Clear Bra Nightmare!!! - Pics and video inside

David Fermani

David Fermani

Forza Auto Salon
Client brought in his 09 Z-06 in for a detail and the bumper/partial hood/fenders were covered in Expel clearbra material. This bra is about 1 year old and the car is daily driven, but garage stored. OMG, the bra was a mess. Totally dulled out. Nothing, and I repeat NOTHING was touching this crap. Most products made it worse. (85rd/M105/M205/UNO/OSC/UF/SRP/Expel Cleaner/Hair Drier/MF cutting & finishing pad / Orange and white LC foam / by hand.....Nothing). Because my client is selling the car, he didn't want it left on looking like this. The removal of the film was easy, but the glue was horendous. Hard as a rock! And I used heat too that didn't help. Seems like the hood was the worst; probably from the heat of the motor? Ended up using a slow(er) drying solvent, plastic razor blades, lots of towels and working a 6X6 inch area. Took about 4 hours to do. Anyone have suggestions for next time??



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what i learned to do with clear bras like this is when pulling it off, try to heat it up with steam to help soften the material. than pull the bra towards you not up and not up and back but pull toward you. what that does is makes the adhesaive break up into the clear bra and not allow it to stick to the car. now the 3m brand will be easier to remove than the expel becasue the 3m adheasive works like i said to break up into the bra. but by using the method of pulling the materal towards you it works alot better. you will actually hear the materal and glue poping as you pull it. it takes some power and effort to pull it but its well worth it. good luck.
 
Yup, definately pulled it sideways (towards me), not up in fear of pulling the paint with it too. Steam!! Didn't try that though. Would have to check into that if I had to do more of these removals.
 
In conjunction with the heat/steam, I'm curious how Valugard New Car Prep may fare. It's listed as good for old Rapgard removal, maybe it would dissolve this stuff well quicker too?
 
Let it sit in the sun and do it out there, comes right off with glue on a hot day. Heat gun would have did it as well. The rick is to heat up the panel and not the bra it self. Body shop heat lamps work great for this on cars that are non fiberclass. The heat transfers threw out the entire panel.
 
Even though the guy was selling the car, wouldn't he have had a warranty claim against Expel for that fading/hazing?



I guess if it were me I'd have been taking the car back to the installer and having THEM deal with the removal, or at least having them approve a warranty claim before having you go ahead with the removal.
 
Shiny Lil Detlr said:
Even though the guy was selling the car, wouldn't he have had a warranty claim against Expel for that fading/hazing?



I guess if it were me I'd have been taking the car back to the installer and having THEM deal with the removal, or at least having them approve a warranty claim before having you go ahead with the removal.
Click to expand...



Hi Folks,



Film should NOT look like that. This is definitely something that is covered under warranty by XPEL (I work for them) and the film removal, and replacement, definitely would have been handled by the installer. Feel free to have your client contact me (maybe PM, so not to spam up the thread), and I will be happy to help him out.



For future reference, usually when you see film that has hazed up like that, it is generally caused by the use of products that many of us consider common. Many waxes, quick detailers, bug & tar removers, etc. contain petroleum distillates like kerosene or naptha which dry out urethane films and essentially turn them into a big dull dirt sponge. You may not notice any issues after one or two uses, buit over time it will definitely harm urethane film.



For any of you that have paint protection film (clear bra), I would definitely suggest using natural products, or the specific sealant/cleaner/wax recommended by the film manufacturer.



As I mentioned before, please have your client contact us so we can help him. We'd even be willing to replace the product with a self-healing film.
 
Hey thanks for chiming in, pjp98z! I kinda figured being only a year old it would be dealt with under warranty.... glad to see XPEL stands behind its product. Plus I'm sure having a good clear bra adds to the value of the car in a sales situation.



Since we know there are recommended cleaners/etc. it does leave one other question: are there any sanctioned/recommended products or procedures for the correction of marring/scratches from urethane PPF that won't cause the drying effect you describe?



BTW, I know it's your second post but still, :welcome: to Autopia!
 
Shiny Lil Detlr said:
Even though the guy was selling the car, wouldn't he have had a warranty claim against Expel for that fading/hazing?



I guess if it were me I'd have been taking the car back to the installer and having THEM deal with the removal, or at least having them approve a warranty claim before having you go ahead with the removal.
Click to expand...



I've removed quite a few clear bras and very rarely run accross one like this. Especially one so new. If would have known how rediculous this would have been, I would have gladly had my client take it to the installer for the repair. But, because my client traveled over an hour (one way) to have me do his cars, I wasn't going to put him through this inconvience. We actually discussed this ahead of time, but because he is very picky with his car he felt I would be able to tackle this. He wasn't expecting to need me to remove the clear bra, but because I exhausted every option I had no choice. As a matter of fact, I'm greatful to have started on the rear portion of the film because if I would have started on the bumper I would have been forced to to that too(I left it alone). What's even more amusing is that the installer gave my client these products thinking this is all what was needed for the restoration with no such luck:



Picture-1.jpg








pjp98z said:
Hi Folks,



Film should NOT look like that. This is definitely something that is covered under warranty by XPEL (I work for them) and the film removal, and replacement, definitely would have been handled by the installer. Feel free to have your client contact me (maybe PM, so not to spam up the thread), and I will be happy to help him out.



For future reference, usually when you see film that has hazed up like that, it is generally caused by the use of products that many of us consider common. Many waxes, quick detailers, bug & tar removers, etc. contain petroleum distillates like kerosene or naptha which dry out urethane films and essentially turn them into a big dull dirt sponge. You may not notice any issues after one or two uses, buit over time it will definitely harm urethane film.



For any of you that have paint protection film (clear bra), I would definitely suggest using natural products, or the specific sealant/cleaner/wax recommended by the film manufacturer.



As I mentioned before, please have your client contact us so we can help him. We'd even be willing to replace the product with a self-healing film.
Click to expand...



Thanks for giving us your input and welcome to Autopia. Much appreciated. I cann't help to have doubts reserved to allow the installer to remove the existing film on the bumper without screwing up the paint during the glue removal process. But, I'll leave that decision to my client. Hopefully, someone there is willing to pay my additional fees for the removal process. What is your process for removing a film that is defective like this?
 
Hi David! And everyone else :D



Having delt with this type of situation before, let me just say that IMO that film really had an awful life. :D Only modern, quality film that I haven seen look similar to that was *severely* abused--improper buffing, harsh solvents/detergents, touchless carwashes, lack of care, etc.



Having said that, we use a product by malco called "citra-clean" to remove the adhesive(sounds like you have the basics of removing the "topcoat"). Just spray it on and allow to dwell. The product is very thick and will dwell almost infinitely without harming paint. It turns the adhesive into a "gel" type substance that can be wiped away with (a lot) MF. $32 a gallon, but works great. It will really save you time on something like this.



Hope this helps!



Hope all is well with everyone!
 
pjp98z said:
Hi Folks,



Film should NOT look like that. This is definitely something that is covered under warranty by XPEL (I work for them) and the film removal, and replacement, definitely would have been handled by the installer. Feel free to have your client contact me (maybe PM, so not to spam up the thread), and I will be happy to help him out.



For future reference, usually when you see film that has hazed up like that, it is generally caused by the use of products that many of us consider common. Many waxes, quick detailers, bug & tar removers, etc. contain petroleum distillates like kerosene or naptha which dry out urethane films and essentially turn them into a big dull dirt sponge. You may not notice any issues after one or two uses, buit over time it will definitely harm urethane film.



For any of you that have paint protection film (clear bra), I would definitely suggest using natural products, or the specific sealant/cleaner/wax recommended by the film manufacturer.



As I mentioned before, please have your client contact us so we can help him. We'd even be willing to replace the product with a self-healing film.
Click to expand...





Sent you a PM
 
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