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Assuming one does cover the lights, isn't the worst case scenario that you just reapply a fresh clear mask if it needs to be replaced? Just about every film has UV protection, so should still protect the lights. I don't see a heat issue, esp with LED headlights.
Andy, I wonder if you can use it on paint protection film?
Would make removing bug and other debris much easier from a long road trip.
Actually, I bet you could given that the better films essentially have a clear coat equivalent as a top layer. The only downside might be trying to pick it out of the edges of the film... For those of us unfortunate enough not to have wrapped edges.
To keep bugs off of my film I'll be applying Optimum Gloss Coat (hopefully tomorrow). I applied it to the paint when I got my car and I was genuinely surprised at how well bugs and other crap came off during a wash. You can apply that on top of film and a lot of film installers seem to offer that now as an additional service (typically Optimum OptiCoat Pro).
Now, though, I'm thinking of this paint-on product as a temporary solution for my rocker panels. I should have them filmed but I was too cheap to shell out for it. Maybe it'll keep them in good order until I get around to it?
=IrishAndy;12616642]
To keep bugs off of my film I'll be applying Optimum Gloss Coat (hopefully tomorrow). I applied it to the paint when I got my car and I was genuinely surprised at how well bugs and other crap came off during a wash. You can apply that on top of film and a lot of film installers seem to offer that now as an additional service (typically Optimum OptiCoat Pro).
I am just going to put a layer of Xpel over my layer Xpel to protect it.
I am just going to put a layer of Xpel over my layer Xpel to protect it.
Films are great for impacts (and now light scratches in some cases) but they do stain easily and lack UV protection. Modern coatings do those things very well...
Maybe a layer of Saran Wrap would also keep it fresh??
Assuming one does cover the lights, isn't the worst case scenario that you just reapply a fresh clear mask if it needs to be replaced? Just about every film has UV protection, so should still protect the lights. I don't see a heat issue, esp with LED headlights.
No, the worst case scenario is your headlamps looking like crap because the coating partially peeled off during installation AND losing UV protection because as mentioned above, films specifically DON'T have UV protection to allow paint to fade equally across protected and unprotected panels. Also, these headlamps aren't LED.
Why would it be safe to assume this spray-on "film" wouldn't affect the headlights' UV coating just as much as regular film?
I'm sure some temporary sprays and paint-ons work differently, so I won't dare speak to all, but I have tested a lot with 3M Paint Defender and I don't see that stull pulling anything off of anything (*see caveats below). Rather than a separate (relatively heavy) film bonded with an adhesive the spray-on is just one product. It's almost a cling effect. It definitely adheres well but nowhere near as strongly as a film... that's why it's only rates for a year.
* I applied it to one headlight on my TSX, so the proof of the pudding will be when I try to remove it. Since you reminded me I'll try removing it today to see what happens!
* 3M doesn't actually recommend this for headlights. I've been testing to try to work out why. I certainly found no head build-up issues which I've specifically tested for
OK - I completed my 3M Paint Defender testing. This stuff has been on one headlamp for weeks now...
On the final heat test (letting the car bake in the sun and see what radiant head did) the uncovered headlamp was 6 degrees hotter (not colder!) than the one with the 3m spray (111 vs. 104).
Removal was tedious but came off in a few larger pieces and a few smaller pieces (took maybe 5 minutes, but it was a boring 5 minutes). Spraying on thicker would probably help.
Peeling it off from one corner. Not difficult, but I'd rather be doing something else instead
After removal it didn't appear to affect any coating on the headlamp whatsoever. It now looks identical to the untreated headlamp, which is to say it looks much worse than when the film was on it.
So, no adverse effects that I've been able to find so far, and one surprising finding:
This stuff is like infomercial beauty cream for older headlights. It seems to fill all of the pits and scratches in the headlights on application and the effect doesn't seem to diminish at all. It doesn't repair anything... it's just a really good masking effect. If I was an unscrupulous car dealer I would spray this stuff on the headlights of every older car I had for sale.
Here's a pic with the film partially removed. You can see how junky the original headlight surface is and how nice the parts with the film attached still look:
Look at the triangular section in the middle of the lens... That's part has the film removed. It looks like it's old pitted scratchy self, whereas the areas around it still look great.
One other thing: the film is very grabby because of the nature of the material, but I found that you can spray wax it like anything else and it becomes just as slick as paint.
Well, there you go. I'm a fan, though it's not a direct substitute for paint protection film by any means. The way I see it it's either the thinnest paint protection film in the world or the thickest paint sealant in the world... it's somewhere in between the two.
It definitely works on smaller areas such as headlights. On larger areas it would work too, but the risk of under-spraying or over-spraying becomes much higher obviously, and having to peel it off again, re-mask and re-spray would get tedious.
I tried an abrasion test yesterday by spraying a rectangle on a test panel and attacking it with 120 grit. The unprotected paint got scratched badly, but the protected area was completely unscathed (other than the scratches that were already on the test panel)
my bigger concern is the solvent used in the spray reacting to whatever the headlight material is made of.
It's actually water-based, so there are no harsh solvents (or solvent smell). For the very same reason it takes a somewhat tedious 2-4 hours to dry, but at least you don't have to worry about something like solvent reaction.
09-24-2015, 12:51 AM
