Removal of PPF? (3 Viewers)

[sfo1]

Anyone removed their PPF / Xpel / etc from their vehicle? My PPF is ~10 years old and its starting to crack on the hood. I'd like to get it removed but looks more 'involved' than I have time or expertise for.

Sources for removal persons / companies in the SF Bay Area?

 

[PAToyota]

If it is that old and cracking, you may have more issues removing it. I'd start with a hair dryer to loosen the adhesive and see how easily it pulls off. You can use a heat gun, but that's easier to damage the paint as well. If there is remaining adhesive, you can usually remove it with a bug and tar remover.

 

[Kabanstva]

10 year old xpel shouldnt be cracking. Are you sure it's xpel and not some off brand film?

 

[sfo1]

10 year old xpel shouldnt be cracking. Are you sure it's xpel and not some off brand film?

PPF or Xpel as noted. Was installed by the dealer when I bought it.

 

[Kabanstva]

PPF or Xpel as noted. Was installed by the dealer when I bought it.

PPF just stands for Paint Protection Film. There are hundreds of brands of PPF. Xpel is just one of the brands.

 

[CactusHopper]

My wife and I just removed the original 10-year old PPF from our new-to-us 2013 LX 570. It was left outside with low mileage, clearly baking in the sun with leaves, pollen, etc. allowing it to crack and mold. PPF was on the hood, side fender tips, and mirrors.

Below was our process, which worked perfect and took around 6 hours of work, with the wife doing most of the scraping and me supporting as "water boy" and cleanup crew.

1. Lay double or triple folded soft dish towel on working area and pour boiling water (from an electric kettle) over the towel.
2. Leave towel for 10-20 seconds and pour water on it a few times. This forces the PPF to loosen up.
3. Use a plastic razor blade to lift the PPF. The key here was to use a 45 deg or greater angle and work from bottom to top in a straight line using full body weight. That was the most efficient movement / technique that really helped it go faster. This will leave residue in some areas - it's unavoidable.
4. Move towel over and repeat.
5. Apply LOTS of Goo Gone directly on the working area, let sit 1-2 minutes, then work with razor. This takes a few rounds to get it all off. We scraped hard on many areas at a steep angle to scrap it off.

This left no marks, swirls, scrapes, etc. There is a very very faint line from the PPF edge which I attribute to fading of the paint/clear coat beyond the PPF. I am planning to buff the entire car and am curious if the rest will match the PPF area at that point. As you can see from the photos, it is back to factory. I got a heavy discount on this car because of the PPF and I have to say, I was very surprised it only took a day of solid work to restore. I was expecting days and worst case, damage from the process.

From start to finish:

With PPF. This was the worst condition area. We had tested a bit without any preparation, hence the peeled up bits.

Side view

Working the PPF prior to my wife discovering the method/technique of holding it more upright > 45 deg and moving up in a line. Here I was just going at it but splitting the PPF in half, leaving a ton of residue. If you can get under the PPF, a lot more of it will come up clean. Not easy but doable.

Left side shows PPF mostly removed with residue (the hood is not all pitted/marred - it's just a reflection of the ceiling)

Mostly all removed with residue (weird white blob in center is a reflection of flood lights...)

Wife working the last bits off using Goo Gone

Finished product! This is a silver hood but the color is a bit warm...

yes, it is the same vehicle..... incredible.

a very very faint paint fade line visible at certain angles in certain light. not a concern at all and due to the PPF preserving the paint.

 

[sfo1]

Well done.

 

[Sverige]

Someday I plan to do that to my 2013. The PPF went on the first week home from the dealership, and now has some slight fading/yellowing. Mine has mostly been garaged. Nothing like your starting point though - wowsers!

A shop quoted me $1500 to remove the 3M PPF in 2022, so I passed. Thank you for the write-up. Someday I will give it a go…

 

[CactusHopper]

We had two clear sections on the fender tips that I didn't photograph. They had just started to crack in a few tiny spots, we debated leaving them they were so clean. We removed them and they were very easy compared to the other areas. Peeled entire sections off.