Paint protection?

[Fellsteruk]

hi

So read about lots of things I can do and honestly other than washing my cars properly I’ve never done anything special to protect paint so what worth me doing on my X?

Ste

 

[WannabeOwner]

I haven't even bothered to wash my cars in the past ... occasionally had them Valeted if I had to pick up someone important from the station for a business meeting ...

... but I figured spending £100K on a car might need a different approach, and I would be more likely to get annoyed at stone chips on the bonnet ...

... so I had it wrapped (some sort of very-robust cling film). I think it was about £1,500 for front-facing surfaces, and £4K for the lot.

I was side-swiped by a big car (Range Rover type) on a roundabout, pulling away from lights, at relatively low speed. Side of the car looked like it had been scraped down a brick wall, but when I got home I washed it (yeah, made an exception just this once!) and there was no paint damage at all, and some scratches self-healed. It did have a couple of minor-ish dents,which did have to be repaired, but from a distance you would have been hard pressed to known anything was wrong. I was impressed ...

I think that translates into scratches from hedgerows, where I snuggle up to avoid someone coming the other way, will be fine.

Bird Poo (still needs washing off, but not so urgently, and worst case just replace the Wrap on that panel) and stone chips are not an issue.

Car is easier to clean, but I still don't bother ...

There are other coatings etc. available, but Wrap is the only one I know.

I felt decidedly poor at the Detailers that did the job ... everything else parked there was an order of magnitude more expensive!

 

[DJP31]

The poor mans version of a wrap is ceramic coating. This definitely won’t deal with events described above, maybe think of it as nail varnish rather than cling film, but it makes washing the car a relative piece of cake and it retains the shine better. The price varies between £350-£1k depending on whether you have wheels, glass etc done, and some coatings are more durable than others.

I had mine treated with Gtechniq and it cost £500. It wasn’t the heavy duty Gtechniq version but has been excellent, and minor marks will come off the car, If you can see through the tears in your eyes.

You are showing signs of becoming a fully paid up member of the obsessive Tesla owners club, so don’t forget the snow foam lance to go with the power washer, 2 buckets and lambs wool wash mitts, de ionised water and micro fibre cloths.

I have to admit to washing my car more than I have washed all my other cars put together. And I’m nearly an old codger.

 

[Fellsteruk]

Thanks guys will start to look around my local area for suppliers and prices.

I’m actually one of these sad people that enjoy cleaning their cars and would think nothing of spending 4 hours, already got snow foam lance, it’s like Christmas with every wash, not helped by the fact I tend to get it everywhere but it’s fun

The winter is a different story but in the summer I’ll wash, clay, polish and wax so if any of the above coatings help reduce the effort of that, added protection then it sounds good.

 

[Peteski]

I went with ceramic coating from PPProtect, which cost £449. They are based in the Midlands, but also have a mobile service for £499

I chose PPProtect on the basis that they have a very good reputation among Tesla owners with dozens, if not hundreds of recommendations. It's a father and son team, so no question over who will be doing the work and as you know, preparation is everything with these things.

I am very pleased with the result and pricing, although I haven't cleaned the car since so can't comment on its effectiveness yet!

 

[DJP31]

@Peteski you’re right, PPProtect have an excellent rep on the FB group. Curiously every detailer that does ceramic coating I’ve spoken to wants your vehicle in a building to allow the coating to cure without dust or other particles carried by the wind potentially attaching to the car. Richard comes to you and erects a gazebo type affair.

Kidology from the location based detailers, or potentially a less than perfect result from the mobile guys? No axe to grind either way, just interested.

 

[Beady3647]

I went with ceramic coating from PPProtect, which cost £449. They are based in the Midlands, but also have a mobile service for £499

I chose PPProtect on the basis that they have a very good reputation among Tesla owners with dozens, if not hundreds of recommendations. It's a father and son team, so no question over who will be doing the work and as you know, preparation is everything with these things.

I am very pleased with the result and pricing, although I haven't cleaned the car since so can't comment on its effectiveness yet!

I'm running a 65 plate P85D and intend to keep it for a number of years yet. I'd certainly be interest in PPProtect especially having viewed their website via your link. My problem is that over the last 30 months of use, I have quite a few minor swirl marks on the paintwork and also quite a bad blemish on the rear bumper due to a very minor rear end experience. Can you remember the process that they used, would it include an effort to 'restore' the paintwork prior to their application?

I know I could probably find out by contacting them direct, but I would prefer to hear first hand from a user with nothing to gain/lose, so any information you could give would be helpful

 

[Fellsteruk]

Swirl marks can be removed with a good detail, may need some more work than a brand new car but should be possible I’d thought...

 

[Peteski]

I'm running a 65 plate P85D and intend to keep it for a number of years yet. I'd certainly be interest in PPProtect especially having viewed their website via your link. My problem is that over the last 30 months of use, I have quite a few minor swirl marks on the paintwork and also quite a bad blemish on the rear bumper due to a very minor rear end experience. Can you remember the process that they used, would it include an effort to 'restore' the paintwork prior to their application?

I know I could probably find out by contacting them direct, but I would prefer to hear first hand from a user with nothing to gain/lose, so any information you could give would be helpful

Their service does include paint correction in the preparation, so swirl marks should be no issue. Not sure about your bumper, but I'm sure they would advise.

 

[Peteski]

@Peteski you’re right, PPProtect have an excellent rep on the FB group. Curiously every detailer that does ceramic coating I’ve spoken to wants your vehicle in a building to allow the coating to cure without dust or other particles carried by the wind potentially attaching to the car. Richard comes to you and erects a gazebo type affair.

Kidology from the location based detailers, or potentially a less than perfect result from the mobile guys? No axe to grind either way, just interested.

I asked this very question and It is down to the curing time. The coating PPProtect use apparently has little or no solvent and cures almost instantly. Some of the others like GTechniq can require several hours to cure.

But I did get mine done at Richard's workshop to ensure the best possible result. He did say that their mobile service is weather dependent. High wind and/or very cold weather can be a show stopper, in which case they would re-schedule the work.