I'm considering stealth PPF for my new car when its built and have a few questions for those whom have it. How noticeable is the seams between the panels that cannot be covered if they do not remove the panels to tuck the ppf? I know on the clear its not that big of a deal, but on the stealth is it that noticeable. I think the alure of PPF is that they don't have to remove all the cars panels as they do in a wrap. Does this hold true for stealth ppf? Also allot of the shops do cut outs for the PPF. I think I actually prefer this method as they dont have to run razor blades around edges of the car and there is no risk of cutting anything. Is this the preferred method? Is the stealth ppf harder to take care of?

 

I have the stealth on my blue stripes because they are a matte finish to begin with, I don’t do anything to it differently, Gtechniq halo then an Exo topcoat.

personally, I don’t get the matte look, but I’m old.

 

So after you put the stripes on your car. You then put stealth ppf on the entire hood only? I'm confused here.

 

my only advice is to Never gets parts / panels etc. removed from the car then re-installed unless you absolutely have no choice, but I would actually not get something done if that's what it meant. No matter what anyone tells you, the fit and finish is never the same once parts are removed.
Alot of parts are meant to be a 1x only install, and it's also very easy to break clips on parts and not even realize it broke. Many clips & tabs might not actually break, but many will be stressed, and the retention of the clip has been compromised and won't hold like it did when 1st installed. 30 yrs working in Automotive Mfg, so take it for what its worth...

 

Yeah I'm with that all the way. I dont like that they have to remove the bumper to put my grills in during pdi. Oh well for that one. Just curious how noticeable the thin line of exposed real color is on the full installs. I do not want an install where panels are removed and or anyone using razors to cut film around my panels. I'm sure that leads to a few cuts on the car that you cant see that pierced the paint.

 

Good advice by mikebutson.

Just curious why the application of the stealth PPF would be any different than the regular PPF? I have the regular on my car with no seams.

 

I would interview a few shops and ask to see their work before committing...With XPEL PPF application the skill of the installer is the most important aspect to consider!

I've seen stealth PPF applications done without removing most of the body panels and when done with a great installer the results are seamless....

 

If you find or found a top notch installer with a solid reputation and/or reviews they will be able to absolutely tell you how noticeable it will be. If they don’t know or are not sure you shouldn’t use them! The other thing (although you didn’t ask) if you are unfamiliar with the shop do your due diligence I advice people to visit the shop at least twice to look at cars they have wrapped. If they don’t allow you that opportunity then I’ll say again, find another installer.

And I agree with those who said absolutely do not have any panels removed!

 

I wrapped my Green Hell Mango GTR in Stealth and now have my BMW iX M60 also 100% wrapped in it. Installer is highly experienced and unless you get with maybe 12”-18” away from specific seams and know what to look for, you cannot see the very small amount of paint that couldn’t have the edges wrapped on certain panels.
Offers great paint protection and of course is so easy to take care of:

 

They are no different. They are the same. However. If you put the clear on the car its seemless because you cant see it. On the stealth on the edges where say 2 panels meet. There will be a minute amount of car that is not covered. That is what I'm talking about. I guess you would really need to get on top of it to see it.

 

OP, youre not wrong, if there are areas where two edges of matte ppf meet, then you'd see the shiny paint area, even just a super small sliver of it, between them.

the issue here is the quality of work done by the shop you take your car to. theres a HUGE variety in how people do things. take your sweet *** time and do your research and find who is the fanciest, most high end shop in the area who can do things with as few pieces of material as possible. it should be possible to do this car with hardly any seams anywhere. the front of the c8 is known to be tricky to do but at this point, its been years.

also, cutting film during install isnt cutting.. what they do is kinda drag a razor blade along it but it does not cut all the way through, theyre using skill to basically score the surface of the film and it then tears along that score/cut that they made, but if done right the blade literally never touches your car in any way, as the blade doesnt even go all the way through the film. if you listen closely during this process you can hear almost a squeeling/squeegee sort of sound as the blade is passing along, over the film.

check out the youtube channels of detail shops such as chicago auto pros to see high end film work.

also, the film being matte (or stealth or satin or whatever one wants to call it hehe) makes no difference where ceramic coating is concerned.. put whatever on there and it will still be satin. my pick if you wanted to do it yourself, and you should after the necessary research, is Gtechniq crystal serum light. good product and reasonably forgiving to work with.

its just too hard to get things youre unhappy with rectified after the fact, so the trick is to bite the bullet and spend the necessary coin at a truly high end shop so that the job is done right the first time.

 

The installer is the key to the stealth wrap. My installer charges more because of all the seams that must be absolutely perfect and the film itself is more difficult to work with.

 

Looks great!