Paint Protection Film / Invisible Bra

[Morph]

For anyone that wants to know more about the "Invisible Bra" or Paint Protection Film, Two Guys Garage (Speed Channel) will be featuring a demonstration of the product on Thursday, December 19 at 7:30pm EST. This program should answer any questions anyone has had about the film.

Just FYI....
Paint Protection Film maintains the beauty and integrity of automotive finishes on vulnerable exterior surfaces such as leading hood edges, bumpers, fender end caps and rocker panels. This rugged, yellowing-resistant urethane film helps protect against stone chips, bug damage, abrasion and weathering. Paint protection film is transparent and nearly invisible, and it does not alter vehicle appearance (see pic). For more info visit
3M.com (http://www.3m.com/paintprotectionfilm) and be sure to tune into Two Guys Garage at 7:30.

[JScullin]

Yea it's invisible. But it leaves a fine line/bump where it stops on the hood & fenders. Which I imagine will fade over time because you can't wax it.

[EricF]

Before I knew it was on Morphs Car, I had no idea it was there...until he told me...
Pretty awesome.. tell you what I'd rather have a small line where it ends
than the 5 billion rock chips/marks in my front bumper...and hood

[kilkenny]

well i coulda used one of those when my car was brand new, but now it does me no good

[8BaLL]

Originally posted by: kilkenny
well i coulda used one of those when my car was brand new, but now it does me no good

Ditto, yea my front bumper is already scratched to hell :banghead:

[Bobnoxious]

I would think that it would be more visiable on different colors and less on others.

[XR2002]

So are you saying I could place this on an entire bumper to protect it? I just put on an Xtreme front and since this is my only car I have to drive it through the winter.

Would I be able to take this film off without hurting the surface of the paint when Summer arrives?

[Madcat]

If you just got your bumper painted then you do not wanna put anything sticky on it yet. You need to wait a while to let the paint cure and harden more, or it is possible to take some paint off with it.

[Morph]

The film can be waxed and washed just like the rest of the car. If you use a chalking car wax, just go around the edges gently with a moistened soft toothbrush to remove any wax build up. This is why some people think it is more noticeable on some colors, because if you don't remove the wax buildup it will highlight the edges on darker color vehicles. But the film itself is virtually invisible.

3M warranties the film to resist fading and yellowing, nor will it cause the paint under it or around it to fade prematurely.

It can be removed at any time without causing damage to the paint underneath. Once removed however, the same piece cannot be reapplied. Watch the special tonight, it should address all these concerns.

The attached pic is of a Miata and the entire front end has the film on it, even the grooves of the ground effects and the headlights. Most people just do the front bumper and front edge of the hood, but this is guy went all out, and I didn't even notice it until I started detailing it.

edit: spelling

[CKMOOSE]

That is one really nice Miata.

[Morph]

If anyone missed it, the episode will be airing an additional 7 times: Three times in the following week and four times approximately three months later.

They mentioned an important point that I forgot to, OEM's have been using this film on new vehicles for years, in fact most cougars have a small piece of it in the door jams to protect that area from scuff marks. Also many mid-range to high-end new car dealerships are offering full kits as an option at the time of sale because 80% of the complaints dealerships recieve from customers after purchase relate to stone chips and bug acid stains.

In addition "A vehicle's residual value is increased at the time of trade-in because of the film's ability to help protect painted surfaces...which is especially helpful with today's leased vehicles." - Jim Stimpson, Ultrashield (http://www.ultra-shield.com)

[MrFroge]

Originally posted by: Morph
They mentioned an important point that I forgot to, OEM's have been using this film on new vehicles for years, in fact most cougars have a small piece of it in the door jams to protect that area from scuff marks. I have a 99 ( build date 8/98) and I can't find any of this stuff.. I do have about 6" of the textured paint along the bottom of the car .. What years and exactly where was this applied??
My wife's SLK has a heavy version of this stuff covering her headlights to prevent them from breaking when hit by rocks.. BUT large rocks do leave visible scars in the surface that would not be attractive over a painted surface.. Granted it would be better than a paint chip..

[ShinyBlackCat]

At a big car meet we went to a while ago, there was a 350Z that had this stuff on it. I geuss it just shows more on different colors, cuz it was noticeable on the silver Z. Check the pics. It didn't look bad, but up close, you could fairly easily see it.

[Morph]

Wow, I've never seen anyone put it that far up the hood, thats a big piece. The appropriate size for a cougar's hood only covers about 25-30% of the hood. I guess with the way the 350Z hood is designed, a larger portion of the hood is vulnerable compared to the cougar.


Rich, in response to your question, I have a 2000 coug and it has the film on the door jam. I also went to a Mercury dealer today and the 2002's have the same thing. I took some pics which should help you determine if there is any on your car.

Like I said its just a small piece, but its there, I guess to reduce scuff marks or abrasions, but I think they screwed up with the placement because my feet never hit that area.
:shrug:

[Crispy]

I know exactly what you are talking about Murphy.... the 99's do not have it... (or at least not my 99) I was helping someone wax their 2000 about a year ago and freaked out when I got to that area... I was like.. WTF is this? heh...

Question: is this stuff applied pretty much like traditional vinyl? wet method?

[MrFroge]

Quote - Morph Rich, in response to your question, I have a 2000 coug and it has the film on the door jam. I also went to a Mercury dealer today and the 2002's have the same thing. I took some pics which should help you determine if there is any on your car.
__________________________________________________ ____________
Yep my old car definitely doesn't have it.. that must be why it is likes to chip paint in those areas on both doors..

Of course I get bonus points for not having vinyl stripers on my car by the judges ( they test for quality of reflections) .. I'll stick with the bra for awhile.. can't afford the 3M for now, but it would be nice after a re-paint.. ( I know, you must let the paint settle for awhile) ..

[Morph]

Christina,
The film is applied very similarly to the way vinyl and tint is installled. Soak the back of the film and the surface of the vehicle with a soapy water solution, position the film then squeegee out the moisture. Sounds easy enough, but I don't recommend attempting to do it yourself without some training or practice. The material is expensive so a mistake can be costly, especially if you are using a pre-cut kit.

I taped the Two Guys Garage episode and I also have a 3M Paint Protection Film training segment from SEMA. If anyone is interested I'd be happy to send a copy to you for $6 (cost of the vhs tape and shipping)...PayPal only please.

[highgeer]

I have had the 3M clear bra installed for nearly three years now. It is a good product and does what it promises - if installed correctly. My lessons learned:

-Get it installed correctly. The person who installed mine cut it directly on the car and left fine scratch marks from where the exacto knife rubbed.
-It will not withstand rocks (not much will). I had a small rock pop up and pop a hole in the clear bra - but I saw this rock coming the second it left the truck's tire in front of me. I really thought it had a chance to break my windshield!
-3M says there is some sort of warranty, but it isn't as nice as advertised. When I had the problem with the installer scratching my paint, he wouldn't correct the problem, and 3M said tough luck - I have to go through him. Eventually, because I got it through the dealer, they paid to have it removed, the scratches buffed, and then reapplied by a different installer.

[dv6cougar]

Originally posted by: Madcat
If you just got your bumper painted then you do not wanna put anything sticky on it yet. You need to wait a while to let the paint cure and harden more, or it is possible to take some paint off with it.

yeap..... if i'm not mistaken there's a 6 month rule on waxing and what not on new paint surfaces.... probably wait 6 months myself...

good luck

and morph... how long have you had that clear stuff on there? that's pretty amazing :)

[Morph]

He cut the film while it was on your car??? No, no, no....he should have made a template with masking paper first, then cut the film based on that. I'm not surprised that 3M wouldn't warranty that, the installer screwed up, not the product. The easiest way to do it now is to just buy a pre-cut kit, several companies have computer programs that can cut exact pieces for virtually all late model vehicles, but these probably weren't around three years ago. Glad the dealer finally came through for you though, I would have been pissed too. It sux that so many installers aren't held accountable when they return your car in worse condition then when they got it.

I have been following this product for almost three years, OEM's have been using it for at least 6 years (maybe more), and I have had it on my coug for about one year now. After attending the training seminar at SEMA last year and learning the proper techniques, my fiance and I started installing PPF ourselves. The cougar is fairly easy, once you know how to work with the film. The most difficult car we've done was a 2002 Lexus ES300, the pieces were large and the front bumper had a lot of curves, so there were a lots fingers and stretching that needed to be worked out.

The film may not stop all rocks, but it will minimize the damage and prevent salt, sand and bug acid staining completely over the protected area.

Definitely allow at least 90-120 days for new paint jobs to cure.

[Gary]

Morph,

Do you have the 3M over the No Limit Front too? My whole front of my No limit is chipped to sh!t.

[Morph]

Not yet Gary, but I plan on doing it. I've been putting it off because I know its gonna be a pain in the a$$ to get that piece right, in fact it will probably have to be several pieces to get complete coverage over all those angles. Once I get it done I'll try to save the template in case anyone else needs it, I already have one for the hood, front bumper and sideview mirrors.

I'm going to try and get around to that within the next month, I'll post pics and let you know how it comes out.

[Gary]

excellent....thanks a lot...

yeah, the no limit front seems like it would be pretty hard.

[highgeer]

Originally posted by: Morph
He cut the film while it was on your car???

Yup, the guy was a jackass. I guess he didn't do something else that 3M requires as far as application so that the film is actually a little more visible - but I have a black car so I'm sure it will be somewhat visible period.

Regardless, the jackass installer called me an asshole and liar on speaker phone with the dealer manager so the dealer told him not to call back and removed all his pamphlets from the showroom. The dealer was pissed and embarassed. All is good now, though, and I do recommend the product as long as you trust and have seen the work of the installer.