Will be picking up my Z in the near future and want to install Xpel Ultimate. Talked to two installers and one tells me they will wash and clay bar the areas where the film will be installed. The other didn't mention the clay prep.
My question to those who have had this done is claying the norm and did the second installer just not mention this step. Both installers come highly recommended btw.
Xpel rep/installers feel free to chime in.

 

I would say in most cases if the car is new they won't use a clay bar on it. I was told the same thing over the phone but when I went and had it done I sat right next to the car the entire time and no clay bar was ever used. They did not even wash it as the car was already clean. I suppose if you have some rough spots on the paint they might but as it will be new and smooth, they will most likely just apply the film.

 

If the vehicle sat outside at Bowling Green you more than likely have some acid rain, etc. and would DEMAND clay bar. Just my $.02 centavos

 

If I were doing this I'm pretty sure I'd insist on claybar even if the car rolled directly off the line into their shop.
Whatever is on the car when they apply this is on there forever...

 

I just called to arrange for my film and they insist on washing and clay barring before installation and as posted above, it's only going to look as good as the paint is before the application. Yes have them do it...

 

I'd call and ask the installer if they clay or not, they may have just not mentioned it while talking on the phone.

For installations we recommend cleaning and claying the car. This will remove most imperfections, even on a new car.

 

Before they start, have a frank discussion with them about claying the car, and what you should expect when they are done. 100% perfection? 98%? Will you have ANY spots where you can detect dust or paint flaws under the Xpel or not? I was expecting 100% perfection, and this is not the case.

My 2 cents......Have them clay bar it.................my installer didn't, and it shows in spots. The installer came highly recommended, and has willingly said they will do their best to touch up spots, make corrections where they can, etc., but the fact remains I will have tiny spots that they attribute to dust particles or paint imperfections. For the money I paid to have to entire car done................

For most of my spots it doesn't make sense for them to try to correct them as the likelihood is they will just make it worse as more dust is apt to get underneath the Xpel in the process--not their fault, just a fact.

Now granted...and this is key.....only folks looking for imperfections will see them......the average person looking at my car will think it looks great and will not detect the tiny spots. But I know they are there, and being an **** corvette owner.....

Again this installer came highly recommended, and they took their time doing the job. Installing Expel is not like installing 3M (the latter goes on in a fraction of the time). They had my car 3 days and worked on it a solid 3 days.....long days. And they insisted on doing the work at their location in an enclosed room..........which was great.....be weary of the places that will send out the 'installers' to your house and do it in your garage (your dusty garage with dust flying around from the neighbors mowing their lawns, etc.). Also be leery of installers that tell you they can do a car in a half day or day........to do it right takes time.

Best of luck........with the Xpel the car cleans up in no time......we just returned from a few hours of cruising today, and twice we went thru constructions sites with heavy dust all over---looked like fog at one point while going thru a tunnel-----I just came in from hosing the car off----just the hose and nothing else----and it looks great.

 

PS to my response above........my car was new with about 30 miles on it.

You also want to talk to the installer about (1) removing the badging (e.g., on the hood) or using a template that goes around it; and whether they will try to wrap the Xpel around the edges or just go to the edges of the hood, door, etc.

My 2 cents again----I don't think it makes any difference if they remove the badging or use the template that goes around it. i prefer the former, but on my car they did the latter, and I am fine with it---it looks good (again, only an **** corvette owner will notice). And my installer did a fantastic job of wrapping the Xpel every where they could. I have seen a few jobs where they didn't wrap it and some looked fine and a few did not as the Xpel ended a good half inch or so from the edge in some spots; a quarter inch in others; etc.

The more you understand about what they will and will not do, the better.

 

Thx. That is an area that concerns me as well. I looked at three cars with Xpel and noticed that they did not wrap around the edges near the headlights, etc. probably stopped about 1/32nd of an inch from the edge. This was on a black car so I had to look real close to see it. But my car is silver and I think would be more noticeable if not rolled into the edge.
I, like you am ****, and if it's not near perfect, it will bother me.

 

ALWAYS clay before installing film. Even brand new cars may have some contamination from transport, sitting on the lot, or just from the ride to the shop for install

Some shops will cut corners and omit this step. I make sure to mention what is included as far as basic prep is concerned => wash of the vehicle and clay bar to any areas receiving film. Whats not mentioned is that I usually do a chemical decon as well (IronX or TRIX)

 

Just a caveat with the wrapping..........the C7's aren't great cars for the wrapping. In some areas it just can't be done, and in others they can try it, but it may not take after a few weeks or months. There just isn't enough lip on the under side for the material to stick onto. Even in the areas where the installer felt the wrap would be fine, the lip is very small. My guy walked me through this right up front and showed me the challenges he would have with the hood, trunk, doors, etc., etc.

And he was correct. I can see a few spots (and I mean just spots 1/32nd of an inch or smaller) where the wrap has lifted slightly on the edge. The installer said he can dress those up and try to fix them whenever I want to drop the car off. So far I would rather be driving the car----maybe one day if I have him put on new brake pads (if I can ever get enough feedback on what pad to use for minimum dust and NO noise) I can have him address these spots--about 4 of them.

As a result, I think some installers don't attempt to wrap the Xpel around any of the edges, and they come as close to the edge as they can. Some do a great job in this regard, and some do not. Notably, wrapping takes considerably more time as well.

The key is finding a dealer you feel comfortable with. The wrong installer can really mess up your car. A neighbor of mine had huge problems. The installer sent out by the company was doing a terrible job so the neighbor told him to stop, and that he wanted the installer's boss to come see the mess. While the neighbor was calling the boss, the installer removed some of his work-------and cut right through the clear coat in at least two areas. Bottom line----installer's boss did offer to buy the car for the price the neighbor paid (Z06); my neighbor elected to have a friend of his that owned a body shop fix it----something like $4K or $8K later the car looks great-----installer's boss paid for the repairs without any problems or objections.

 

I clayed mine and then polished it before I had it covered and it worked great. There are areas that you will just need a finishing polish but there will be a few areas that need something a bit more aggressive. If you don't address that before you put the xpel on it will visible later. If you do the clay and polish first it will look better than the day you picked it up.