So Cal PPF installers and customer experiences

[grezex]

Yikes, that is pretty bad. The film isn't even cut close to the vent.
As much as I hate the idea of taking things apart... man must see how to safely be able to drop that vent to wrap the paint.
It would then make sense to wrap the shiny bits too rather than only ceramic coating it.

 

[Tobiasz17azs]

Yikes, that is pretty bad. The film isn't even cut close to the vent.
As much as I hate the idea of taking things apart... man must see how to safely be able to drop that vent to wrap the paint.
It would then make sense to wrap the shiny bits too rather than only ceramic coating it.

My vents are perfectly wrapped with black PPF .

 

[drjazzsk]

Mine is one piece but around the vents looks shity and film its coming off already on the corners. Next time we will try to take the vents out and try to do seem less
Job. I mean not me / my installer

where did you get it done? what film is that...xpel/stek?

 

[GrahamClark_60-68]

For what it's worth, mine is in at PFS, and in the short time while I was getting checked in, a whole host of amazing cars were on their way in, including a Huracan EVO and a GT2 RS. That being said I truly believe that Kyle and his team with 18+ years of experience know what they're doing and do it very well, and are very careful I believe. I had some time to speak with Kyle about the relief cuts and if they could be modified/reduced in size/eliminated etc., and he had this to say. He related to me his many conversations with XPEL regarding how they do their templates, (computerized, based on wind tunnel results, working directly with the manufacturers on the suspected high impact areas,, etc and a lot of other detailed analysis that seemed fairly impressive to someone who knows little to nothing about this), to the point where they trust the templates provided by XPEL implicitly, including the relief cuts shape and size. They are there for a reason, and they feel strongly about this. When then have gotten requests to modify them, even slightly, they are risking their reputation and customer satisfaction if something goes wrong, such as lifting. While they will honor whatever the customer requests, they can't and won't guarantee against issues, which could cost you down the road. Although I don't know if this is directly related, I feel compelled to cite @Tobiasz17azs recent experience and certainly wish him the best in remedying his PPF issues. So after this fairly lengthy discussion, I made the decision to proceed with no modifications to the template with regards to relief cuts. Further on this, in the Emiras they have done so far, their technicians have determined that the size and location of the relief cuts warrant filling in with PPF, but he left it up to me whether or not I want to do this. They have done this already on one Emira at the owners request (see @T6061 's photo earlier in this thread) and left this off on another, again at the owners request. I requested they be filled, because I don't think it changes the look and it offers more protection to what could be a couple of vulnerable spots. So in summary, I do HATE the relief cuts and wish they weren't there, but I'm reasonably convinced the folks that put them there know what they're doing and did it for a very good reason. And I'd hate it more if the film lifted and I had issues with it down the road that could cost me more money and time. Time may prove me wrong and maybe all the STEK guys will have their cars wrapped with no relief cuts and no issues. And to that I'll say that's AWESOME, major congrats! But by that time, I'll be enjoying the drive and will have probably forgotten all about this issue on my car. My two, YMMV of course! Cheers everyone and happy weekend (but me without my car for now).

 

[GrahamClark_60-68]

Back from PPF today and I'm ecstatic! PFS in Santa Ana, CA did an incredible job, minimized/hid/eliminated seams to the point where it's really difficult to see unless you're really looking hard for them. Doing a little bake in the So Cal sun right now! The only thing I've noticed is when they put the side badges back on (PFS takes all badges and letters off, and reapplies them over the PPF), the thickness of the 3M adhesive pads has them sticking out a bit from the body. Since I didn't scrutinize this originally, I don't know how they sit from the factory. Can anyone who has NOT had their side badges removed tell me if they sit flush with the body or stick out a bit? I've attached a couple of photos showing this.

 

[grezex]

Man, that blue sure shines through incredibly.

Honestly the FE badge might bother me, I don't recall it sticking out far enough where you can get your finger under it (judging by your pictures). All PPF shops in my previous experience told me re-using the badge could be problematic because the 3M tape will always be thicker than from factory. They had usually recommend sourcing new badges from the dealer. How does your rear LOTUS letters look? I assume the front badge is fine too?

In my mind I was prepared to order new badges from factory to avoid using a thicker 3M.
I only saw the lettering available at GRP, not sure if dealer can order replacement FE side badges.

 

[T6061]

They did my car as well. Doesn’t seem to stick out quite as far as far as yours…never noticed it. At any angle other than the one you took the photo from you probably wouldn’t notice.

 

[grezex]

Was doing some PPF research for an impromptu new car pick up while waiting for my Emira order... came across this video showing the side vent panel done in a single piece (not sure on longevity of this though since heat from vent may start lifting the film):

 

[TheMotizzle]

Was doing some PPF research for an impromptu new car pick up while waiting for my Emira order... came across this video showing the side vent panel done in a single piece (not sure on longevity of this though since heat from vent may start lifting the film):

Great video. Really makes you appreciate why PPF costs so much to install.