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My car finally is here after 19 months , dealer dropped it off Friday for PPF ( Llumar Valor ) and ceramic coating . Silver Flare with midnight gray stripes and a carbon flash roof . Im getting the bumper , hood , fenders , A pillars, top of the windshield, and lower rocker area . The installer called me yesterday and said if he goes over the stripes with the PPF it will change the sheen from a more satin finish to glossy and will not match the rest of the stripes on the car . He is telling me it will be very noticeable. The car is almost two hours away . His recommendation was to film up to the stripes or remove stripes , PPF then install new stripes over the film . I really don’t want to prolong getting the car any longer if I have to order stripes and who knows what the availability will even be . When I was originally quoted the dealer told me they would just go over the stripes , so I was thinking the whole hood would be protected. So for the guys that have had PPF put on over the stripes on the hood is it really that much of a difference in the sheen ?. I don’t really like the idea of filming up to the stripes and leaving them unprotected or having multiple edges for dirt to collect .
Thanks
Skip the ppf. I've done it on 2 of them and its a waste. Anything big goes through the film anyway. Just drive it and if something happens get it painted and then ppf it.
You can even have the panel touched up then ppf right over it and you'll never notice the touch up should something that bad happen.
I have had it installed over stripes, I have had the stripes removed and put them on top of the ppf, for me on my wifes 70th Annv htc I had the ppf installed over the stripes, yes it adds some sheen to them, but happy with the results, been getting my cars 100% clear wrapped for over 20 years now, makes clean up super simple, and resale even easier
I have SunTek Ultra PPF and GTechniq Ceramic over the stripes (Carbon Flash)…..it didn’t change the sheen at all. BTW, photo is after 2 years from application.
Did you do the roof as well with the PPF ? Or just the hood ?
I just did the top of the windshield as that is an impact area as far as the roof goes, then the hood, front bumper, front quarter panels, rocker panels, mirrors, A pillars, headlights.
Last edited by SoCal C8; Jul 23, 2023 at 04:43 PM.
I am really 50/50 on it still, but went ahead and just did front bumper and trim and mirrors and in front rear wheels with best Xpel. The die cuts on each side of stripes for install. This guy did excellent. I can barely find any seams. The stripes are unnoticeable. I had the same concerns and visited the shop beforehand. He gave me confidence to go ahead. $1100. Next step was full hood and windshield header. $2000. Whole car $10k. I am not sure why anyone would spend $10k. I do know people who have. My grandma used to put clear vinyl covers on her furniture too.
So MM does a ton of these they have a 3rd party come in and they are there almost everyday. They don't install PPF over any stripes they cut and butt up to the edge of the stripes.
When I took my car for PPF there was a C8 that had stripes and the original installer did not put it on the stripes. You could tell because there were distinct lines where the PPF ended on each side of the stripes. It looked terrible and was at that shop to get the PPF taken off and new PPF put on over the stripes.
I chose to PPF over the stripes, didn't want to see extra edges collect dirt. Happy I went this route HOWEVER, installer needs to be mindful of the vinyl stripes creating a separation if not installed properly at the edges (edges should wrap far over the ends, don't let your installer stop short on edges or will start peeling/delaminating, ask me how I know). As other's noted, you absolutely will notice air pockets/lines around the stripe edges, but, personally I don't mind them, again, prefer that over dirt collecting there. As for the sheen/matt finish, I did the front bumper, hood and roof, barely notice the difference from PPF over stripes to no PPF on trunk, doesn't bother me.
Do PPF over stripes....
In comparison, picture of rear stripes with no PPF, honestly can't tell at quick glance in terms of sheen/finish.
Last edited by TNGvette; Jul 25, 2023 at 12:27 AM.
PPF over stripes question
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