Cheap DIY Paint Protection Film Project

[Clubhops10]

The headlight was the first part I installed, and took about 35 minutes learning how the film responds to the slip and alcohol solution. Once I got that down, the second highlight was 10 minutes.

Overall, I am happy with how the full front end turned out. The only real flaw I have that I can live with is the front bumper, where the tow hooks and one of the sensors shifted and I didn't catch it soon enough to redo. It was very difficult trying to get the film on the bumper myself, I needed a second hand. The front bumper did take me about 4 hours to do (using pre-cut). If I were to do it again, I'm sure it will come out a lot better and perhaps I could do it in 3 hours or less now that I know which areas to tack down first. Best of all, no fingers on any of the panels!

Ordering the doors and quarter panels soon, and ultimate plan is to wrap the entire car in PPF myself.

 

[NuclearPowered]

Wife and I were able to accomplish the front bumper and hood in one afternoon/evening, tried one fender and lost the piece to a poor cut.

Couldn't figure out how to do the side mirrors in one piece. Any tips?

PPF may be the worst DIY project ever. Keeping the film wet with slip in 105F and <20% humidity was a nightmare.

 

[CrazyCoconut]

Welp, I've given up and dropped my car off this morning at my installer's shop. He's doing the full front (hood, bumper, fenders, mirrors), plus installing the precut kits I purchased (headlights, doors, rockers). I was able to install the fog lights, A-pillars, rear luggage area, and center console myself though. The A-pillars and rear luggage area still have bubbles after 2+ weeks, but my installer said he'll try to get them out.

 

[Clubhops10]

Wife and I were able to accomplish the front bumper and hood in one afternoon/evening, tried one fender and lost the piece to a poor cut.

Couldn't figure out how to do the side mirrors in one piece. Any tips?

PPF may be the worst DIY project ever. Keeping the film wet with slip in 105F and <20% humidity was a nightmare.

I highly recommend that you have both slip and alcohol solution, obviously in separate bottles. The slip solution allows for movement, and the alcohol solution for instant tack. I used a 50/50 alcohol/water mix, and it tacks almost in 30 seconds which is what you would want for a small piece. The more water you mix, the more time you have before it tacks.

For the mirrors, the film should only cover the front and not the whole mirror if it was pre-cut. I only used alcohol solution for the mirrors and did not use any slip, as it was very hard to stretch since it was slippery and this needs to be stretched a bit. First, tack down the back/wide side of the mirror using the alcohol/water solution. Once that is tacked, squeegy the middle of the film. The bottom corner of the film, which is pointed, should be stretched and pulled towards the bottom corner of the mirror. At this point try to tack down the full bottom of the mirror. The bottom of the mirror should now be aligned and the rest of the film will be stretched into place. You can now work your way up to the top of the mirror which will show fingers and needs some stretching.

What I found was that if I wiped dry the top of the film with a microfiber cloth, it is MUCH easier to pull/stretch. So when I needed to tack down the fingers and stretch a bit, I used the microfiber cloth to push it down and held it there. In 10 second it held on tight and no fingers to be seen!

There are some pretty helpful videos on YouTube and one that's specific to the Model 3. Here's the one I viewed a couple times before attempting. They also have a video on how to install the headlights, partial fenders, hood, and even front bumper.

 

[Clubhops10]

Welp, I've given up and dropped my car off this morning at my installer's shop. He's doing the full front (hood, bumper, fenders, mirrors), plus installing the precut kits I purchased (headlights, doors, rockers). I was able to install the fog lights, A-pillars, rear luggage area, and center console myself though. The A-pillars and rear luggage area still have bubbles after 2+ weeks, but my installer said he'll try to get them out.

I did not have very many bubbles, but I did squeegee pretty hard. I made sure that the top of the film always had the slip solution to prevent it from having any deep scratches or issues. After a couple of days the front bumper has very small bubbles with water still in it and I think I'll pop it with a very fine needle as someone else suggested once it's fully dried out.

 

[CrazyCoconut]

I did not have very many bubbles, but I did squeegee pretty hard. I made sure that the top of the film always had the slip solution to prevent it from having any deep scratches or issues. After a couple of days the front bumper has very small bubbles with water still in it and I think I'll pop it with a very fine needle as someone else suggested once it's fully dried out.

I did buy a pack of hypodermic needles, but ended up not using them. I'm guessing that's probably what my installer will be doing to remove the leftover bubbles from my sloppy install.

 

[Pentium2004]

I would recommend using Xpel gel 2.0 for first time installers. It give you a ton of work time without respraying and it slips really well. I've also noticed that 100% of the bubbles seem to always disappear with it vs soap and water. Let me know if you need any film or installation accessories.

 

[bluhorshue]

So I took a crack at PPF this past week. I Started with a front door panel thinking it would be easy, but I didn't really appreciate how difficult it would be and left more than a few bubbles. It seems just because there are no bubbles now doesn't mean that some won't appear. The water flows and gathers underneath the film when it dries. I did the opposite door the following day and it turned out much better, but still with a few bubbles that I am hoping would go away. There is a constant stretching and restretching to get rid of the fingers that needs to be done, and I think it would have been easier if my garage were warmer. I put a space heater in there, but really I needed the space heater just a few inches from the car for best results.

I figured the first piece or two would be the cost of tuition and handled a front quarter panel reasonably well. I didn't have any real issues with it and minimal if any bubbling. Again it is the constant and gentle stretching to handle the curves. The opposite quarter panel was going well too, but then I didn't leave enough excess because the stretching displaced where I wanted it to go, so I ended up leaving about a quarter inch uncovered. I was unhappy with that and in the process of trying to stretch it out ripped the film. I quickly tried to salvage that piece and did my mirrors and all 4 footwells. It wasn't a complete loss, but in some ways it really was a complete loss because I'm sure I would have had scraps that could have covered those areas as well. Also, I likely broke the clamps that house the side marker lights prying them out. They still pop back in, but I am sure there was more plastic before.

The hood wasn't too problematic, thought a few bubbles did appear. It also took a really long time just to wrap all the edges. The hood is really the only piece I would suggest amateurs try. I'd be really unhappy with the bubbles if I had paid someone to do it. Also, because it is such a large piece I put a few creases in the film when I was trying to unroll it, so I feel I traded in protection from scratches for creases.

Now I was ready to try the front fender. I was extremely careful and meticulous gently stretching as I went along. I was getting the film to lie perfectly (and occasionally I had to cut off some excess to keep it from creating wrinkles in the film), but I was so slow (4+ hours) that I didn't get to the edges and I feel like the film lost it's tack. I didn't even get to the bottom, so I had to basically cut off the bottom third in the middle because it was no longer tacky by the time I got to it. Some of the edges didn't stick and I fear that they will lead to the entire film peeling up. If I were to try this again, and I will never try this again, I would just do the aggressive coast to coast stretch. There are so many curves and concave surfaces on the front that it was nearly impossible. If there was an infinite work time, then maybe I could have gotten more than 2/3 placed, but there is a reason those pre cut kits have separate pieces for the bottom of the fender. I have enough scraps I can cut another strip to cover that, but it was foolish to try to do in one piece. There were two fingers up top next tot he hood that popped up and I can't get to stick back down, and that is most prominent surface. I'm torn between trying to glue it down and just ripping the whole thing off.

If I could do it over I would maybe do the hood myself, and just pay someone to do the front fender. The rest seems unnecessary, and I don't know if taking creases and bubbles if they don't go away is worth the trade off. I doubt I saved much off Autoflex spray shield, but there isn't a dealer anywhere within 3 hours. That would be my first choice if I did this again, either that or just leave it be.

 

[Pentium2004]

So I took a crack at PPF this past week. I Started with a front door panel thinking it would be easy, but I didn't really appreciate how difficult it would be and left more than a few bubbles. It seems just because there are no bubbles now doesn't mean that some won't appear. The water flows and gathers underneath the film when it dries. I did the opposite door the following day and it turned out much better, but still with a few bubbles that I am hoping would go away. There is a constant stretching and restretching to get rid of the fingers that needs to be done, and I think it would have been easier if my garage were warmer. I put a space heater in there, but really I needed the space heater just a few inches from the car for best results.

I figured the first piece or two would be the cost of tuition and handled a front quarter panel reasonably well. I didn't have any real issues with it and minimal if any bubbling. Again it is the constant and gentle stretching to handle the curves. The opposite quarter panel was going well too, but then I didn't leave enough excess because the stretching displaced where I wanted it to go, so I ended up leaving about a quarter inch uncovered. I was unhappy with that and in the process of trying to stretch it out ripped the film. I quickly tried to salvage that piece and did my mirrors and all 4 footwells. It wasn't a complete loss, but in some ways it really was a complete loss because I'm sure I would have had scraps that could have covered those areas as well. Also, I likely broke the clamps that house the side marker lights prying them out. They still pop back in, but I am sure there was more plastic before.

The hood wasn't too problematic, thought a few bubbles did appear. It also took a really long time just to wrap all the edges. The hood is really the only piece I would suggest amateurs try. I'd be really unhappy with the bubbles if I had paid someone to do it. Also, because it is such a large piece I put a few creases in the film when I was trying to unroll it, so I feel I traded in protection from scratches for creases.

Now I was ready to try the front fender. I was extremely careful and meticulous gently stretching as I went along. I was getting the film to lie perfectly (and occasionally I had to cut off some excess to keep it from creating wrinkles in the film), but I was so slow (4+ hours) that I didn't get to the edges and I feel like the film lost it's tack. I didn't even get to the bottom, so I had to basically cut off the bottom third in the middle because it was no longer tacky by the time I got to it. Some of the edges didn't stick and I fear that they will lead to the entire film peeling up. If I were to try this again, and I will never try this again, I would just do the aggressive coast to coast stretch. There are so many curves and concave surfaces on the front that it was nearly impossible. If there was an infinite work time, then maybe I could have gotten more than 2/3 placed, but there is a reason those pre cut kits have separate pieces for the bottom of the fender. I have enough scraps I can cut another strip to cover that, but it was foolish to try to do in one piece. There were two fingers up top next tot he hood that popped up and I can't get to stick back down, and that is most prominent surface. I'm torn between trying to glue it down and just ripping the whole thing off.

If I could do it over I would maybe do the hood myself, and just pay someone to do the front fender. The rest seems unnecessary, and I don't know if taking creases and bubbles if they don't go away is worth the trade off. I doubt I saved much off Autoflex spray shield, but there isn't a dealer anywhere within 3 hours. That would be my first choice if I did this again, either that or just leave it be.

Sucks to see you had so much trouble. What type of film did you use? Film is labor intensive to install and you have to be pretty patient. Have you tried spraying your alcohol solution up under were the edges aren't staying down? Sometimes that'll soften the glue again so it will stick. I've found I just keep an eye on the edges for a couple days pushing down whenever I catch it lifting. I've also heated the edges to help relax the film and get it to stick. People often forget to clean around the edges when prepping for the film leaving wax behind which the film doesn't like to stick to.

 

[Clubhops10]

Sucks to see you had so much trouble. What type of film did you use? Film is labor intensive to install and you have to be pretty patient. Have you tried spraying your alcohol solution up under were the edges aren't staying down? Sometimes that'll soften the glue again so it will stick. I've found I just keep an eye on the edges for a couple days pushing down whenever I catch it lifting. I've also heated the edges to help relax the film and get it to stick. People often forget to clean around the edges when prepping for the film leaving wax behind which the film doesn't like to stick to.

This is good advice, try spraying alcohol solution again on it to help with the tack.

@Pentium2004
Do you have any additional information on the Xpel Gel 2.0? If it improves adhesion with less bubbles I'd like to give that a try.

 

[bluhorshue]

Thanks for the tips. Alcohol was the first thing I tried. I'm am hoping it will stay down, but not optimistic. Maybe if I can keep trying for a few days I might have a chance. I am thinking of trying contact cement which should dry clear enough that it shouldn't be noticeable on my white car. Btw, I purchased Xpel Ultimate Plus from ClearDefender.

The car is as clean as it can be. I basically haven't driven it since I received it. I simply worked too slowly. I did notice that the factory paint was not a perfect as you'd expect. There are maybe dozens of paint defects where maybe an extra speck of paint or clear coat.landed after the rest of the paint was finished and smooth. I buffed out a few scratches, but didn't see the other defects which I feel the paint film accentuates.

I watched a video where they used hand sanitizer as gel and will do that for the rear bumper. I'll maybe buy another piece for the quarter panel I tore.

From 10 feet away you can't tell that the car has been wrapped at all, but when you get close you can see the remaining bubbles that I hope will go away. You can't see scratches from that distance either though, so at the moment I wish I had just saved the time and money.

 

[Pentium2004]

This is good advice, try spraying alcohol solution again on it to help with the tack.

@Pentium2004
Do you have any additional information on the Xpel Gel 2.0? If it improves adhesion with less bubbles I'd like to give that a try.

I believe the main reason it helps is because it is a gel rather than water allowing a build up under the film. When using water you only get a very thin layer between the film and paint which doesn’t leave much for bubbles to squeegee out. The gel also dries completely leaving mostly no trace. When using the gel I can get most of the bubbles out with my hands and then I could literally walk away for 30 minutes and come back and start working without drying out. The gel also has increased surface tension vs water which makes it want to stick down without relying on tack solution.

 

[Pentium2004]

Thanks for the tips. Alcohol was the first thing I tried. I'm am hoping it will stay down, but not optimistic. Maybe if I can keep trying for a few days I might have a chance. I am thinking of trying contact cement which should dry clear enough that it shouldn't be noticeable on my white car. Btw, I purchased Xpel Ultimate Plus from ClearDefender.

The car is as clean as it can be. I basically haven't driven it since I received it. I simply worked too slowly. I did notice that the factory paint was not a perfect as you'd expect. There are maybe dozens of paint defects where maybe an extra speck of paint or clear coat.landed after the rest of the paint was finished and smooth. I buffed out a few scratches, but didn't see the other defects which I feel the paint film accentuates.

I watched a video where they used hand sanitizer as gel and will do that for the rear bumper. I'll maybe buy another piece for the quarter panel I tore.

From 10 feet away you can't tell that the car has been wrapped at all, but when you get close you can see the remaining bubbles that I hope will go away. You can't see scratches from that distance either though, so at the moment I wish I had just saved the time and money.

I wouldn’t suggest hand sanitizer since it’s mostly alcohol. Buy the xpel gel and you’ll thank me.

 

[Hkbruin]

Another tip: I forgot to mention that I purchased a window tinter's kit from Amazon so that i can used different squeegees for the varied surfaces of the car. For the hood and large flat sections, it was tedious to use a small curved squeegee.
I did only used 3 of the squeegees from the kit, but it really helped to make sure that I didn't miss any bubbles or pockets of air. With the soap solution, you shouldn't have any issue re-working any section that may have gotten bubbles in it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01J3QVS2...9e15-8bd06f3c9e71&ie=UTF8&qid=1539027947&sr=1

It also comes with a very nice blade to make trims if necessary.

 

[Pentium2004]

Thanks for the tips. Alcohol was the first thing I tried. I'm am hoping it will stay down, but not optimistic. Maybe if I can keep trying for a few days I might have a chance. I am thinking of trying contact cement which should dry clear enough that it shouldn't be noticeable on my white car. Btw, I purchased Xpel Ultimate Plus from ClearDefender.

The car is as clean as it can be. I basically haven't driven it since I received it. I simply worked too slowly. I did notice that the factory paint was not a perfect as you'd expect. There are maybe dozens of paint defects where maybe an extra speck of paint or clear coat.landed after the rest of the paint was finished and smooth. I buffed out a few scratches, but didn't see the other defects which I feel the paint film accentuates.

I watched a video where they used hand sanitizer as gel and will do that for the rear bumper. I'll maybe buy another piece for the quarter panel I tore.

From 10 feet away you can't tell that the car has been wrapped at all, but when you get close you can see the remaining bubbles that I hope will go away. You can't see scratches from that distance either though, so at the moment I wish I had just saved the time and money.

If you end up needing more film let me know because I sell xpel too.

 

[SSCustoms]

For anyone interested in getting some PPF on their car, whether installed themselves or in a shop, we put together a quick Q&A video which y'all will hopefully find useful! It also features a pretty cool Satin PPF full body Model 3!

 

[chowfun]

I just wrapped the rockers and it was by far the easiest piece to do in terms of the wrap. Bending over and getting low was rough on the back. The edge is pretty seamless because it's down low.

 

[Se7enxn9ne]

I'm almost done installing my pre-cut suntek kit. I still have the mirrors, door handles, 3 lights and one fender to go. So far, it has taken me about 7 hours. I have some bubbles in the film. But I think I can easily take care of that. My greatest fear was getting "fingers". That is, ppf film that bunches up and will not go away. But I was able to flatten them out for this install. As expected, the hood was the easiest. I recommend doing that first to get a false sense of optimism. lol

I put my car on a ramp, for convenience when working on the bumper. Having the car higher was also a blessing when the film would drop down once in a while but still did not touch the ground. I did my install on my driveway. But I highly recommend a dust free environment. There were several times I noticed dust particles and had to lift the film to get the dust out from underneath the film.

This guy has given me a lot of useful tips:

Which part of "Southbay" Cali are you in? I'm in Torrance/LA. I am also interested in doing the install myself and would like to know if you'd like to possibly help out? I tried this on my Q50 a while ago and it was a disaster.

 

[SouthBayGuy]

Which part of "Southbay" Cali are you in? I'm in Torrance/LA. I am also interested in doing the install myself and would like to know if you'd like to possibly help out? I tried this on my Q50 a while ago and it was a disaster.

South Bay in Northern California. Regardless, I have been crazy busy lately. I still have lowering springs and camber arms I purchased months ago that I have not installed yet. lol

 

[7504Life]

Which part of "Southbay" Cali are you in? I'm in Torrance/LA. I am also interested in doing the install myself and would like to know if you'd like to possibly help out? I tried this on my Q50 a while ago and it was a disaster.

Have you done your install yet? I am about to start on mine in a couple weeks, any tips?