So who out there has wrapped one? Pros and Cons?

One Bad Rapper!

 

My former rap, 3m Satin White Pearl. I started doing wraps in 2010 after attending SEMA. Had a paint booth at my shop, and immediately felt like I needed to get into wrap.

From a DIY perspective wrap has a lot of advantages. I can change the color of a car in a parking lot or basic garage. I can repair panels if damaged. The finish and color is DEAD consistent vs paint is very dependent on skill set and delivery, prep, etc. Wrap relies on prep (light removal, panel separation at times, door handle removal, etc) but not to the extent paint requires prep. Like anything, wrap has a learning curve. I ALWAYS suggest people do an Avery class up front. The cost of the class is 799.00 or so, and you get a roll of wrap for attending (your color of choice). So, it's essentially a free class just about.

From a consumer perspective wrap becomes more of a debate. A good, reliable wrap, performed responsibly is not cheap. On one hand you can have a custom/quirky color without impacting resale in any negative way. It protects the paint beneath, so long as the installers don't razor your clear coat up. It does have a life span, and if you spend 2k or 2500.00 on a wrap, you could've gotten paint for maybe another 1k-1500 bucks. In most cases new car guys can justify a wrap more than 20yr old car guys can. A new car...it's a good case for wrap...it protects the newer paint job for resale, allows a unique appearance, etc.

Wrap done properly removes cleanly, when removed properly. My car below was wrapped for 3.5yrs that way, and removed cleanly with paint clean as a whistle. My car is currently back to black, but I have a new color coming and will add a new video to the channel KnightDriveTV all about it

 

I would imagine that without many sharp edges the C5 is easy to wrap. I have BMW racing green on the brain....

 

Corvette C5 is a continued curve, and when you lay a piece of paper on it, you'd see there is a constant required stretch and adaptation that has to occur. Frankly, since 2010 when I started wrapping the difficulty level has decreased with films. A gloss avery could cold stretch on a C5 vs that 3m could not. Hardest parts of the C5 are the front fender cove areas, the front bumper and in the FRC's case, I did my C5Z top all in one piece, with only one 1" seam centered behind the window....it was definitely tricky.

I can't WAIT to get this thing rewrapped because gloss black is just horrid...my car black, makes me very unhappy...lol. I'm buyin a newly released color...and I'm pretty pumped to see how it turns out...gonna be different but chill.

 

The satin white pearl with the black wheels looks sick.

 

Pics dont do that color justice either...as with most wraps. Pics can't capture the dynamics of the color. At dusk...man...I'd come out of the gas station and don't let a car guy be around...or 10 because they were waiting to talk to you. It's a serious color/finish in person. Changes with the amount of light quite a bit, definitely stands out in a crowd.

Since we have a BMW in here, I'll post my gf's old BMW I did (she drives a C6 LS3 6spd now)

3m Matte metallic blue. Pics struggle to do it justice but...satins and clears hold up better to UV. Her wrap started to discolor in 2yrs. Took her car from the pic below, to the ones below that in just a couple days as a suprise. She was like....OMG...lol. She loved it.

 

I can see the appeal of wrap if its distinctive and you can DIY....paying for it vs a little more for a paint job not so much.
Yrs ago myself and a few guys tried to remove 3m wrap from a Humvee...wasnt happening. Someone took an angle grinder to it in an effort to get it off, car was scrapped so to speak

 

Well, there is certainly a "right" way to remove wrap. Clearly you guys were using that method...lol. I took 3m wraps off plenty of time and its easy as can be. The only time I struggled to get a 3m wrap off, was the first time I did it. Pulled clear off and had to respray the front of a car over it. Key to removing wrap is a lot of heat...comes right off.

 

I took my car into a shop and they wanted 9000.00 to paint, another shop wanted 8000.00 to paint
I got it wrapped for 3300.00. It is an avrey wrap and they matched the color so close you cant tell it was wrapped

 

I had my vette wrapped 2 1/2 years ago by a pro. I was quoted 7k to paint, had it wrapped for 2k. Today it still looks new with the help of Chadwicks Xtreme!

 

Yep, heat is the key. I had a thing called Diamond Shield on a motorhome that had mold under it, so it had to come off. It was a PITA, but it would've been a nightmare without plenty of heat!!

 

Are the stripes done over top of the wrap?

 

The wrap on your car looks great. Well done and a beautiful car.

 

yes they were...

 

Neon satin yellow/black