Paint Protection Film

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I’m a HUGE believer in PPF. 3M is garbage (OE)- but better than nothing, Llumar is good, XPEL is best. Both Llumar and XPEL have 10-yr warranty, both will remove easy, both will not yellow. This stuff has gotten much better over the years. i recommend every Land Cruiser with A/T tires get the rocker panels done before you bring it home. With certified XPEL installers you can get each piece cut on their plotters for perfect fit. I would say 99% of the car is loaded on their system. I’ll list my pricing for reference. Keep in mind, big shop will charge more, since they’ll have loaners, advertising, employees, and maybe high rent. That’s ok, let them make a few bucks, they’ll be there in 5yrs if you ever have an issue.
  • Rockers $600
  • Partial frontal $895 (front bumper, 17” up hood, partial fenders)
  • Full frontal $1595 (front bumper, entire hood, entire front fenders
  • Entire roof $500
  • Awning protection $200/side (above windows)
  • Door cups $50
  • Door edge guards $100
  • Headlights $100
  • Entire Land Cruiser $4500
You absolutely can wax the new stuff, even better, Ceramic Coat it for about $1500 (Ceramic Pro gold)
 
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Suntek and Xpel have hydrophobic coatings in their latest products. No need for ceramic coating, sealant or wax on top of film — at least until the hydrophilic properties of the film wear out.
 
Audiophilitis said:
Suntek and Xpel have hydrophobic coatings in their latest products. No need for ceramic coating, sealant or wax on top of film — at least until the hydrophilic properties of the film wear out.
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I’d respectfully disagree that there is no need for Ceramic Coat. If your “that guy” that wants ultimate protection and shine, Ceramic is quite hard and smooths out micro valleys in the PPF very well. No need for soap when washing your car, just a water hose and shammy. Ceramic on PPF will look far more brilliant than without.
pic below is PPF + ceramic. Pic doesn’t do justice, but it makes a big difference

0C1D0612-CD83-4416-8B25-EDB3E642E149.jpeg
 
Eric Sarjeant said:
I’d respectfully disagree that there is no need for Ceramic Coat. If your “that guy” that wants ultimate protection and shine, Ceramic is quite hard and smooths out micro valleys in the PPF very well. No need for soap when washing your car, just a water hose and shammy. Ceramic on PPF will look far more brilliant than without.
pic below is PPF + ceramic. Pic doesn’t do justice, but it makes a big difference

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That looks nice!

Agree with benefits of ceramic coating over hydrophobic PPF for “shine.” For “protection” however, it’s like “protecting the protectant” — but I can see why people do it. Cheers!
 
Curious if anyone has experience with XPEL Stealth. I’m a fan of the satin look but I’d be interested if it’s similar from a protection and a cost standpoint.
 
adamb said:
Curious if anyone has experience with XPEL Stealth. I’m a fan of the satin look but I’d be interested if it’s similar from a protection and a cost standpoint.
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I have it on the hood and roof of one of my cars to cover exposed carbon panels. It’s non-hydrophobic therefore a coating is recommended.
 
You can leave PPF on as long as you want. I've removed 15+ year old film off a Carrera GT that used really old/sticky 3M film. The entire car was wrapped. No paint came up besides one of the rocker panels....which...SURPRISE were repainted improperly and were not allowed time to cure before film was installed back in its day. If you're installing film on a bad aftermarket paintjob, it doesn't matter if you remove film after 5 years or 5 days....that paint will come up. OEM paint is never an issue. I do this for a living with 10+ years experience. We use Suntek and some XPEL here and there. Suntek is def. the preferred brand.
 
Kabanstva said:
You can leave PPF on as long as you want. I've removed 15+ year old film off a Carrera GT that used really old/sticky 3M film. The entire car was wrapped. No paint came up besides one of the rocker panels....which...SURPRISE were repainted improperly and were not allowed time to cure before film was installed back in its day. If you're installing film on a bad aftermarket paintjob, it doesn't matter if you remove film after 5 years or 5 days....that paint will come up. OEM paint is never an issue. I do this for a living with 10+ years experience. We use Suntek and some XPEL here and there. Suntek is def. the preferred brand.
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Oh, boy, I hope you're right. I pulled like 6 years old film (probably XPEL) without issues. Now, I am planning removing 3M from my 2006 Elise. It's in good condition, but figured it's way past its time and would be good to replace it.
 
unclemat said:
Oh, boy, I hope you're right. I pulled like 6 years old film (probably XPEL) without issues. Now, I am planning removing 3M from my 2006 Elise. It's in good condition, but figured it's way past its time and would be good to replace it.
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Like I said earlier, the age of the film doesn’t matter. We do a lot of old Porsches at the shop and I’ve removed original “sharkfins” (the area on the quarter panel just in front of the rear wheels) off of 40+ year old 911s plenty of times without issues. That film they used back in the 80s was complete crap compared to today’s “coated” films which they started producing around 2011. The old film would come off in little chunks and in some cases even crack. Makes the removal process a PITA but if it’s good paint underneath, no worries about pulling the paint at all. Heatgun is your friend, don’t overheat it and don’t rush it, that’s how you make mistakes. Make sure you’re not using any metal objects to remove adhesive residue. If there’s a lot of glue left behind, park the car in some shade and spray a liberal amount of adhesive remover and let it break down the glue, then you can power wash it off and repeat as necessary. We used to use plastic blades and scrapers back in the day but now I’m 90% touchless when I remove PPF residue. I recommend “Rapid Remover”. Stuff is the bomb.
 
Does applying ceramic on top of PPF negate the self healing properties of the PPF?
 
Artie said:
Does applying ceramic on top of PPF negate the self healing properties of the PPF?
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No. I highly recommend doing this.
If you can find a Suntek PPF installer, they have two films that already have a hydrophobic coating built in. One is called Suntek Ultra and the other Suntek Reaction (this is their newest and best film, but also most expensive). Reaction even feels slick to the touch, unlike any PPF I’ve worked with. Even masking tape doesn’t stick to it and you can’t make markings on it with a permanent marker, the coating just resists everything.
 
Kabanstva said:
No. I highly recommend doing this.
If you can find a Suntek PPF installer, they have two films that already have a hydrophobic coating built in. One is called Suntek Ultra and the other Suntek Reaction (this is their newest and best film, but also most expensive). Reaction even feels slick to the touch, unlike any PPF I’ve worked with. Even masking tape doesn’t stick to it and you can’t make markings on it with a permanent marker, the coating just resists everything.
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So you’re saying I should do ceramic on top of PPF, correct?

My current detail shop does xpel and gtechniq but I’ll check and see if he does the suntek as well.

Our LC is due for arrive soon and it’s not going to be a daily but I also want it to look good for as long as possible. I keep going back and forth on doing PPF or not but given the amount I’ve spent on the vehicle already I feel like I shouldn’t be scrimping on paint protecting at this point as I’m sure I’ll live to regret it.
 
Artie said:
So you’re saying I should do ceramic on top of PPF, correct?

My current detail shop does xpel and gtechniq but I’ll check and see if he does the suntek as well.

Our LC is due for arrive soon and it’s not going to be a daily but I also want it to look good for as long as possible. I keep going back and forth on doing PPF or not but given the amount I’ve spent on the vehicle already I feel like I shouldn’t be scrimping on paint protecting at this point as I’m sure I’ll live to regret it.
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Yes, do ceramic on top of PPF. It will make washing the vehicle MUCH more enjoyable and will help to wash away stuff like bug splatter (from long road trips), bird crap, and general dirt and grime off the vehicle. I would ceramic coat the wheels also to make brake dust easier to wash off.
 
Kabanstva said:
Yes, do ceramic on top of PPF. It will make washing the vehicle MUCH more enjoyable and will help to wash away stuff like bug splatter (from long road trips), bird crap, and general dirt and grime off the vehicle. I would ceramic coat the wheels also to make brake dust easier to wash off.
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I have ceramic on my current vehicle and know all about how flipping amazing it is with washing and cleanup, wheels included. It’s been worth the cost. I just didn’t know you could do both ceramic and PPF together.
 
Artie said:
I have ceramic on my current vehicle and know all about how flipping amazing it is with washing and cleanup, wheels included. It’s been worth the cost. I just didn’t know you could do both ceramic and PPF together.
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Yes. I think XPEL even recommends it and has their own ceramic coating. We put ceramic on top of almost every PPF install that we do.
 
Absolutely put ceramic followed up with sealant. Just don't pay pro prices for ceramic coating as that's totally not worth it (unless paint correction is included, but for a new vehicle not much needs to be done). I DIY Optimum Gloss Coat - very easy to do and quick. Follow up with Opti Seal.
 
unclemat said:
Absolutely put ceramic followed up with sealant. Just don't pay pro prices for ceramic coating as that's totally not worth it (unless paint correction is included, but for a new vehicle not much needs to be done). I DIY Optimum Gloss Coat - very easy to do and quick. Follow up with Opti Seal.
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I would have them do the paint protection beforehand, no doubt. I had this done on my current car with less than 1000 miles on it and was really surprised by the outcome, even new there were issues. Dropping it off at the pros shop and getting it back a few days later is worth it to me. I don’t mind washing and keeping the interior done but I just don’t have the skills, tools, or the space to do proper high level detailing.
 
Artie said:
I would have them do the paint protection beforehand, no doubt. I had this done on my current car with less than 1000 miles on it and was really surprised by the outcome, even new there were issues. Dropping it off at the pros shop and getting it back a few days later is worth it to me. I don’t mind washing and keeping the interior done but I just don’t have the skills, tools, or the space to do proper high level detailing.
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True, paint is never quite perfect from the factory. OTOH, I believe wrap sort of hides minor imperfections - and let's be honest the film does not look nearly as good as bare paint (and I fully wrapped my HE sans bumper and partial roof only).
 
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