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Got it out in the sun today for the first time and it looks FANTASTIC! Anyone who thinks you will lose "clarity" after Xpel obviously hasn't seen one done right in person. Everyone who's seen it today agrees that it looks better than a brand new car. It has a smoother and deeper appearance. Any imperfections in the paint (texture) are now less noticeable and it looks freshly polished and waxed. Awesome product. Wish I'd done it on day one....would have saved me some repainting. However, the new paint looks virtually indistinguishable from the factory paint by my eye so all is well. Very happy. $5930 well spent, IMO.
Thanks to Donald Fazekas at Concours Detailing in Montgomery, AL for a job well done!
Paid $3,500.00 last spring to pretty much wrap the entire car, or at least all forward areas and flat surfaces. This was on my 2015 Z06/Z07 that I sold and ordered my current 2016 Z06 and have decided not to wrap it. I was dissapointed in the wrap.
Paid $3,500.00 last spring to pretty much wrap the entire car, or at least all forward areas and flat surfaces. This was on my 2015 Z06/Z07 that I sold and ordered my current 2016 Z06 and have decided not to wrap it. I was dissapointed in the wrap.
What product did you wrap it with? What left you disappointed?
Thanks, Dan
That Vette is totally covered in XPel and has been around the US and Canada. It has 19000 miles in just under 9 months, sees a few shows a week and sat in the Auto-Exotica Showcase of the Intl Car Show with the XPel on her. It is undetectable unless you look extremely close.
Now... Xpel vs the rest. It is not really XPel as much as it is the premium to have your car protected really. When you bring your car in, they will talk you into such things as paint correction and 'necessary' preparations before PPF application. My XPel went on immediately with no preparation. It takes 3 full days when you include all areas such as the front grill, lights, mirrors, rear brake ducts etc. It cost $4200 which was cheap here but, most importantly, knowing your installers reputation is paramount. Xpel has a 10 year warranty; others don't. Suntek has a bit smoother finish.
I would definitely suggest the trio of XPel (or any other PPF), oem splash guards and skirts. Get the skirts done in XPel as well. This will provide 100% protection and I can shoot you closeups of my rear brake ducts if you like....actually here ya go... Make sure the PPF is self-healing as XPel is. If it is not, you will curse down the road. I have seen dings and marks completely disappear.
Lastly, I coated my XPel with cQuartz Finest but had just as good results with Blackfire Crystal Seal before that. Blackfire is self leveling and drying time is a bit longer than cQuartz, allowing you to fix any areas that you think aren't level. Anyone can apply Blackfire correctly; it is very easy and enjoyable. With or without the extras, you don't have to wax the car and the theory of swirl marks doesn't apply. The PPF enables a simple plain water wash and dry to which it is like day one once again. Hope this helps... I can posts tons of piks if you like, including close ups but...let's just check out the shine on this one of the front end for good measure. Other then the front windshield and tires, everything seen here is covered in XPel Ultimate.
You do not need to coat it 2-3 times a year; I think a little care increases its durability and lifespan, however. I initially used Blackfire Crystal Seal which is a Polymer Seal, but eventually obtained and applied cQuarts Finest myself. I have never waxed it and may occasionally (every couple of weeks) use Blackfire Wet Diamond Waterless Wash or Polymer Spray just to make the shine pop after a wash.
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER is to find a sealant that is clear. If it has any color to it, you risk discoloration down the road of your XPel edge and seams. Blackfire Crystal Seal is clear. Blackfire Waterless Wash and Polymer spray are close to clear and were very highly recommended for use with Xpel.
IMO, these three are the most economical, easiest for the average Joe to complete, and have a very long lasting result. Crystal Seal is a Polymer Sealant and is 'self leveling' which means it evens itself out before drying. It is really as easy as spraying your cloth 4-5 times and then wiping down a section of the car. That is it.
If you have the money, a ceramic coating like cQuartz is the absolute best but ensure what you are using is approved to go over the XPel. Before using cQuartz, I received e-mails from the head of both CarPro (cQuartz) and Xpel stating that applying the cQuartz over the XPel would work great and does not reduce the 'self healing' properties of the XPel.
Paint correction would have been done before the XPel and would have cost you alot...
Washing... I wash the car with straight water once a week, rub off excess dirt with a wet face cloth, and then use a 'cham-wow' type of super absorbant towel (weave design) to dry it. The end result is as shown. It has been a year plus now and there is absolutely no signs of discoloration on the edges and my XPel is in amazing shape for the crap I put it through. Hope this helps ya!
I did a full Xpel Ultimate on my entire 2016 Stingray C7,
I was not aware that I needed to apply a coating on it 2-3 times a year,
Can someone tell me exactly what product I need to buy to keep the
Xpel in perfect shape, it was really expensive and I financed it so I
definitely need it to last at least for the next 7-8 years or so.
Also I see a lot of talk of this Opticoat Pro, what is it and do I need it?
I hear people talking about Paint correction, is that if the car was not new
and had swirl marks and scratches before hand? Or is it something that
needs to be done to any car before Xpel regardless?
Thank you so much everyone!
My two cents.........and I am not trying to argue with Allflash--how can anyone argue with the great look of his car (best looking Z06 I have see)......my Xpel installer told me to put on the 'Xpel Protective Film Sealant' three times the 1st year, and then about twice a season here in New England after that.
For me, it was a lot of money to get the car done in Xpel, so I want to take care of it; consequently, I listened to the installer and I apply the above sealant he gave me (just did the 2nd coat for this year Wednesday---------may or may not do a 3rd coat before I put the car away in December).
As for keeping the car clean-----usually after I have it out I clean it off with a Swiffer before covering it with old bed comforters in the garage----and when the Swiffer gets dirty I use it on my rims that have Rejex on them. Yesterday we went to a winery for lunch-----all dirt roads and a dirt parking lot. The car was COVERED in dirt--I mean covered. I simply hosed the car off and used one of those soft, flexible hand held plastic squeegees to dry it, and finished the drying with 'BLUE' drying towel from either Griot's or Zaino. The car looked brand new.
I don't know enough about the other coatings many put over the Xpel to say anything pro or con. I will say from the pictures posted they certainly look great. However, in my little mind---which hates the detailing (washing, waxing, polishing, claying, etc., etc.) I just feel putting anything else on the Xpel is looking for more work down the road as the product builds up or needs to be stripped and re-applied etc. One of the main reasons I went with the Xpel was to save me from having to put other stuff on the car.......I didn't learn about the Xpel Sealant noted above until after my car was done (good news is that I can do the entire car in about 20-30 minutes----it goes on and buffs out with no fuss).
As for the paint imperfections-----my car was brand new and did not have any swirl marks, and it still had paint imperfections beyond the orange peel. Minor imperfections, but imperfections that seemed to get magnified after the Xpel was put on. If I had to do it over again i would have gone over the car with the installer PRIOR to the installation and had him show me every paint imperfection or spot where he thought would not be perfect. For example, on my door jamb there were two pin head size spots with no paint (or the paint had been chipped off)-----so I was able to use the touch up paint and a toothpick to dab these spots with paint before he put on the Xpel. Excellent result. However, there is also one VERY minor spot that only an anxl owner would notice that has a white spot-----we can't tell if it is a spec of dust or paint imperfection---installer feels it is a paint imperfection. I have 2-3 of these----it would have been nice to know about these upfront versus after the fact. If I had known about them I would of had them corrected before having the Xpel applied. My main point---it is worth going over the car with the installer to talk about all this stuff so there are no surprises or misunderstandings when the installation is complete. They can find most of these potential problems spots just by running their finger tips over the car.
Mine is but a single opinion. The best way to learn is through the differing view of several and then be able to find the common aspects, which there are in both of our suggestions.
If you had suggested, through your installer, that the 3 application protection be followed, I apologize if I came across the wrong way in stating otherwise. I often speak before I think...stick my foot in my mouth...trip over my tongue...
Mine is but a single opinion. The best way to learn is through the differing view of several and then be able to find the common aspects, which there are in both of our suggestions.
If you had suggested, through your installer, that the 3 application protection be followed, I apologize if I came across the wrong way in stating otherwise. I often speak before I think...stick my foot in my mouth...trip over my tongue...
Allflash,
No apology required at all. Your posts are on the money. We are on the same page.......both just trying to help the OP and others out by passing along our actual experiences. I posted on another thread last night that I think your car is the best looking Z06 I have seen. The steps you have taken have had great results..............the pictures you have posted are fantastic.
Maybe I'm crazy, I like the $850 front only option.
Had no idea people were spending 6k plus.
Yeah, it's a lot of money to protect but it's a lot of money being protected. At 6k it is the sales tax I will pay on the car. This is a big investment for me and I want to keep her as pretty as possible. With that said if I can do it for 6k rather than 8k that would be great!!! LOL!!
Dan
I would like to tip my hat to ALLFLASH on his newest acheivment of Corvette of the Week. I would also like to commend him on his very informative posts and for doing a lot of legwork on many topics and passing it on to other forum members. Your cars looks AWESOME!
I would like to tip my hat to ALLFLASH on his newest acheivment of Corvette of the Week. I would also like to commend him on his very informative posts and for doing a lot of legwork on many topics and passing it on to other forum members. Your cars looks AWESOME!
Thank you. Now if you can just find me a safe place to park my car in Manhattan, I would be ecstatic! I miss my 6 hours drives there with the wife.
But seriously...the thanks go to the members of this site because everything I have done was through my readings here...brakes, Xpel, cQuartz... Caravaggio... spats ... valve covers ... CAI ... and even my engine emblems that people on forums like to call me a ricer for but everyone loves the look in person! I still hit up this forum daily looking for new stuff....
07-20-2016, 01:38 PM
With that said if I can do it for 6k rather than 8k that would be great!!! LOL!!
Your cars looks AWESOME!
