mafpolo

My Cayenne was recently PPF'd. I had the front end gallery wrapped. The quarter panels look great, there is one small area of bunching on the front bumper down low by a fog lamp. There are a few bubbles and multiple little "pin heads" on the hood. This was done two weeks ago, so the car has had plenty of time in the sun. Is this result normal? I am taking it back in to get rid of bubbles etc. Can the pin heads be taken care of, or will they need to reapply the hood? A different group did my wife's Panamera and there were no bubbles, issues, etc. when iI picked it up. That was an Expel dealer. This group uses a product they claim is as good as Expel. Now I wish I had just gone back to the Expel group.

Thoughts?

PHX

There should be no "pin" heads or bumps or air pockets. They might have to replace it. I would be present for them to tell you what they're going to do about it. That is installer application issues and not the actual product itself.

tmarino

This is the classic case of choosing the BEST installer you can find and NOT worrying about the actual product that is being used. The good installers will always be using the better products available as they have a reputation to uphold and one bad install travels travels across the US in minutes due to social media these days. Five years ago I went through the same dilemma and as everyone else does, I was worried about the initial cash outlay. After researching the crap out of it, the answer was always the same, find the best installer. I did that in Sacramento, CA, found the best referred installer and bit the bullet and let him do what he did best and here it is 6 years later, and the car looks almost better than then, if that can be!

BoxKing

Installer over anything else as stated above. Either way, I would have walked when someone told me they use a product thats "as good" as Expel or any other top brand. This screams cheap skate to me, looking for cost savings on lesser materials, and it appears they also cut corners on the job.

Take is back, get a finished product to your liking.

mafpolo

I took it to my friends who do use Expel. They told me that they can often get bubbles and pinheads out. Until they saw it......they asked me if the car was wrapped outside, because the pinheads are "trash and contaminants" Basically, it is take it off and start over. I want a refund from the original and then take it to them. I never should have trusted that dealer.....and I cannot believe they handed that car over to me like it is. I will be visiting with them tomorrow.

PHX

Let us know. And good luck!

MoeMistry

For educational purposes, please post some photos

The world of PPF/Ceramic/Tint has become SOOO saturated in past couple years that it’s truly buyer beware

Fancy lights/videos/youtube/IG by so-called “experts” have made it a Wild Wild West out there

the great shops are out there, you just have to work a little harder to find them and use your intuition/judgement

And as mentioned, buy the installer and his/her ecosystem/network…there’s tremendous value there if you find the right “guy/gal” when you need a solution…our industry doesn’t scale or use AI to produce results…it’s good old fashioned blood/swear/tears to produce a work of art

experience, knowledge, and expertise that has taken decades to perfect will come at a premium…as it should in any industry 👌

mafpolo

Moe, I know that I am picky, but it is a bad job. The dealer that had the guy do it for me told me that they would have him redo it. I realize that it is ridiculous, but I am thinking of writing the cost off (painful) or letting the dealer know they need to gt a refund/partial refund and pass it on to me. If I get zip, I still prefer to take it to the people I know do a good job (they are an Expel dealer). They were the ones who told me to bring it over, because they could fix the bubbles and had good luck with pin head bumps. Only when they saw the car is when they said, "We can't fix these, because the bumps are due to trash under the film." They pointed out some other issues. I've known them forever and should have gone there in the first place. They won't let a car leave unless it is done right. They have a huge body shop business (certified MB, Tesla, and one other that I can't recall. Said they recently opted to not add Porsche because of capacity). Their shop is large, is air conditioned, all glass doors, and you can eat off the floor. I realize it is stupid to pay twice if I have to, but do I really want a do over from somebody that obviously has zero pride in their work? I realize that my Cayenne is "just a Cayenne S,' but as I tell my dealer it is just as important to me as if it were a TGT or 011 Turbo S.

p.s. Classic Car (the Expel dealer) asked if the guy who applied the PPF did it outside. They apply PPF in a paint booth.

MoeMistry

I too am particular about things and try to be upfront with vendors in my business and personal life. Some may call us picky, but we’re not…we just want quality work done and those that lack the skill/desire end up putting the blame on us…but I digress 😊

If I were in your situation, I would take it to my preferred installer that you’ve had great experience with and just have them do the installation to your satisfaction

I would reach out to the GM at the dealership and explain the poor workmanship, how you trusted the dealer to have quality vendors instead of you using your own, and since results are not what you are use to, you want to cut your losses and get it back on track for a pleasant purchase experience

Request a full refund so that it can go towards something you would have done in first place

This seems reasonable

mafpolo

Update. I have taken ti to two very well respected PPF shops. Both told me that the PPF on my car is the worst job that they have ever seen. I am going to have it totally removed next week and completely redone. The second place I went to (they will do the work) are bot going to charge me to remove the current PPF, given that it is one month old now. They told me it is not leaving their shop until they are satisfied and I am satisfied. As for the guy who "took care of it for me." He and I are going to have a conversation regarding whomever he sent it to needs to refund him. He told me he already paid for it, because that shop has his Amex on file. Now I see two bad business practices. Not only does he fail to inspect the work, but he pays before inspecting the work.

The guys doing it started a PPF shop, ran it for ten years, and sold it to a big body shop. They had disagreements with the new owners, resigned and started over. They told me that they plan to use Stek on the PPF. The Stek is ceramic infused. They have given me a choice of Opti Coat or C quartz for ceramic cot on the rest of the car and wheels. Does anybody have a preference between those two?

mafpolo

Update. I dropped the car off at a very reputable and recommended PPF shop yesterday. They sent me a text saying once they go the car in their shop and under the lights, they found far more problems with the wrap than they had seen. They circled them and photographed them for me. They are removing everything, polishing, re-wrapping and then ceramic coating the car. The wrap is ceramic infused, so they are coating the rest of the car. They use a few ceramic products. I chose GTechniq, because I like their products and use GTechniq C2V3 as a drying agent, which will extend the life of the coating. I will let everybody know how it goes. I may also post some before and after pictures.