Looking for a recommendation for a PPF installer in Atlanta for a new 2018 Carrara White Metallic GT3 I am taking delivery on in May. Concerned about the quality of the work more than the price for full front coverage and wheels/calipers. The ones I have contacted include:

Apogee
Shine Auto
Detailed Designs
Atlanta Protective Films

Any experiences with the above tor any others in Atlanta that I can learn from to make the right informed decision? Thanks in advance for your feedback and advice. Appreciate it.

 

Just had my Gelbgrun car wrapped by Derek at Atlanta protective films - as always he's no BS, gets to work and does a flawless job.

Detailed Designs did a full wrap on my RS - Amazing work, attention to detail is top notch, and they do paint correction and coating if you want that done too.

Also have a look at Southeast Auto Shield - Was surprised to hear their client list today in a conversation - they seem to be doing very good work.

In the end, talk to them all and find the one you connect with the most. I can highly recommend APF and DD, and suggest you look at SEAS

Sean

 

 

I've just had my GT3T done at Shine Auto. I haven't seen the finished product in person yet but the service has been top notch so far and you can see the finished product here:

 

x2 for Detailed Designs & Jean Claude

I called him with some PPF/paint questions all the way from Honolulu where obviously he wasn't going to get my business and still took an hour or so to go through all my of questions with me which I really appreciated. He had honest answers/detailed info for me, and reports on RL projects he's working on for you to see

If I was in the area that is where my car would be going

 

 

I'm as picky as they come. JC at Detailed designs is the ONLY guy who has 100% lives up to my expectations. Go to him and don't look back! Worth every penny!

 

Hey guys, thanks for all the kind words. I am so grateful that all of you have trusted me at a given time with your precious toys or have seen enough value to reach out to me for assistance. We need money to stay open but the kind words gives me satisfaction when my knees and neck are screaming at me to stop haha!

I think Sean hit the nail on the head. Chat around and see who connects with your personality and the lifestyle you'll live with your car. Even as one of the ones you are considering I recognize that my facility is not the right fit for every car/owner/project/schedule. My #1 thing is letting folks know what we are about and then making myself available should someone wish to explore using us. But with full disclosure in mind....scheduling your appointment with us is not a fast process. Not because of a lack of desire to take on new clients or because I am a pompous(Steve....staaahhhp ), but because we are a low-volume operation with a healthy demand it's more difficult for me to quickly accept new clients. But once inside, you're in the club, so to speak, and every call that I can possibly take is answered or returned ASAP. I just can't water down that experience for our loyal clients for the sake of chasing new sources of revenue. I hope anyone calling that is not a saved telephone number and getting my voicemail understands why I take that position. But if you do leave a VM, I will call you as soon as I possibly can.

So if one can be patient while we work towards staying true to my vision for exactly what we do and how we do it, I go through great efforts to make sure the wait is worthwhile. And I always welcome folks to come by and see our work first hand as long as it's scheduled. But be prepared. Pork N Bean Rockdale County is a minute's drive away from most Porsche owners. :P

 

 

Saying "the coatings are all relatively the same" is akin to saying "cars are all relatively the same"

To the vast majority of people, cars really are pretty much all the same, they get you from point a to point b. To the vast majority of people, coatings and wax etc are all the same. BUT, to a higher than usual percentage of people who ARE car enthusiasts, the coatings are NOT AT ALL the same. I put a lower end coating on my wife's car, and Modesta on my daily driver. They're both washed by the same place at approx the same frequency. My car has held up WAY better and has a much better gloss to it. They're both parked side by side and the same color.

As Detailed said above, they're not for everybody. That's why there is chocolate and Vanilla ice cream. But just because you like chocolate, doesn't make them all the same!

 

With all due respect, you're neither correct nor are you in touch with what many people want. Maybe you don't want our version of highly refined but there are many that do. Essentially, you're mocking those same people here by inferring they are more sheeple than particular car enthusiasts who are comfortable paying to get what they want from someone who is willing to do it. But so you know, I have never told anyone they must take their paint to the point where 1/4 of a panel takes 2 hours(aside from my capabilities). There is a good amount of convincing me required on the client's behalf before I am willing to do such a job for someone. Many just do not understand what doing that kind of work will mean in upkeep. I offer my clients a range of paint correction levels and options on PPF installations. During paint correction consultations, I ask clients where they want their paint on a scale of 1-10 and I will thoroughly explain what their measure of refinement will mean in terms of long term care. Once decontaminated, I will follow up based upon their feedback they had given me so they always know where their project is and to see if they wish for any adjustments before laying film.

And for those that wish us apply a coating, I have turned away a lot of work because of my holding firm to my standards. I think you'll find a lot of shop owners have a willingness to bend their standards when a client is going to walk if they don't get a good old fashion ear-tickling from a yes man. Does anyone wonder what corners are cut behind closed doors when someone is so flexible on their standards?? I will not bend my bottom-line standard regardless of someone walking.

Maybe you'll find an email I sent a client last weekend on your subject interesting. His dream car is with us and he was the one that made sure I knew he wanted PC before a full wrap and yet I am following up with him to make sure he understands it's not necessary There is no vibe of you need this or need that. It is matter of fact and I go through this effort to make sure he doesn't have buyer's remorse years down the road when reflecting on his experience with me:
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"After decontaminating, as is typical with PTS 911's, it's clear that the paint has defects that merit paint correction should you wish to have that performed prior to the full body clear bra wrap.

I anticipate about 19'ish hours of corrective work and our rate is $95 per hour. My advice is to aim for 8.5 of 10 in terms of how far we go with any paint correction. The 8.5 provides excellent bang for the buck while not being over the top. If you want 10 out of 10, expect 40'ish hours. There is a greatly diminished return on each dollar spent jumping to 10 out of 10. Though, as always, I will fall back to what you feel is the best path for you.

As a reminder. Paint correction is optional for a full-body clear bra wrap. Even if you do not have the paint corrected, it will look beautiful when we are done."
(I said all of this to him based upon everything he had told me up to that point which I obviously can't possibly type out or practically share. But my goal was to lay out 3 possible paths, keep what he has which would look beautiful without PC/spending another dollar, do the 8.5 to address the major defects without going crazy -which was what he originally outlined was important to him, and, if he really wanted something bananas, a 10 out of 10 which I clearly identify as not being a good value give all the nuances. In any case, people change their minds/circumstance change and it's my job to make sure my client is confident in their final decision.)
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But I have talked significantly more of my clients out of the kind of service you're mocking me over than the amount of those services we have performed. So to say "Detail Is Designed to extract $ $.$." is just an unfounded attempt at at being witty and rude to me. It does not reflect what I do at all. I'll be at Caffeine and Exotics tomorrow though. Feel free to drop by our spot(look for the big flag) and tear me apart, in person, for us doing what we do while we display our work. Anyone that hears you out and inspects our efforts with their own eyes will see what our deal is in the flesh. They can form their own opinion based upon what they see.

By your previous comment it's clear you're satisfied with other vendors in town and maybe you're even friends with them. I've nothing bad to say of anyone else around town and I am glad you've found the right fit for your needs. You're welcome to your subjective opinion but I am not going to roll over when you mock or unfairly criticize me in print. I am not perfect but you're 100% wrong in trying to pin me as a person who would deceive or take advantage of my clients. Moving forward, if you want to talk directly to me, feel free to call me at my direct mobile number 678.859.1795 and please leave a message or text me to call you. Otherwise, I've nothing more to say on the matter with you. Though I do wish you the best.

Kind regards,

 

$95/hour to detail cars, when is this economy going to correct itself

 

I've spent a good amount of time on the phone (and in person) with JC discussing various options for multiple cars over the last year or so and never got the impression that he was pushing me into spending more money or even made a lesser option seem like it didn't fit my needs. I trust the guy a ton. He's super **** and passionate about his work and is as much of a straight shooter as it gets.

 

Just had my 10 year old film removed and replaced by Derek at Atlanta Protective Films. He did a fantastic job - much better than the original. Very professional and beautiful work.

 

+1 for Derek. He did my current 812 and my previous F12. Outstanding attention to detail. Not the cheapest, but cheaper seldom equals better.