Front End Ceramic Wraps

[dumbcomputers]

People don't talk about how much easier it is to clean bird poop and bugs off of PPF versus bare paint. PPF is self healing and swirl marks just disappear. This is the second car I've PPF'ed and it's hard to go back to a non-PPF car.

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[dumbcomputers]

Shop around, prices vary A LOT because it's a pretty high-margin business. Tell them you're in no hurry and can bring it in when they have a slow week, you might get a great deal ... also CASH talks ... or if you know someone ... A friend did my bumper, headlights & hood with PPF + windshield protection film for $1k CAD which is about $700 USD

FYI On new orders, Ford does hood + fenders for $360 USD which is a good price if they use quality film

I also depends greatly on the area you live in. I live in San Diego where commercial rent is extremely high. I gave a ball park number of quotes I got in the area. I did pay less because "I know a guy".

It's not has high margin as most people think....My friend showed me the material cost for him (dealer cost) and I know how much labor he put into it. I would feel bad paying him less that what I paid.

 

[Speed2000]

Ive seen the film take a lot of damage that I would have bet damaged the paint. On the black car, most of the damage rubbed off with a solvent, just a small scratch by the yellow towel

 

[dumbcomputers]

Ive seen the film take a lot of damage that I would have bet damaged the paint. On the black car, most of the damage rubbed off with a solvent, just a small scratch by the yellow towel

For me rock chips drive me crazy...I know the PPF won't improve resale value much but it's much more pleasant and stress free during my ownership.

 

[notfast]

People don't talk about how much easier it is to clean bird poop and bugs off of PPF versus bare paint. PPF is self healing and swirl marks just disappear. This is the second car I've PPF'ed and it's hard to go back to a non-PPF car.

If you are concerned with having a flawless vehicle then I suppose you can't put a price on that. But I encourage you to peruse your local CarMax or other franchised used car lot and see the condition of typical late-model used cars.

Believe me, I was a professional auto detailer and kept all of my personal cars 99% swirl free. I kept it up for a while after I left the profession, but then I realized that it wasn't really a hobby and the only person I was stressing out was myself.

Now I keep it to what I recommend for basically anyone else. I wash it once a week ($8 gas station tunnel wash), wax it once a month (basic Meguiar's Cleaner Wax in the maroon bottle), and claybar it twice a year. Keeps 80% of the swirl marks at bay for 20% the effort, and keeps the car looking better than 90% of what you'd see at CarMax for its age and mileage.

I went from having cabinets of detailing chemicals and equipment to a single 12 gallon tote with just my trusty Porter Cable 7424XP (Harbor Freight has a clone for $40 on sale), two finishing pads, the bottle of cleaner wax, claybar, a bottle of Optimum Power Clean, bottle of Optimium No Rinse (I dilute it for quick detailer and clay lube), Stoner's Invisible Glass, Rain-X original, Cerakote trim wipes, and the edgeless microfiber towels from Harbor Freight.

Ive seen the film take a lot of damage that I would have bet damaged the paint. On the black car, most of the damage rubbed off with a solvent, just a small scratch by the yellow towel

That's a great use of PPF, but personally I'd just take my chances with paint scrapes and just get a bumper respray if it came to it.

 

[surfstar]

Just curious what does it cost to cover just the front end of a Mav? Ball Park price.

Much more than the lower resale of a few rock chips.

 

[Grabber Rick]

I did vinyl PPF in black under the grill and headlights (trying to minimize that weird looking panel) and clear PPF on either side.

I think I would of done the black just even with the headlights. Would of left the front bumper below the grille body colored. Looks like front had a replacement unpainted bumper cover put on it. That's my opinion.

 

[bgn]

Personally, I don't think it's worth the money on a "cheap" vehicle. I have just one bigger rock chip outside of my wheel wells in 4 years after 28k miles, with a few thousand of those on forest service roads and driving behind others. I can live with that.

 

[Rob P.]

About $800-$1k.

It was part of a larger job, but I would estimate the front end was about $200 or so.

I think I would of done the black just even with the headlights. Would of left the front bumper below the grille body colored. Looks like front had a replacement unpainted bumper cover put on it. That's my opinion.

*would have*

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