Beavis
Model S Signature 991
Good thing he had the paint armor then. Otherwise, his paint would look like the armor.
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Model S Exterior: Paint Armor
- Thread starter AnOutsider
- Start date
Good thing he had the paint armor then. Otherwise, his paint would look like the armor.
Yeah, I can see how you could look at it that way. But I'm in the camp of repairing those hits with touchup paint so the hood doesn't look like it's winter all year long.:wink:
JakeP
S P4996 ==> P02547
Isn't the idea that you can just peel off the beaten-up paint armor and reapply a new piece, and be good as new?
I guess I'm in minority, thinking that paint armor shouldn't be necessary? It's a high-end item, the paint should be able to take a small hit here and there without cracking, no? For the record, I don't keep the plastic on my couch or mattresses either...
To each his own and I may change my mind, but for now I'll keep it "au naturelle".
To each his own and I may change my mind, but for now I'll keep it "au naturelle".
To each his own and I may change my mind, but for now I'll keep it "au naturelle".
My thought is that the chips on the silver will be less noticeable than the dirt line on the armour. I would spring for the armour if there was full hood coverage.
The car that Tesla drove up from Long Island to the new Natick store didn't have armor, but did acquire one very small paint ding during the drive. I asked the guy who had driven the car up what had happened. He said he had gotten stuck on I-95 behind a truck that was "spewing gravel." The black paint took a lot of hits, he said, but only one managed to damage the paint. Sounds like a near-worst-case scenario to me, but one that shows the value of paint armor even with high-quality paint.
Have not seen the fusion film, but reviews on the web are very positive on the the Avery Nano. Many comment on lack of orange peel and good clarity and slickness. Now if they would do the whole hood and add more coverage to the rear bumper. Anyone getting jump seats is going to have a trashed rear bumper without more coverage, unless you physically lift your kids inside the rear hatch each time.
My daughters went in and out of the Sunset Red w/ the jump seats in the Newport Beach store. It's not like they can step into it like a minivan, took a bit of crawling over to get in and wouldn't want them to make a habit of jumping out.
I talked with a custom installer that deals with higher end cars as well and he thinks the Avery Nano Fusion films is the best. The only reason he is still using the Venture Shield (3M I think) for the full hood is that the Avery Nano still doesn't come in the 60" sheets to make a seamless application for most hoods. He's checking with his distributer again so see if they've added it.
ModelS1079
Member
Kublai - great pick up on the discrepancy; Tesla should correct the design studio immediately. Is sloppy and echoes of Superchargers TBD vs. included, etc... the point about Avery Nano film not being available in the width needed to cover the whole hood may actually explain why the whole hood is not (currently) covered. One can easily see Tesla foregoing asking yet another supplier to change its own production standard to meet Tesla's needs, for fear of the Avery Nano Film supplier missing the ramp-up requirements.
The poor hood coverage and poor appearance has been an issue since Ron mentioned it with his pioneering email this July; it is an obvious and blighting shortcoming. It should be fixed, and before Tesla sends out another 5K vehicles. Not their first priority perhaps, but seems an easy fix so they should just change it. Finally, I wonder if the Tesla Store's $1450 quote for the paint armor anticipates a pending change in policy - more for paint armor, but full hood coverage and better quality film (or perhaps that's just all after-market cost vs. production cost for the Armor).
No one is unreserved in their happiness with the partial-hood Armor. All are a bit nervous in ordering it. Many are avoiding it. Speaks to the need, at this point, to just change the armor to include the whole hood.
Tommy
Member
I ordered the paint armor and from what I gather the Avery product is better quality than the 3M product. I would expect Tesla to use the Avery Nano film going forward and if not, than notify me of the extra cost I need to pony up to use that film.
The concern I have with whole hood coverage is in looking at photos of areas applied with the armor I notice tiny surface scratches in the plastic; similar in appearance to the swirl scratches car wash brushes leave. My concern is the plastic being softer than the paint, will develop these fine surface scratches and be visible over the entire hood rather than just the front portion of the hood. So it seems like a trade off between seeing the almost invisible line between protected and unprotected hood area or seeing an entire hood looking like it needs to be buffed out. I am in the camp of protecting just the area of the hood subject to paint chipping.
Schlermie
P4932 - Delivery: 12/22
Tommy
Member
@Schlermie, Thanks for the photo, it shows exactly the scratches I was referring to and the concern I have doing an entire hood in paint armor. Picture = 1000 words.
Avery still doesn't make film in size needed for entire hood coverage with a single sheet. The installer said the Avery film is tougher and better but not as clear as the 3M venture shield. The venture shield tends to yellow but does ok if you clean it often and polish it maybe twice a year or so. I may redo hood as 3M and keep rest of factory installed Avery film since he said the coverage was good. I was told it would cost about $650.
Avery Nano fusion is slowly rolling out in 50' and 100' length x 60" widths. They have had test rolls to cover a whole hood. I'm guessing even at 60" that is probably barely enough to cover the Model S hood with some stretching/heating of the film.
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Is the scratches the painted side or the armored side? I guess it's just me, but with good film, I typically see the opposite, lots of of micro marring, on the unprotected side than the armor. Xpel has self-healing films which resist scratching compared to other films.
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Is the scratches the painted side or the armored side? I guess it's just me, but with good film, I typically see the opposite, lots of of micro marring, on the unprotected side than the armor. Xpel has self-healing films which resist scratching compared to other films.
roblab
Active Member
We got 3M full hood from a local installer. 3M makes 60" wide full roll length, so full hood is no problem. My hood does not yet show scratches, is shiny, and the installer highly recommended microfiber and spray wax after washing off any "deposits". So far it looks new (which it is, actually, only a month old yet). No one knows it's got paint armor unless I tell them and they run their fingers under the edge of the hood to find the edge, which is not across the top of the hood, thank you. For me, it was worth it.
ModelS1079
Member
Very helpful - may we ask the approx cost of hood 3M coverage?
Also - worth noting that I posted a question re: hood coverage earlier today and there are above six incredibly helpful posts. Together you researched the two products being discussed, called the factory, discussed and took a picture of one and posted it, shared your own experience with the other. THERE IS NOTHING LIKE THE TMC FORUM. Awesome. Next up World Peace - does that come with full hood coverage?
Also - worth noting that I posted a question re: hood coverage earlier today and there are above six incredibly helpful posts. Together you researched the two products being discussed, called the factory, discussed and took a picture of one and posted it, shared your own experience with the other. THERE IS NOTHING LIKE THE TMC FORUM. Awesome. Next up World Peace - does that come with full hood coverage?
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