PPF advice

[destinyred3]

Hey TMC,

I picked up a Red LR Model 3 on Nov 4th and have been loving my car so far. I would like to get PPF installed and was wondering if 3M Scotchcal Gloss Overlaminate 8518 would be good for a full wrap. Do you guys think it would be viable to use this as PPF? Or would you guys recommend sticking to XPEL, SunTek, or main stream PPFs?

 

[Wennfred]

Xpel all the way.

 

[SMAlset]

Not familiar with that brand or product but both our cars have full wraps with an Xpel product (Ultimate and Ultimate Plus) so have already made that decision. Given that PPF and a full wrap is expensive, I personally would stick with a known commodity and one that has a company large enough to stand by the product if there's any failure a number of years down the road. If mine started to peel or yellow, I'd want to know I had a good warranty.

BTW if you are going for PPF, I'd suggest seeing the work of any installers you are considering and let them tell you exactly how they will prep the car and install the wrap. Do they have a cutter or cut by hand? Pay extra attention to the front bumper area and side view mirrors on the Model 3s so you hopefully can see how they did in those areas. If they are certified in the product, the PPF company will step in to help you if you are unhappy with the installers work or have an issue with the product. Strongly suggest wrapping any edges where possible.

 

[destinyred3]

Xpel all the way.

View attachment 477809

Looks too good!

Not familiar with that brand or product but both our cars have full wraps with an Xpel product (Ultimate and Ultimate Plus) so have already made that decision. Given that PPF and a full wrap is expensive, I personally would stick with a known commodity and one that has a company large enough to stand by the product if there's any failure a number of years down the road. If mine started to peel or yellow, I'd want to know I had a good warranty.

BTW if you are going for PPF, I'd suggest seeing the work of any installers you are considering and let them tell you exactly how they will prep the car and install the wrap. Do they have a cutter or cut by hand? Pay extra attention to the front bumper area and side view mirrors on the Model 3s so you hopefully can see how they did in those areas. If they are certified in the product, the PPF company will step in to help you if you are unhappy with the installers work or have an issue with the product. Strongly suggest wrapping any edges where possible.

Yeah I have decided to stick with Xpel, I asked couple of people about Overlaminate 8518 and seems its would only last about 3 years which is not what I want. The shop installing will be cutting by hand and he's asking for 3 - 4 days to install it, is that normal?

 

[Kleenerth3]

Looks too good!



Yeah I have decided to stick with Xpel, I asked couple of people about Overlaminate 8518 and seems its would only last about 3 years which is not what I want. The shop installing will be cutting by hand and he's asking for 3 - 4 days to install it, is that normal?

Yes, for a full wrap. I agree with Wennfred, Xpel is one of the top PPF's with the best support. My clear bra took most of the day to install and I'm so glad I didn't wait. One week after installing, I hit an unfurled cord/ rope on the freeway that would have done a few thousand in damage to the front end. Good luck with yours!

 

[jkoya]

Yeah I have decided to stick with Xpel, I asked couple of people about Overlaminate 8518 and seems its would only last about 3 years which is not what I want. The shop installing will be cutting by hand and he's asking for 3 - 4 days to install it, is that normal?

I had full exterior Xpel Ultimate Plus PPF, tint and chrome delete installed on my 3. The installer had my car for 5 business days...

 

[Wennfred]

Getting a model Y, once it arrives, it will be in the shop for the frontal Xpel.

Fred

 

[SMAlset]

Looks too good!



Yeah I have decided to stick with Xpel, I asked couple of people about Overlaminate 8518 and seems its would only last about 3 years which is not what I want. The shop installing will be cutting by hand and he's asking for 3 - 4 days to install it, is that normal?

That doesn't sound out of line time-wise. I had Xpel Ultimate Plus full wrap and then Ceramic Pro and think they had it a week. Stuff needs to dry under lamps and any imperfections worked out and then for me needed the Ceramic Pro added. Not something you want rushed. With PPF you'll be asked not to wash the car for a period of time (might have been a week or two). Ceramic Pro I know takes few days to cure afterwards that you aren't suppose to get it wet. It's been a while since I had mine done so check with your installer as to what you need to do but be aware there is an immediate care period. Which BTW includes bringing the car back in for a wrap check up. Air bubbles, even with a great install, will happen and these need to be resolved. Also sometimes an edge will want to come up. They need to correct these areas while the adhesive of the PPF is still easy to work with.

As for hand cutting, I'd inspect the installer's work ahead of time. One thing you don't want is the knife cutting into your paint. Seen it here in photos on the forum from some unhappy owners. That why you want to find the best installer you can and why the labor can be high. You're paying for his skill. IMO definitely worth doing the PPF, and ceramic coating if you can. My husband liked my ceramic coating job so much that he took his car in like a year or so later to have the ceramic put on his car afterwards. Once again you want someone who knows how to properly prep the car.

Hardest part once you've just taken delivery is to send the car for PPF and ceramic. The wait seems for ever as each day passes but at least at that point you know it will be coming home for good soon.

 

[TMThree]

When you get PPF quotes, be sure to also ask about what they charge to uninstall. PPF isn't a lifetime product. Even a 10 year warranty ppf requires you to check to see if it's prematurely aging. Your paint can get really fubar if it ages into it.

Lets just say some ppf is much harder to remove than others. So the removal rates aren't the same. The extra strength adhesive is for installer ease, not for the customer.

Here's some pics and details about ppf removal issues:

Clear Film Removal | Ask a Pro Blog

I tend to swap cars out at around 4-6 years, so I generally don't have issues with removal. Just mentioning it for anyone else who hasn't considered it.