Model S Exterior: Paint Armor

[ModelS1079]

Has anyone seen it on a Silver Model S? Only the white had it at the Austin event and I was really put off by it. I plan on getting a silver car but I am now on the fence.

See MikeK's post on the Paint Protection thread re: Amour on Silver ("Looks Great").

[ryanjm]

I know that you will look at your Model S more than anyone else, but FWIW to the average person, Paint Armor is invisible. In the six years I've had it on my 2006 Infiniti, I can count the number of times someone has noticed it on one hand.

[MikeK]

Has anyone seen it on a Silver Model S? Only the white had it at the Austin event and I was really put off by it. I plan on getting a silver car but I am now on the fence.

Just to reinforce what ModelS1079 already said, I have seen the Silver Performance car with the paint film on it. I was surprised how invisible it is. In fact, I initially thought it had been removed from the hood, until I looked very closely and found that it was present.

The only two things I saw that were more visible were the edges of the film up on the mirrors, and the film near the back wheel.

The film on the mirrors was a little dirty with some sort of dark dirt, and therefore visible. I was able to just run my fingernail gently along the edge and then wipe with a fingertip to remove that dirt.

The film down by the wheel, I think, was slightly yellowed, or just not perfectly clear when viewed from that angle. So, it was a little bit darker than the surrounding paint.

If I had gotten the silver paint, I would absolutely have gotten the paint protection. I called a well-regarded local shop, and compared to their prices, Tesla's offering is a bargain.

It is not perfectly invisible, but it is quite innocuous and doesn't detract from the looks of the car in my opinion. I totally know what you mean about the white. That being said, I saw a very pretty white BMW M5 today, all tricked out and de-chromed. It had the paint protection on it. You could see it, but the car wasn't unattractive. It may be worth looking into a more focused application.

I think I would like, at a minimum, to get the edges of the doors done (where they might bump something when opened). Perhaps the areas behind the wheels too.

Or, if there's a different type of film that's not so apparent on white paint, I would consider a more complete aftermarket application.

[Larry Chanin]

Has anyone seen it on a Silver Model S? Only the white had it at the Austin event and I was really put off by it. I plan on getting a silver car but I am now on the fence.

Opinions vary.

I found the paint armor quite visible, but not unduly objectionable.

Posting #67

Larry

[chmod a+wrx]

I know that you will look at your Model S more than anyone else, but FWIW to the average person, Paint Armor is invisible. In the six years I've had it on my 2006 Infiniti, I can count the number of times someone has noticed it on one hand.

Or at least mentioned that they noticed it...

[jerry33]

My thought is that if you can see it when the car is new (and that's presumably when the paint armour looks the best), how is it going to look a year down the road?

[pguerra]

Has anyone seen it on a Silver Model S? Only the white had it at the Austin event and I was really put off by it. I plan on getting a silver car but I am now on the fence.

Here's a photo I took from the Mahwah Get Amped event. I too was highly concerned about the possibility of seeing the Paint Armor line across the hood. However, after seeing the Silver Perf at the Get Amped event, I decided to get the Paint Armor option b/c I just don't really notice the line unless it is close inspection.

B/c I value the paint protection more so than I am turned off by the minimally visible line on the hood (made even less noticeable when whizzing down the highway...), it was an easy decision for me. In addition, I figure at some point (if necessary) I can always replace just the hood Paint Armor with some 3rd party option - but at least the rest of the remaining Paint Armor will fit nicely by the manufacturer (i.e. Tesla).

[Larry Chanin]

Here's a photo of the pain amor on a Silver prototype.

Larry

[contaygious]

Not too bad on silver, but the dark colors are a no brainer to get the protection, only 2 people ever asked me about it on my black car since 2003. Now that I'm getting white I think I'll result to no protection and touch ups yearly.

[Brian H]

...
Here's a photo of the pain amor on a Silver prototype.

Larry

Ya, I can see it. But why does it love pain? (pain amor)?