There are some tiny chips on the hood, but nothing major. I just consider them battle damage that builds character, and I have some Tesla touch-up paint to deal with more visible chips that emerge. I'm sure the paint isn't perfect, but I look at the car everyday and I'm happy.

 

[Need]

I mentioned paint chips on my white Tesla only because I hand wash my car every week or 2 for the last 4 years. It is easy for me to see when my face is 18 inches away from the bumper. So if you are doing PPF to protect against paint chips, it is mostly (maybe entirely) for yourself only. Most other people are not going to put their face close enough to your car to notice the paint chips.

But PPF could protect against something worst the paint chips. I didn't get PPF but if I did, it would be to protect against keying. 2 of our cars had been keyed before. But then I thought about it... if either of the Tesla ever got keyed bad enough, I will probably just vinyl wrap it to a cool color to change it up. And Vinyl wrap would be cheaper than PPF.

 

[merc65fd]

I mentioned paint chips on my white Tesla only because I hand wash my car every week or 2 for the last 4 years. It is easy for me to see when my face is 18 inches away from the bumper. So if you are doing PPF to protect against paint chips, it is mostly (maybe entirely) for yourself only. Most other people are not going to put their face close enough to your car to notice the paint chips.

But PPF could protect against something worst the paint chips. I didn't get PPF but if I did, it would be to protect against keying. 2 of our cars had been keyed before. But then I thought about it... if either of the Tesla ever got keyed bad enough, I will probably just vinyl wrap it to a cool color to change it up. And Vinyl wrap would be cheaper than PPF.

Im not sure PPF would protect against Keying since it usually done in the front only and from what Ive seen Vinyl wrapping isnt any cheaper probably because the labor is the hardest part and they are basically the same in that regard

 

[Need]

Im not sure PPF would protect against Keying since it usually done in the front only and from what Ive seen Vinyl wrapping isnt any cheaper probably because the labor is the hardest part and they are basically the same in that regard

It would be a full PPF (including the doors) for keying. Both of mine were at the door straight down the line like pinstripes. And full PPF is more expansive than full vinyl. At the time I was looking at it, full vinyl was like $2k to 3k for Model 3 and full PPF was like $4k to 6k. This was back in 2018. So it maybe cheaper now (or more expansive!). I think vinyl last 3 to 5 years under hot CA sun. And PPF is supposed to last 10 years.

 

[merc65fd]

It would be a full PPF (including the doors) for keying. Both of mine were at the door straight down the line like pinstripes. And full PPF is more expansive than full vinyl. At the time I was looking at it, full vinyl was like $2k to 3k for Model 3 and full PPF was like $4k to 6k. This was back in 2018. So it maybe cheaper now (or more expansive!). I think vinyl last 3 to 5 years under hot CA sun. And PPF is supposed to last 10 years.

I was going by some research I did. this was a post I found from a compnay

 

[Need]

I was going by some research I did. this was a post I found from a compnay

View attachment 836127

The $10k would be some really hard to wrap big car with color shifting wrap I think. When I was looking a vinyl wraps, I was looking at a local place here called WrapBullys (highly recommended here on this forum). I got quote from them and it was around $2500-$2700 for basic vinyl wrap for Model 3. At the time an Xpel PPF wrap was $4500 cheapest one I could found. Most of the places wanted $5k to $6k for Xpel PPF. This is what Wrapbullys have on their website:

A car wrap can start as low as $2200 for a small two-door, such as a Fiat 500. A larger coupe, like a Tesla Model S or a Mercedes Benz S550 coupe, start at around $2700. Treatments such as a color flip vinyl add more, and expect to pay extra for chrome delete package, which start at about $500 and go up from there. The most exotic wrap jobs can go as high as $10,000 or more, depending on the difficulty, the materials, and the size of the vehicle. Wrapping inside the doorjambs, for instance, can take an additional two days or more, which adds substantial time and, thus, cost.

 

[Altes]

If you did not get PPF are you happy. Is your car in decent shape? Of course I know PPF is ideal, thats not the question. I'm not sure how long I'll keep the car, but I also dont want the car to get destroyed. Looking for opinions from people that have not done it only. Thanks

My 2016 with 160K freeway miles looks remarkably good (compared to my old BMW)

 

[honoraryorange]

I was going by some research I did. this was a post I found from a compnay

View attachment 836127

I've looked into quite a bit too, and vinyl is almost universally cheaper than PPF by up to a 50% margin. I'm assuming those prices include PPF on top of vinyl, which is possible.

This is also necessary to protect from keying, imo. Vinyl wraps are a lot thinner than PPF and won't always protect the paint and don't always have the same self-healing properties good PPF has, so a scratch in it will remain while a minor scuff in PPF will often fade with a day in the sun.

 

[merc65fd]

I've looked into quite a bit too, and vinyl is almost universally cheaper than PPF by up to a 50% margin. I'm assuming those prices include PPF on top of vinyl, which is possible.

This is also necessary to protect from keying, imo. Vinyl wraps are a lot thinner than PPF and won't always protect the paint and don't always have the same self-healing properties good PPF has, so a scratch in it will remain while a minor scuff in PPF will often fade with a day in the sun.

I'll have to check with a friend of mine that owns a tint shop that does both to see why it would be so much cheaper. I would think the only difference in price would be the difference in cost of material, since the labor has got to be the same. Curious

 

[merc65fd]

I'll have to check with a friend of mine that owns a tint shop that does both to see why it would be so much cheaper. I would think the only difference in price would be the difference in cost of material, since the labor has got to be the same. Curious

Maybe the clay bar and cleaning doesnt have to be so good for vinyl. That would knock a lot of labor off.

 

[Need]

Maybe the clay bar and cleaning doesnt have to be so good for vinyl. That would knock a lot of labor off.

I remember reading that brand name PPF (Like Xpel) is just a LOT more expansive than normal vinyl. And vinyl is easier to work with and more forgiving if the size is not precise. Also I think the shop is also responsible for the PPF warranty which is usually very generous. Also maybe the price include some kind of paint correction which is not needed for vinyl wrap.