[Garycoral]

Originally Posted by Ashme

I’m not going to spend $1000 to protect the paint of my $20k GX. I did put a quick coat of cheap coating on it so it would be easy to clean though.

I will definitely put it on my $75k X5 and I didn’t drive the viper until I got it on that. Low cars especially take a beating. My C7 looked like it was sandblasted after 25k miles.

If you lease you car or trade it into the dealer, that’s another story.

Another option is to buy a PPF Pre-cut Kit and learn/do the job yourself. Both my kits were about $275 for 3MPro (Front clip)... There's a pretty short learning curve and once done you'll be pleased with yourself, the cost and the protection.

Not for everybody, but with a pre-cut kit it's pretty hard to botch up.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by Ashme

I’m not going to spend $1000 to protect the paint ... I will definitely put it on my $75k X5

Ok, but still a question for some might be why "protect the paint" in the first place if you're talking about microspec chips that aren't visible for years unless one looks extremely close? Someone might ask, isn't that like plastic covers for the couch?

Of course, it's totally understandable for the answer to be, "because I do the detailing and I see them & they bother me!" Or "because I know they're there & they bother me!"

And it's also reasonable to say, "microspec paint chips don't really bother me and since it doesn't impact resale I don't want to pay to protect the paint for the new owners".

That's more/less how I look at it ... I do the detailing, and it does slightly bother me to see the microspec paint chips, but it doesn't bother me $1000s I'd rather buy a watch... Plus I"m for sure getting rid of the car in 3-4 years so ... (and, for me, the financing instrument or lack thereof has no impact on my decision - I still detail the car cuz shiney!)

[Ashme]

Originally Posted by Garycoral

Another option is to buy a PPF Pre-cut Kit and learn/do the job yourself. Both my kits were about $275 for 3MPro (Front clip)... There's a pretty short learning curve and once done you'll be pleased with yourself, the cost and the protection.

Not for everybody, but with a pre-cut kit it's pretty hard to botch up.

I may try that. Good idea. Where did you get from? Looking at this car, it may be easier than most cars. My last cars, they spent the whole day, then had to come back and do it over, and then told they'd never do another one

Originally Posted by GrussGott

Ok, but still a question for some might be why "protect the paint" in the first place if you're talking about microspec chips that aren't visible for years unless one looks extremely close? Someone might ask, isn't that like plastic covers for the couch?

Of course, it's totally understandable for the answer to be, "because I do the detailing and I see them & they bother me!" Or "because I know they're there & they bother me!"

And it's also reasonable to say, "microspec paint chips don't really bother me and since it doesn't impact resale I don't want to pay to protect the paint for the new owners".

That's more/less how I look at it ... I do the detailing, and it does slightly bother me to see the microspec paint chips, but it doesn't bother me $1000s I'd rather buy a watch... Plus I"m for sure getting rid of the car in 3-4 years so ... (and, for me, the financing instrument or lack thereof has no impact on my decision - I still detail the car cuz shiney!)

I guess they bother more than others. I see them more as micro specs, and it bothers me I guess. It looks like it was sandblasted after a while. If it doesn't bother you, more power to you.
I guess it also depends on how many miles you plan on putting on the car before you sell it. If it's only 15k, well you're not going to get many chips. It will look a heck of a lot better at 90k if it was ppf'ed though.


Re: good ceramic coating, the best part is, if you're in a rush, you can run through the occasional car wash. It's not ideal, but it's not a huge deal every once in a while. Graphene is really amazing.

[pwnagiux]

Should I only do ppf if im owning the car for 3+ years? What if I'm only leasing it

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by pwnagiux

Should I only do ppf if im owning the car for 3+ years? What if I'm only leasing it

There's no re-sale benefit to ppf, ceramic, or even detailing; and the financing instrument used to acquire the vehicle is also irrelevant to resale value and to your preferences for how the vehicle looks on a daily basis.

PPF / ceramic is purely a cosmetic mod to please your eye.

[nZtiZia]

Originally Posted by pwnagiux

Should I only do ppf if im owning the car for 3+ years? What if I'm only leasing it

i ppf'd + ceramic coated my entire X5, but my situation is different than yours. i wouldn't install or apply anything if I leased it and if pretty certain I wouldn't buy out the lease at the end of the term.