It's been brought to my attention that my posts may have been a little harsh, which is fair.
There were a lot of small issues that I didn't bother to bring to Dave's attention but then aired here on the forums and that wasn't really fair on him since he couldn't respond. The small things, I could live with, which is why I didn't raise them with him. But if he didn't know about them, he didn't have a chance to resolve them either.
One important discovery which bears mentioning, and others with a Model 3 should take note, is that the lifting issues weren't a problem for @DCEV because he had a Model S and that has a better paint job, clear coating all the way around the edges. Dave did mention that Tesla doesn't clear coat around the edges when I first got the car back (hence the need for trimming) but I thought he meant that was a problem for all Tesla models. That's why I was wondering why @DCEV's results were better than mine and didn't require trimming.
I also mentioned that it didn't have the best chance with all the storms and pollen being dumped in my area and not being able to garage it but I do want to emphasize you will get better results if you can avoid all that. I also should have washed it instead of waiting for Dave to have a free spot for the first wash. I just got paranoid because of the way the instructions say to let them do the first wash (didn't want to damage anything) even though that's based on the idea that you'll be back in a couple of weeks instead of the few weeks more that I had to wait.
They did do a pretty good job with the de-chroming, I probably just had unrealistic expectations of a flawless finish. A wrap is never going to look as good as paint or dipping or other options but those would require removal of all the chrome parts and that would be very pricey.
My main intention of writing about my experiences was to make sure people knew what to ask for and have clear expectations, I probably got lost in the weeds talking about little things but you will get a good job from them, especially if you have a Model S or X and a garage.
If you have a 3 or possibly Y (not sure about the paint on them), try to keep it covered for a little while and expect lifting and necessary trimming. Dave is very friendly and approachable (social distancing aside) so be sure to raise any concerns or issues with him. I'm terrible at confrontation and him being such a nice guy makes it even harder for me to say anything. I feel like I'm being an awful customer criticizing him in person but I really shouldn't have done it on the forums behind his back instead. A negative review was not my intention, I just wanted to express my experience was not the same as OP's. Now I understand that it is mostly due to the different Model and un-garaged conditions.
Oh, @PhilDavid, I got the Ultra Defense (which makes the edges even more difficult) and the ceramic coat all over.
I'm definitely washing it at home, I'll have to use a two-bucket method since there aren't any hoses I can use around here.
There were a lot of small issues that I didn't bother to bring to Dave's attention but then aired here on the forums and that wasn't really fair on him since he couldn't respond. The small things, I could live with, which is why I didn't raise them with him. But if he didn't know about them, he didn't have a chance to resolve them either.
One important discovery which bears mentioning, and others with a Model 3 should take note, is that the lifting issues weren't a problem for @DCEV because he had a Model S and that has a better paint job, clear coating all the way around the edges. Dave did mention that Tesla doesn't clear coat around the edges when I first got the car back (hence the need for trimming) but I thought he meant that was a problem for all Tesla models. That's why I was wondering why @DCEV's results were better than mine and didn't require trimming.
I also mentioned that it didn't have the best chance with all the storms and pollen being dumped in my area and not being able to garage it but I do want to emphasize you will get better results if you can avoid all that. I also should have washed it instead of waiting for Dave to have a free spot for the first wash. I just got paranoid because of the way the instructions say to let them do the first wash (didn't want to damage anything) even though that's based on the idea that you'll be back in a couple of weeks instead of the few weeks more that I had to wait.
They did do a pretty good job with the de-chroming, I probably just had unrealistic expectations of a flawless finish. A wrap is never going to look as good as paint or dipping or other options but those would require removal of all the chrome parts and that would be very pricey.
My main intention of writing about my experiences was to make sure people knew what to ask for and have clear expectations, I probably got lost in the weeds talking about little things but you will get a good job from them, especially if you have a Model S or X and a garage.
If you have a 3 or possibly Y (not sure about the paint on them), try to keep it covered for a little while and expect lifting and necessary trimming. Dave is very friendly and approachable (social distancing aside) so be sure to raise any concerns or issues with him. I'm terrible at confrontation and him being such a nice guy makes it even harder for me to say anything. I feel like I'm being an awful customer criticizing him in person but I really shouldn't have done it on the forums behind his back instead. A negative review was not my intention, I just wanted to express my experience was not the same as OP's. Now I understand that it is mostly due to the different Model and un-garaged conditions.
Oh, @PhilDavid, I got the Ultra Defense (which makes the edges even more difficult) and the ceramic coat all over.
I'm definitely washing it at home, I'll have to use a two-bucket method since there aren't any hoses I can use around here.