Photography by Tim Suddard
We faced a bit of a quandary: Our Porsche 997 wore its original, pristine paint, yet we’d like to track the car. How could we prevent sandblasting the front of our baby?
The answer is paint protection film–also known as PPF. This product has become extremely popular as it’s removable and a lot more durable than it used to be.
Lamin-x makes several different precut kits for our 2005-’08 Porsche 911 Carrera, from a bug guard for the trunk lid’s leading edge ($74.95) to a full coverage clear bra kit ($929.95) that covers the entire front bumper, trunk lid, front fenders and mirrors. It even covers the gas cap.
We opted for the full kit, figuring that it’s a lot less expensive than repainting the nose of the car every few years.
Theoretically, if you can install a larger sticker on your car–see our recent stripe installation–then you can install PPF yourself. Like playing chess, though, learning the game will take you an hour while mastering it will take a lifetime.
Unlike that stripe kit, however, the PPF involves larger pieces while the material is clear. It is a bit trickier to perfectly install.
We discussed the install with a local installer. He showed us the array of squeegees that he uses for this kind of job and told us to budget about $1000 for a basic install–including materials–of the front-facing surfaces.
We also learned installers can have their preferred brand of film. If you’re not installing the film yourself, he hinted, you might first want to discuss things.
Can you install a full kit like this at home? Technically, yes, but while watching the install, we realized that a full kit like this is rather involved and can quickly overwhelm a novice.
Is the job worth it? Considering the condition of our car and its future visits to the track, we believe that in this case it is.
Our of curiosity, I had PPF installed on the bumper and headlights of the BRZ. Just the normal 3M PPF. But my detail guy said there is also a thicker version designed for track work to add more protection, since I don't plan on tracking the BRZ I didn't go for that.
Did you guys go with the standard, or thicker film?
My cayman is covered with an "Autox" package. I wish I did the whole thing now because coming across country I took a rock to the roof and it chipped.
Hood, front fenders, headlights, fronts of the mirrors, door handles, and the fronts of the rear wheel arches was the package.
5x across country and the hood has been saved multiple times.
I considered PPF when I bought my Miata. I couldn't get over the price and the fact that it never looks as crisp and reflective as well-cared-for paint. At the time I got quoted $1500 for just a front protection kit that supposedly lasts 10 years. For that money, I could just take the bumper and hood off to a paint shop to be resprayed every 10 years, or at least that's what I told myself. Instead I keep the paint waxed, I drive defensively and maintain good following distances, especially avoiding dump trucks. In 2 years/20k miles of daily driving on crowded Atlanta interstates, my notoriously thin Mazda paint is now sprinkled with a chip here and there, though you have to look hard for them. So I am still indifferent on PPF. If you put crazy highway mileage on your car or tailgate like a Nissan Altima driver, maybe it's worth it. I may still DIY the headlights or perhaps the whole bumper.
Does it come out looking as glossy as paint or does it have a plasticky look? Are there risks when removing it?
After reading the costs in the ceramic coat thread, this looks like the better option.
In reply to j_tso :
In my opinion, as someone who has painted cars, it does not look as good. Reflections are blurry and not crisp. Supposedly you can polish PPF, but you have to be extra careful not to wear through.
In reply to j_tso :
Only way you can tell is touch it with a fingernail or if I don't clean the seams of wax.
How does PPF interact w/ vinyl wraps? Over? Under? Incompatible?
j_tso said:Does it come out looking as glossy as paint or does it have a plasticky look? Are there risks when removing it?
After reading the costs in the ceramic coat thread, this looks like the better option.
If I didn't tell you my BRZ had it on the bumper/headlights, you'd never know. Granted many detailers put the ceramic coating on top of the PPF.
If you can do it yourself, sure. Doing PPF over an entire car is in the $4-6k range at least in OKC, if you live in a more expensive area I can see it being much more (if you pay a pro). And like I said, many detailers will then put ceramic coatings on top of the PPF for extra protection, shine, and of course it makes it so much easier to clean.
I debated the PPF for quite a while but I bought a decent paint spray gun that I've been meaning to use on a project car for quite some time and I've always wanted to learn to paint decently after I watched my wife's cousin quickly and professionally spot paint a repair on her car. With the cost of PPF I may do the very front in PPF for the track but since I don't have a car with top tier expensive paint I'm good with spot painting as needed.
IKR said:I debated the PPF for quite a while but I bought a decent paint spray gun that I've been meaning to use on a project car for quite some time and I've always wanted to learn to paint decently after I watched my wife's cousin quickly and professionally spot paint a repair on her car. With the cost of PPF I may do the very front in PPF for the track but since I don't have a car with top tier expensive paint I'm good with spot painting as needed.
If you don't track often, I would probably just go the painters tape route.
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