haripin

Has anyone had paint lift off after removing old ppf from the rear panels on their gt3?

ive been told that there’s a 50% chance that removal even by a professional could result in paint lifting off.

RapidGT

If it’s original paint then PPF removal if done properly shouldn’t peel off any paint. If it’s had paintwork then it may peel off some paint in that area. All of my cars haven’t had any paintwork and in the times I’ve had PPF removed it has never taken off any paint.

haripin

@RapidGT
Paint is original but so is the PPF -- been on there since 2010ish from what I understand. It's starting to yellow so I'd like to have a professional remove it and ppf the entire car but I was advised that there is a chance some of the paint could lift off on removal.

RapidGT

There is somewhat a chance is could remove paint if it’s that aged. I would still do it anyway as it will only get worse and more noticeable overtime. Make sure you use a shop you trust and it will probably require a lot of time and patience as the PPF may come off in multiple pieces.

ChrisF

My GT2 came with a VERY old and weathered front half bra (why does anyone do half the hood!?!?!). It was at least 5+ years old, likely closer to 10. I had my local shop remove and replace the whole nose.

When I came back to pick it up, the shop said it was one of the hardest removals they'd ever done. He said, he spent hours slowly removing it and still had to spend lots more time removing significant amounts of leftover adhesive. He said the secret was to do it slowly and not rush. Zero paint removal or damage.

My thought is that if done patiently and methodically, the paint should never get damaged. Paint is all original BTW I would only be a concerned if there was a possible bad respray underneath. Even then, I think unlikely.

haripin

Thanks, this is nice to hear. Yeah paint is all original but I want to avoid ripping paint off. Sounds like I have to do it anyway

my first 911

I just removed the PPF on the front half of my 08 GT3 with no issues. It was pretty yellow and it was closer to 10years old than it was to 5 years old. The bumper cover had been resprayed and even it wasn't too bad. If you are doing it yourself there are a few tips I found along the way but the biggest help was plastic razor blades and 3m adhesive remover. It's cool to see how white the car is after removing it. Now to come up with the funds to cover the entire car!!

Thanks,
Dave

Carrera2RS

If you pull carefully after heating with a hot air gun (Warm not HOT) then it should peel relatively easily. If its really trouble some warm a little more. If you are careful it will take some time to get the right balance of warmth and force. First time I did it (no one was prepared to undertake the job) I spent a while getting the balance right, but made sure I didn't overheat. Removing adhesive is a pain as well, lots of tar remover wash look and repeat

Apart from the arch covers I dont touch the stuff

HarmonyJim

I had 15 year-old 3M film removed recently. They had to pick much of it off with their fingernails, a tiny bit at a time. Took days to remove it. Did not harm the paint in the least.

ard

tl;dr: no

Having just gone through this (removing ~14 year old film) I had similar concerns. I did the removal myself. I parked the car in the sun for a couple of hours and when performing the removal I pulled the film slowly at a very obtuse angle to the surface. If you remove the film yourself, wear gloves, otherwise the very strong adhesive on the film will rip off the skin on your knuckles - ask me how I know

MattDFW

AMMO NYC has a tip about pouring hot water on the PPF and remove after the film has warmed up. I've used this trick and it works very well. Amazon sales the electric kettle for $22. Beats steaming and works very well.

Spyerx

Detailer with a steam gun. Go slow, detail car after. I have Suntek on my car ... oh it was installed...2014? Dreading day. need to swap it its TATTERED.

flat6fan18

This is what my ppf guy did. As long as it hasn’t baked in the sun for long periods of time over many years and it hasn’t hardened, it should peel off once you warm up the adhesive. Original paint should not come off. Theoretically lol

Did you find/buy a gt3?

vma1788

Just redid the front PPF on my car and shared the same concerns but it went so much smoother than i had expected. I am unsure of the age but it had to be at least 5 years old. I helped the shop remove it and using a steamer it came off in less than 2 hours. No paint damage and everything underneath looked perfect!

Carrera2RS

In part this is why I will never fit PPF in any locations other than the rear arches. Although lots of U-tube videos claiming the finish when you detail, paint correct and PPF with the latest it looks as good or better than paint and the colour us identical. I have never seen this and it never looks as nice. It's paint protection, so long as the car has original paint you don't leave it on for too many years. As they get older they look worse and degrade far quicker than original paint, I suspect they all yellow, my BMW on a 2109 3M product did. The cost is crazy and often even the best stick a scalpel somewhere and do some hidden damage. Also fit lines can be compromised as doors and fittings are removed and incorrectly lined up when refitting. Plus they help with small stone chips but not big rocks. It adds several Kg to the car and a small problem in some area is as expensive to repair and paint.

The concept and reality are amiss in my view. To repaint a front bumper is a fraction of the price of maintaining a plastic wrap, seems bizarre to me that people still think its a great idea to spend £5-10k on a new car to get it covered in glue a plastic !