XPEL

This should help with the Paint vs XPEL Paint Protection Film question. Watch what happens when we shoot rocks at 70MPH (highway speeds) at a panel that's half bare paint and half XPEL protected.

LT4CMG

Have had XPEL over 5 years on my 13 Camaro and have it on my vette. Hands down, best product I've seen when comparing to what other car-guy buddies use. 0 yellowing, peeling, fading and the paint underneath is as it was on day 1. Expensive? yes, obviously due to labor, but you get what you pay for. Just find the right installer, not the cut-rate dude who has a roll in the back of his van. Awesome product.

Soonere39

Suntek Ultra on the front, hood mirrors rockers and lower front rear quarters. Plan a quartz coating on everything in May

SilverScorp

Yep, I have Suntek as well. Speedfilm in Alpharetta GA did an excellent job. They do all kinds of cars for Caffeine and Octane and others. I had 3M film on the Stingray for three years and it held up well, but the Suntek has a thicker film. They wrap Porsches and Ferraris, and the price is reasonable as well.

0AccentFL

0AccentFL

DGA3

Went to a specialist today to talk and get some quotes:

Performance Auto Spa

They have been in business for 10 years and have a large facility. There are some beautiful cars in the showroom as well!

The Columbus area has a couple of other xpel-certified shops. I will get some quotes from at least one of them (if not both).

Skid Row Joe

When the Xpel coating fails in time, what can I expect to see? What actually will happen in time to it in its deterioration process? I posed this Question to an authorized applicator, and I got no answer.

Foosh

Joe, XPEL warrants the material against yellowing or failure for 10 years. Over time, you will pick up marks on the film from road debris if you drive the car regularly, and that is NOT considered failure.

When it gets to the point where high impact areas start to look bad (e.g. nose, mirrors, rockers), those pieces of film can be replaced at fairly minimal cost. Large areas like the hood and fenders should look good for at least 10 years, if kept clean and taken good care of.

Skid Row Joe

Foosh, Right......I'm good with that.

What I'm not good with is a potential failure of yellowing, (for example).......*blotchyness, discoloration of any kind. Am I buying a coating that will need to be (harsh) chemically stripped and then sanded off the surfaces?

If, those are the eventual devolvement the film produces, I'm not sure I want it. The possibility exists, that this new C7 may be a very long term ownership experience for me, exceeding 10 years. That said - you should know that I plan to keep it out of the Sun (garaged) when parked at my home.

CADbrian

DGA3, I had a really unique opportunity in the fact that shortly after my GS rolled off the Corvette delivery trailer it was then trailered to a shop for a Ceramic Pro Gold Package (5 applications), Ceramic Pro Interior Package, Ceramic Pro Wheels Off Package (calipers and wheels), plus a complete wrap (from front to back) with Expel Ultimate. Never again would my car be in as good of condition as it was the day I received it so that's why I did all this - to try to protect it as much as possible and to keep it in as good of condition as the day I took possession of it for as long as possible.

I understand that it's new, but I seem to get a lot of questions (even from other car enthusiasts) on why it looks so shiney/glossy. I didn't do the protection to impress anyone. I did the protection to protect the car from rock chips, bug guts, kids (mine and others), bird poop, etc. I have a passion for keeping my cars in as good of condition as possible for as long as possible. Hopefully, this will help me to achieve this goal. I know that I plan to keep this car for as long as I can and I also know that the next person (my 11 year old son has his hand in the air as high as he can stretch it) who is the caretaker of this car will appreciate the care I've put into it.

Foosh

No Joe, the film will peel off and the paint underneath should be as pristine as the day you covered it.

Skid Row Joe

I've got a quote for $3,250.00 - full body Ultimate wrap on my vert from an Authorized Applicator. Unless I redirect - that's what I intend to go with. I'm just throwing it out there for anyone to comment on the what if waaay down the time road with Xpel. The car's not going out of town, or on expressways/Interstate highways, until it's wrapped.

pkincy

You Tube is your friend. I did search and watch several videos on removal of the film. Very old film can be a tiresome problem. Less old film will generally come off in large sheets. So there is some advantage to replacing it before it has deteriorated or maybe remove it before problems occur and just run the car with the paint exposed. At that time the car will be 5-7 years old. The bigger question is removing ceramic coatings. They do require at best a heavy polish and if it was applied liberally it will require wet sanding. I did all 3 of my cars with wrap as soon as I bought them. I only ceramic coated the unwrapped portion of those cars after I had researched the coatings and its removal thoroughly.

LT1 Z51

Yea, even though I got the whole car wrapped; my only concern is that when I do get the film replaced, I hope my stripes don't peel off with it.

I'm thinking of getting mine removed around the 7th or 8th year I own the car and have the paint corrected (and freshened) and new wrap put on.

Foosh

That's a good reason to put a ceramic coating on the paint prior to film, which is what my guy recommended, and what he did on mine after paint correction. He produced a video showing him removing 8-year old film from his Audi, the film came off in entire sheets, and paint underneath was pristine.

I know, I know, XPEL does not recommend that, but many of the most experienced installers now do it that way.

Snowwolfe

Make sure you and the shop have a clear understanding of how any potential warranty issues will be covered and who fits the $$$ bill before turning over the car. When my C7 was done there were a few pin holes in the Xpel on the hood and it drove me nuts. If the installer would of been local I would of insisted they reapply it.

DALE#3

Kind of off-topic.But i knew i wasn't alone with this statement.Time will tell.
Back on topic:No Film,1 Chip,Skirts,Mud guards,No *** riding,Over 6k Miles Got a Angel,I guess

kaplana08

I had 3M on my car for nine years. I put car in the sun for one hour. Peeled it off in ten minutes. Some glue was left on hood. Took that off with 3M adhesive remover. No problem at all. Car was left out doors for nine years.

GHOLD

Well said. Wrap it and forget it. Had Ziebart wrap my 07 atomic orange vert (Z-Shield) on front end (a quarter way up the hood) and side mirrors. No more worries!