Paint film (skin) protection

Hi Guys,

I am looking at getting the film (skin) protection professionally installed instead of purchasing a car-bra to protect the front of the car from paint chips and marks.

Has anyone applied this kind of protection to any vehicle's you've owned and if so what has your experience been?

Cheers,
MPK

(01-01-2012 06:33am)MPK Wrote:  Hi Guys,

I am looking at getting the film (skin) protection professionally installed instead of purchasing a car-bra to protect the front of the car from paint chips and marks.

Has anyone applied this kind of protection to any vehicle's you've owned and if so what has your experience been?

Cheers,
MPK

I had a 3m film applied to a Saab (RIP) 9-5 Aero I bought new in 2003 - had the whole front of the car done including A pillars and door mirror covers - it wasn't exactly cheap to do either but the Saab paint was brittle and chipped easily.

It does work for sure and needs to be applied professionally as applying it without air-bubbles is really difficult to do.

I've never done it since - the edges of the film attract dirt and it soon becomes obvious where the film starts and ends. The 9-5 was a mid metallic grey colour (like LR Stornaway) and the film had the effect of polarising the light so all the panels with the film on looked a different colour (darker) - in the end I removed almost all of it except on the lower half of the front bumper.

Thanks for your input Straydox. Very much appreciated!

In Australia the installer of the film is offering a 7 year warranty but i will check whether this applies to the dis-colouring and film attracting dirt. I also don't know at this stage how much it will cost but the car-bra will cost about $A500. I particularly like the film option over the car-bra as it’s more practical but will check out the details before going ahead.

Cheers,
MPK

I've seem some in cal with the clear bra. You have to condition them depending on the brand I wish I did it on my lexus because the paint was soft. It does protect very well. If yoU have a darker color evoque the film isnt as noticeable as light colors

I agree the edges attract dirt, my vx220 has it on the rear arches and getting the edges properly clean is a nightmare

3M Venture Shield is the best product available in the market... dealers charge some extra$$ for this, though its quite easy to apply - see video in the link.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/230748368431?ite...732wt_1163

thx. mb