ENCT

I put PPF on my Z06, I did not like the finished product so I will not do that again. I also had a few cars coated. One with Opti Coat, One with CQuartz Finest, and this one with Ceramic Pro. I am sick of paying high dollar for coatings so I purchased a Rupes polisher and all the stuff needed for a paint correction. I did my wife's A6 this weekend and coated it with CQuartz TI02. Car came out looking great. I will practice again on my Jeep Grand Cherokee and then I will do my C4S when it arrives in March. I was not a fan of the PPF but I do like the coatings. Paint correction on a new car is a joke, a one stage polish at most is what is needed. The coatings take about a hour to do, problem is the better coatings are only available to certified installers. I am not convinced it is all not the same stuff with a marketing scheme.
Eric

bmedude

FINALLY SOMEONE THAT UNDERSTANDS! I've been trying to talk people out of these things for the longest time, but no one ever listens. I'm looking forward to having an excuse to buy a Rupes in the near future :-D

FLT951

The perfect solution is a car with significant damage on every surface or a wrap depicting same. Spending thousands of dollars to prevent $100s of work just seems very odd to me when it also doubles or triples the cost of remedial. And then a piano falls on the car.

Gonzalo38

I have a 991.2 as a daily driver. No need to wrap in my opinion.

For around US$ 400 I got a full detail work on the car and they applied Crystral Serum from GTechniq. Couldn't be happier with the results.

Gary JR

It is a matter of degree. Film will protect to a much greater degree than coating. A flying peeble that may protected filmed paint may not protect coated. Do you feel lucky today?

Detailed Designs

PPF is not perfect for everyone. Because there are portions on cars that are impossible to cost-effectively wrap without a single edge expose, no matter how small or tight the margin, some folks will not like it.

In terms of texture, that should not be an issue with some of the films available now.

Cost? Yeah, some will not like spending money on film to be applied because they just do not value the service nor protection. There is not a magic bullet for someone who is okay with rock chips when facing spending money on a film designed to offer the best rock chip protection available. They just don't like it and that is okay!

But for folks who hate rock chips, pitting, rash, scratches, swirl marks or want significant vandalism protection for a car that cost more than a starter home in Atlanta, clear bra knocks it out of the park.

As someone who makes their living installing clear bra, coatings, dash cams and more, I recognize that these services are not the right fit for everyone. I do not mean to suggest anyone should change their mind in regards to PPF. Just state that PPF is, hands down, the best protection for folks who hate those things. There is no substitute for the protection PPF gives and it is only getting better year by year.

5 years ago what was seen as a good looking clear bra installation would not be a good looking one today. The films are better, there are more skilled craftsmen available in more parts of the world and expectations are higher. If it has been years since someone has had clear bra installed and they were not happy with it back then, it may be reasonable to take another look at what is available now. That doesn't mean to test out the waters by jumping in and spending money. It means going to look at finished projects at a facility to see what is possible from different shops. I am really big on folks coming by to look at our work because I think it sells itself. Any other shop that is worth anything will feel the same and want you to look at their capability before buying.

OP, I know based off your description, who you are talking to in the NW. J and B have been installing clear bra for many years and are highly skilled. In that area, they are likely the most qualified to give you incredible results along with years of them standing behind it.

justabout

Rennlist in much more useful when we get positive and negative opinions. Until the paint manufacturers come up with better paints we are trading one set of problems for another. BTW, I have a 14 year old European car that has very few paint chips while one 4 year old BMW SUV is already trashed up front. We are getting screwed by paint manufacturers or is the paint too thin?

Gary JR

You mean paints. There are 6 layers.

ENCT

I have just gotten to the point in my life where I want to drive and enjoy my car and not stress over the condition of it. I try to spend more time taking care of myself so I will have more time to enjoy my cars. To each there own and if it works for some than that is great.
Plus the best way to preserve a cars finish is to leave it in the garage.
Eric

Gary JR

I have just gotten to the point in my life where I want to drive and enjoy my car and not stress over the condition of it.

/my version

Highyo

I have just gotten to the point in my life where I want to drive and enjoy my car and not stress over the rattles in it

/the real version

lvdg

Anyone tried STEK DYNOshield? My local installed just switched also.

Speed2000

No it is not. STEK is made in Korea and Suntek is made by Eastman Kodak in the United States. We tried a couple rolls of the Stek when it came out about a year ago but were not impressed. Been using Suntek for over five years and couldn't be happier with the product or their customer service from an installer standpoint.

One of the problems with any "new" PPF product is they all look great in the beginning but only time will tell how it holds up. I learned a valuable lesson over 15 years ago when I tried an new brand of film that looked much better than the 3M I started with. Luckily for me, I only used it on black and white cars (3M looked horrible on black and turned yellow on white) and after about six months it turned to mush. Had I totally switched back then I would have gone bankrupt as the lifetime warranty with the film didn't cover turning to mush.

FifthGear

The entire Island of Montreal appears to be under construction at the moment. It's a sea of orange cones and devastation as far as the eye can see. The dirt, dust, big stones, little stones, gravel streets -- it's a complete nightmare. I'm realizing that I probably should have bought a '73 V8 Interceptor and just Mad Max'd my way around town.

I put Suntek on most of the car a couple of weeks after taking delivery and just couldn't be happier. My new car has less sound deadening too, and I hear every stone as if it were a stripped out track car. If it weren't for the PPF, I'd be losing my mind and wouldn't be able to enjoy the car.

Believe me, I love my Rupes and the miracles it's performed, but I experimented correcting a small chip with the GT Silver touchup paint and clear from the dealer, and the color was clearly off to my eye. Given the situation, it's PPF all the way for me.

And the cool thing is, when you're done with it, just rip it off...

Surge74

Agreed. That's what I use on my C63 507, and what I will use on my 993 911.
I've had it with over-priced, egomaniac detailers that do a lame job for the $ (Toronto area detailers, I'm referring to you!). Honestly, charging $500 for a single-stage polish and coating is totally over-priced. You can do it yourself in a few hours. For $500 you can buy two Rupes machines that will last forever. YouTube is revealing just how easy it is to DIY what the "pros" do.

As far as a wrap: paint is like skin, it needs to breathe. A wrap is not a great idea for the underlying paint. And if you get a water spot or other stain on it, good luck getting it out - nightmare!!
And stones will still chip or dent it - it helps with the small ones, but not the larger ones, and those are the ones that do the most damage.