Wax/Sealant and 3M Clear Protective Film

[Never Enuff]

I am about to have some 3M protective film put on the rocker panels and the front end of my 2010 Dodge pickup to protect the paint from rock chips. I have a couple of questions about the effect the film will have on the "shine" of the paint. Also do you continue to wax or put sealant on the film when you wax the vehicle, and if so what are the results? I know the film is suppose to be transparent but can you easily see where the film has been installed? Anyone have any good or bad experiences with this stuff?

Thanks,

Jay

[Never Enuff]

After 3 days and almost 60 views--nobody knows anything about this stuff---it ain`t like it`s brand new stuff in the marketplace

[Accumulator]

I am about to have some 3M protective film put on the rocker panels and the front end of my 2010 Dodge pickup to protect the paint from rock chips. I have a couple of questions about the effect the film will have on the "shine" of the paint...I know the film is suppose to be transparent but can you easily see where the film has been installed?



Others here know a *LOT* more about this topic than I do, but anyhow...



The Paint Protection Films are getting better all the time, but the ones I`ve had didn`t look all that great compared to bare paint.




Also do you continue to wax or put sealant on the film when you wax the vehicle, and if so what are the results?



Yes. The LSP make it a bit shinier and, probably more importantly, helps it shed dirt readily so you don`t mar it up as badly during the wash. Gotta be careful to minimize product residue build up along the edges of it (moving the applicator "off the PPF towards the paint" helps a lot but you`ll still get some).




Anyone have any good or bad experiences with this stuff?



I had a member here install it on the Yukon XLD I used to have. Big custom job that took days to do and cost a bundle. Yeah, it protected the paint for the most part, but I got a through-the-film chip before it even got back home! The stuff isn`t impervious to damage.



Note that opinions vary about correcting the marring that it gets; generally AFAIK it can`t be corrected all that much without messing with its UV-resistance (when that happens it "yellows").



I didn`t really care for the look of it (but again, it`s improving all the time) and I just subscribe to the idea that "real cars have stonechips", so for the most part it`s not something I`m interested in. But hey, that`s just me.

[Never Enuff]

Thanks for your answer. I keep telling myself that I have waxed/sealed the truck enough that I shouldn`t get many rock chips but I guess I was looking for a little added protection. I am not however willing to give up the look of a well waxed/sealed painted surface. I am just not sure how much "real" protection wax/sealant give against rock chips. Maybe not driving behind gravel trucks and installing huge tires will help----LOL

Jay

[imported_pdsterns]

Never E, I see lots of Porsche`s with the 3M clear bras and in many cases they are almost undetectable and they cleanup easily. Many of these cars are track cars (driver ed and club racers) and it really does add quite a bit of protection. Our bra guy will do whatever you want, low areas, mirrors, rockers, you name it.

[Accumulator]

Thanks for your answer. I keep telling myself that I have waxed/sealed the truck enough that I shouldn`t get many rock chips but I guess I was looking for a little added protection. I am not however willing to give up the look of a well waxed/sealed painted surface. I am just not sure how much "real" protection wax/sealant give against rock chips. Maybe not driving behind gravel trucks and installing huge tires will help----LOL

Jay



IMO the LSP provides basically *ZERO* protection against chip. None whatsoever.



From what pdsterns posted, the PPFs have indeed improved. And some others here have echoed that opinion too. So if you really do care about rock chips (and I guess everybody except me does!) you might oughta get it after all. Just make sure you get the best product/installation you can. Some people have had really serious damage from "pro installers" (scare-quotes intentional!) messing up the job.

[maxepr1]

Never E, You can protect your clear bra the same as the car as far as wax/sealant. I would wait a few days or week before applying anything as you wait the moisture to dry under the bra. I would not use Plexus like most people recomend, I find it tends to yellow the film early. Care should be taken when washing bra`s also because they tend to mar much easier! You can find the same damage in bra`s as paint, and some will not come out like paint! They do provide moderate protection against chipping! Peel one off and you can see where it was by the defect line! Under the bra will be good and above you will see the difference!

[imported_pdsterns]

Never E, like Accumulator says, "get some recommendations", usually the high end dealers will use good installers, check with the Porsche, Ferrari or Lambo guys

[imported_tuffluck]

i have the xpel protective film and i use optimum opti-seal on it as an LSP. it seems to work great. i wouldn`t personally apply anything on the film that requires a PC or buffer of any kind.

[D_Nyholm]

I had the 3m product installed back in 2003 on an Infiniti G35. It was totally noticeable, almost like the paint had Orange peel on it. Then after about 3-4 years, it started to get cloudy looking even though the car was garaged. Lastly, when I sold the car, I peeled it off of the hood (had the entire hood done) and it pulled off all the rock chips with it. The paint was chipping under the film and the film was holding the chip in place! It pulled off thousands of tiny tiny paint chips and the hood looked as if I didn`t have the film to begin with. Well, it probably would have been worse, but I`m not certain. After that, I probably won`t get another film put on any of my other cars and haven`t since.



My cousin got it installed on her 05 Boxster S and it looks much better. I believe they used the xpel product, but I am not certain. The film is still noticeable, but not in the Orange peel sort of way. It just makes the paint look weird and not factory. It does seem they are getting much better, but still not perfect.

[maxepr1]

D_Nyholm, the orange peel look is not the film it is the paint itself. If the paint is orange peeled it will telegraph through the film. Also cheaper films are allot to blame. But Xpel and Ventureshield are about the best out there nowadays. My guy uses both and we have no problems. Also the thicker the film the more noticeable it is. Metallic paints usually hide bra`s the best.

[D_Nyholm]

D_Nyholm, the orange peel look is not the film it is the paint itself. If the paint is orange peeled it will telegraph through the film. Also cheaper films are allot to blame. But Xpel and Ventureshield are about the best out there nowadays. My guy uses both and we have no problems. Also the thicker the film the more noticeable it is. Metallic paints usually hide bra`s the best.



I`m 100% positive the 3m film was Orange peeled. The paint was in great shape (factory and had 1000 miles) and the difference between the film and plain paint was pretty dramatic. I took pictures and posted them on freshalloy a long time ago, don`t know where they are now. Though the 3m film was not a cheap film, I think it was when these films started to be used more often and not just on fender flares of 911s and other small areas like that from the factory.



I`m certain films are better now, but that film really ruined it for me.

[Accumulator]

I had the 3m product installed back in 2003 on an Infiniti G35..I peeled it off of the hood (had the entire hood done) and it pulled off all the rock chips with it. The paint was chipping under the film and the film was holding the chip in place! It pulled off thousands of tiny tiny paint chips...



Huh, first time I`ve ever heard of that :eek:

[D_Nyholm]

Huh, first time I`ve ever heard of that :eek:



Yeah, here I was thinking that I had this ugly bra on for 4 years but it would all be worth it when I had nice, rock chip free hood in order to sell it and it was probably almost as bad as if I didn`t have to suffer through the negatives of the bra for those 4 years. Live and learn and waste almost $1000 on the install :(

[Never Enuff]

It sounds like this stuff maybe ok for the rocker panels and right behind the wheel well but in areas that are "eye level" it might not be so good. I was going to do the grille area and the front bumper(it`s painted)but not the hood. The installer uses 3M products and "appears" to know what he is talking about however I haven`t seen any of his work yet. I`m not apposed to blowing this off, I just don`t want to spend $500+ on something that looks like sh*t and doesn`t work to boot. Thanks for the comments so far---

Jay