Paint Care/Protection Options

[jigish]

So I know the various options have been addressed in many topics but I have not seen a thread that compares them all yet. I'm trying to figure out what to do with my Model S and I'd like to know the pros/cons of the various paint protection options.
1. Full Wrap Paint Armor like Xpel Ultimate (or others)
2. Clear Coat like CQuartz, 22PLE, Opti Coat
3. Regular Washing+Waxing
4. Any other option I don't currently know about
Things I'd like to compare about the options:
1. Protection (e.g. what happens if a rock hits it on the road? will my paint scratch? is it self-healing?)
2. Appearance (e.g. does it make the paint look better or worse?)
3. Price
4. Difficulty of installation (e.g. is there a chance the installer will screw up my paint)
5. Can it be removed/replaced?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jerry33]

So I know the various options have been addressed in many topics but I have not seen a thread that compares them all yet. I'm trying to figure out what to do with my Model S and I'd like to know the pros/cons of the various paint protection options.
1. Full Wrap Paint Armor like Xpel Ultimate (or others)

That's what I did. SunTek paint armour.

3. Regular Washing+Waxing

You still have to do that, but you use special products that work with the wrap such as PF1 Crystalline.

1. Protection (e.g. what happens if a rock hits it on the road? will my paint scratch? is it self-healing?)

Paint armour protects the paint against rock chips. Some kinds are supposed to self-heal. No other method will protect against stone chips.

2. Appearance (e.g. does it make the paint look better or worse?)

This is very dependent upon the quality of installation.

3. Price

If ya gotta ask...

4. Difficulty of installation (e.g. is there a chance the installer will screw up my paint)

Yes. That's why you have to be careful of whom you choose.

5. Can it be removed/replaced?

Yes, it will just peel off. Expect five to eight years of life depending upon how you take care of it.

 

[jigish]

Great thanks for the input. I am leaning towards the full wrap as well, just wanted to see if there were any "better" options out there.

 

[yobigd20]

Great thanks for the input. I am leaning towards the full wrap as well, just wanted to see if there were any "better" options out there.

Keep it in your garage and don't go anywhere. Paint should stay in perfect condition.

 

[shokunin]

I did a combination. Paint correction detail then Optimum Opti-Coat 2.0 on everything and everywhere. Then a front bumper, hood, lights, fenders, and rear bumper wrapped in Xpel Ultimate. I could not justify wrapping the whole car. By far the hood takes the most abuse due to sun exposure, dust, dirt, leaves, and bird droppings all on a horizontal surface, so was worth a covering the whole hood.

The paint armor still needs some TLC, treat it as you would normal paint. Which means sealing and waxing (waxes without naptha and other solvents in it) on a regular basis.