Jungle650 said:
Thanks @911Time.
Its certainly not cheap. From my initial observations its around £1,500 for the front kit and at least / if not more than £2,500 for a full car. Also there are many many different makes, better ones that I have heard of appear to be: 3M, Xpel, Suntek, Premium Shield and of-course there are many other non branded types.
The newer modern PPF films also appear to offer better protection from yellowing ( I presume better backing / glue ) but it is all new for me. Like you say correct fitment is also a major consideration. Ideally I would be looking at someone more local to me if this is a route I take. I could then keep an eye and see other work.
I absolutely love a clean tidy car, mine is my absolute pride and joy. The benefits in protection with PPF ( scratch and interesting you also mention minor dent / knock protection ) have to be balanced with cost, application and any potential downsides ( ie lacquer issues on removal, visible edges, yellowing, dulling etc ?? ) £1.5k upwards is a fair amount of paint correction / smart repair work.
The fact you have had this done before, clearly shows how happy you have been. ( I presume? ) ...I will dig deeper!
Love the look of your car now! Makes mine look almost ' boring ' !
Jungle
Hi @Jungle650,
There are differing opinions about whether to apply PPF or simply wait 'til the stone chips amass to a certain level and get the front resprayed, personally I like everything to be perfect, so I hate the look of a car covered in stone chips and whilst it's more obvious on some colours than others, I'd rather have the film there providing an extra layer of protection. The film is softer than the lacquer, so most small stones just tend to bounce off and the latest films have limited self-healing properties, so provided the damage isn't too great, will tend to return to their original (pre-impact) form in response to heat - like a warm day, gently warming with a hair dryer or applying a microfibre soaked in hot water etc..
The first car I had protected with PPF was done by Tom at Painsthield in Peterborough, a little over 10 years ago - a lot has changed since then. In those days there were some issues with yellowing of some of the lower quality films (not supplied by Paintshield) caused by UV damage and also people using the wrong sealants over good quality PPF - particularly sealants with a petroleum distillate base, which artificially aged the film.
Modern PPF is a multi-layer film and far more resistant to UV, though you still have to be careful to use an approved sealant, ceramic coating or wax over the top (which is why I chose XPel's own Fusion Ceramic coating for mine).
Unlike the old days, where the PPF installation was visible if you got close enough, modern PPF installs tend to be wrapped around panel edges (wherever possible) and on bright colours are almost invisible. The film is plotter cut in sheets off the car and all the curves, wrapped edges etc are accommodated during the design stage (there should be absolutely NO cutting of film on your car - anyone who does is a cowboy and best avoided) - accurate designs with wrapped/engineered edges are another reason to use well known suppliers/experienced installers (who can remove things like headlights, bumpers, badges etc so you don't see the edge of the PPF or have to carefully clean the PPF around badges, as you did years ago).
You won't go far wrong with either XPel Ultimate Plus or Suntek - those tend to be the brands of PPF that the established companies use and whilst the less well-known ones might work OK, I wouldn't take the risk with some of the Shenyang Happy Film Company type products. The established PPF suppliers offer lengthy warranties and stand behind their product if something does go wrong - established installers do the same.
Price-wise £1,500 inc VAT is about right for the front bumper/wings/bonnet but you won't get much change out of £4,500 inc VAT if you want the whole car protecting and if someone is doing full coverage for less then you have to ask what film they are using, what warranty they offer and how experienced they are. The first car I had with full coverage was 8 years ago and that cost over £3,200 and was when the $/£ exchange rate was much better than it is now - given that most of the films are bought in from America, that has a considerable influence on material cost, which the installer has little control over - hence if they are charging a lower rate then they aren't asking as much for their labour, which might reflect their experience or influence the quality of the finished job they do. You don't want a rush job.
Whilst PPF is expensive, balanced against touch-ups and localised paintwork, the downside to smart repairs is that they rarely look that 'smart' and depending on the colour of paint you have and whether it's solid, metallic or pearl, localised repairs are sometimes too obvious and a full panel or even half car respray is the only route back to a good appearance.
With regards to the potential for issues if/when removal of the PPF becomes necessary, it depends on three things: 1) The quality of any non-factory paint, particularly localised smart repairs that haven't been oven baked (most smart repairs), 2) How warm the panel/film is when removal is attempted - PPF on a warm/warmed panel will have a lot less adhesion and be easier to peel than on a cold panel and should come away cleanly, if the paintwork below is in good condition, 3) How skilled and patient the person removing the film is. If all conditions are met, then the chance of problems is minimal.
I'm not sure where you are based but don't let locality influence your choice of installer too much. Despite the potential for picking up a stone chip on the way, better to drive a few more miles to an experienced installer, rather than get the work done by someone without the necessary skills/experience locally - on a car like a 991, it's just not worth the hassle to save a few ££'s but get a rubbish job. My preferred installers are both 100 miles from where I live.
If the paintwork on your car is good (few small chips etc) and you intend to keep it for some time, I would definitely suggest having PPF: Get any area you intend to cover with PPF polished first (single stage if it's not too bad) to remove any marring (if there is any), as there's no point covering swirls etc with film - don't bother to apply sealant/wax to those areas because it will only have to be removed prior to the film being applied.
PPF is a great way to lock in the good condition of your paint and then you can drive your pride & joy without worrying about what the guy/gal in front is throwing back at you!
Give Charles at AWW or Ann at Paintshield a call - mention 911UK and Mark with the GT Silver C4S and you might get a discount :thumb: or they might think I'm a PITA customer and charge you more, in which case I'm sorry!! :wink:
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