10-22-2021, 12:03 AM | #1 |
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X5 PPF Tips
Was wondering if you guys had gotten ppf done (and where on the car)
Im really scared theyre gonna disassemble the car ( i know it makes the ppf more seamless) but just wanted to hear from you guys about how you got ppf done and is it possible to do ppf without removing panels, emblems, door handles? Also tips on what to communicate to ppf installer? how to find a good ppf installer? any tips welcome. |
10-22-2021, 01:29 AM | #2 | |
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Basically it comes down to: (a.) Spend a lot of money & time to protect your car from small paint chips which don't impact your resale thus are only a problem to your eyes when you see them, and since anything larger than a chip has to be repaired by a body shop ... and you still have to maintain the car or (b.) Hire a detailer to wash your car which could cost $30-$50 per plus $300-$500/yr for full details ... and might not be better than what you could do or (C.) Learn to maintain the car yourself which'll cost about $75 / year and take about 30 min every 3-6 weeks and isn't made easier whether you have PPF or not. (ceramic will make it easier, but it's also pretty easy to do yourself) |
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10-22-2021, 04:52 AM | #3 |
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Do you own the car, vs a lease? How long do you intend to keep it? I have cars that are 100% filmed, some with front clip, plus some key areas, and some with nothing. Our current X5 has nothing, its a lease, and after 2.5 years looks just fine. Our next will not get any either. Im a big fan of PPF, but I have become selective, on what vehicles to apply it to.
My 2c on removal of items, is 1st how far are you going? The hood roundel MUST come off, but I would not remove the headlights. I would defer to your installer, as ultimately, they are the ones standing behind their installation. |
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10-22-2021, 07:09 AM | #4 | |
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If you are considering PPF'ing your X5 I assume you have good reasons to do it, so I will not comment on that - as you can see, there are a number of different opinions and use cases. If you do a full-body install, some limited disassembling is unavoidable if you want to have a high-quality install. Door handles do get removed, emblems depends (some PPF custom sheets have tightly fitting cutouts for those that do not require taking them off): in my case nothing else came off and everything got put back up perfectly. The crucial thing IMO is making sure that you go to a reputable installer that does PPF for tons of high-end cars (ideally including BMW's) and therefore has lots of experience. If you go to XPEL's website they have an authorized installer locator feature, so you can search what the options are in your area. You can then Yelp them or use other ways to figure out what their reputation is. I would also highly recommend paying them a visit in person to see their shop (if it is clean and tidy, what cars they are working on, etc.) so you can check things out yourself. In terms of install, I highly recommend that you go for a customized installation where the installer manually makes the PPF cutouts for each panel of your X5 a bit larger than the standard size so as to be able to wrap the PPF around the edges of the panels as much as possible: this gives you an almost invisible installation and avoids that stuff gets stuck under the edge of the PPF when edges are exposed. Hope this helps, good luck! |
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10-22-2021, 07:57 AM | #5 |
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If you wash your car and is an OCD like me. FULL PPF is the way to go. I hate seeing chips and scratches on my car. Also one advantage of Full PPF is that it can resist the idiots that try to key your car. My X5 M50i suffered from that fate but luckily it didn't penetrate the film. The film is self heeling. It would've been the whole front passenger door..
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10-22-2021, 11:29 AM | #6 |
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A lot on the forums here do at least a partial PPF install, but I decided not to.
I wash the car every one or two weeks, and once you get the hang of it it's an extremely fast process. I've also found that the paint is extremely durable and doesn't have any scratches yet. It does have a ton of orange peel, but that's another topic. However, the self-healing properties do make it tempting, especially in a case like iceRN09's car getting keyed. That' not even something I had considered before. |
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10-22-2021, 09:01 PM | #7 | |
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It really does seem to come down to how much those paint chips bother you (a few grand worth?) and how sloppy you want to be maintaining the car. Though I would say for those who get ultra spendy custom work done (i.e., no pre-cuts), it does definitely show (meaning the paint is fully corrected, de-orange peeled, high glossed, etc before the PPF like ClearGuard Nano) and then CC'd ... I've seen some 911s with $10k of high quality custom PPF work and it's *always* pretty stunning looking since all you have to do is get the muck off the CC'd PPF. |
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10-22-2021, 09:37 PM | #8 | ||
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ppf replacement? https://g05.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1844323 The PPF actually saved his paint from a nasty scratch that would have cost him dearly, as shown by the pictures he posted. What I'm saying is, PPF is certainly not an all-powerful Star Trek deflector shield, but it is not ineffective either. It may in fact save your paint in certain situations that would otherwise cost pretty penny to fix. Just my 2 cents. |
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10-22-2021, 10:25 PM | #9 | |
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Now from that we'd have to deduct the original cost to apply the PPF & ceramic, and then the cost to replace it ($1,000 all in? so a savings of $1800?) ... but your point is well taken. For me I've decided it's more of an insurance price for a very specific case: something that's not so bad it damages the metal, but bad enough it cuts through the clear coat (e.g., a light door scratch, but not a hard one that dings the metal). On the front bumper (and sort of the hood) it's also helping protect against those annoying paint chipsThat stuff isn't bad stuff, it's just not worth $1000s up front for me. If i had a real garage queen with a kickass color, I'd definitely do it after some badass paint correction but for me, for an everyday car, just not worth it. (and AFAIK, it doesn't help resale nor lift the value) BTW, for anyone in the Bay Area, Autobahn (behind BMW MV) does FANTASTIC work and they'll repair paint chips & light wheel damage for pretty cheap.
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10-23-2021, 05:57 AM | #10 |
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Three cars now have had PPF....the newest (X5) has a front+ (which to my shop means full front/mirrors/rear bumper/6" of roof). I park outside (I know....), I drive 60 miles a day on I95 (sometimes I may drive close to the car in front of me if they are not cruising as they should in the left lane)...and btwn rock chips/bird and tree crap, etc...PPF WORKS. Last car was black (which sucks 10 min after my twice a week wash) and PPF helped especially with bird issues. PPF on that car lasted 9 years. I also have experience with a $1500k ceramic job - that's a waste of $$ IMHO, and on this matter, GrussGott is spot on - get a decent product, do it yourself twice/thrice a year if you're into it. Plenty of 'nano' things out there (look at Detailers Domain)....
You own the car/>3 yr lease...get it. Go to a recommended detailer (that has $$ cars in his shop), and you'll be fine. My detailer (Strek) has me coming back once a year to inspect and any minor repairs. |
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10-23-2021, 06:50 AM | #11 | |
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FYI: after my run-in with the garage railing, the front bumper and wheel fender lip ppf + ceramic cost $700 all-in to replace. 'insurance' at work but if this had been a comp claim, my deductible alone is $500 + a likely hit to future premiums Last edited by nZtiZia; 10-23-2021 at 10:28 AM.. |
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10-23-2021, 02:15 PM | #12 | |
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Plus you're protected again now. |
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10-23-2021, 04:28 PM | #13 | |
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10-23-2021, 04:50 PM | #14 |
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10-24-2021, 02:55 PM | #15 |
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I just PPF'ed my entire X5 with a ceramic topper. I just got the car back so time will tell whether it helps or not. I can say that my 2009 X6 paint was still glossy and had minimal scratches. I think if you garage your car and don't give people a reason to key it, it should stay pretty good. Mine was 13 years old and again, it looked really nice. I washed/waxed it myself with no special training. I used Maguires products for the most part and ultimate quick detailed in between washes. Hell, I even drove it through the gas station car washes on a regular bases and the paint stayed nice. Of course those days are over for me now that I know it's bad for the paint.
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10-24-2021, 08:29 PM | #16 | |
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Also, just my 2 cents, but I'd say meguires is just as good as anything costing 10x as much ... hell, Turtle Wax has started putting out some great stuff! Their graphene flex was seems about as good as any consumer grade ceramic or graphene out there, maybe better, and it's $30! I"m pretty sure that's what I"ll use on my incoming x5 and see how it goes... there's a watch I want and I think I have a better chance of getting it through the finance committee if I offer to do the detailing myself. I'm a giver. |
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10-29-2021, 09:25 AM | #17 | |
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10-29-2021, 10:28 AM | #18 | |
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PPF can help with swirl marks, but it's a (relatively) thick layer of plastic film that prevents against rock chips and road debris and such. It can get swirl marks in it, though most are "self healing" enough for most of it. Most people coat the PPF itself. Coatings (graphene is my favorite) is a very thin layer of coating that protects paint from elements (rain, bird crap) and swirl marks- the majority of which come from washing. Coatings are awesome. Water basically runs right off the car, the car stays cleaner and you can almost just rinse the car (and wheels!) right off to get 90% of the dirt off. My GF just pressure washes and air dries (we have a high powered blower made for this- don't use a rag as there is still a lot of dirt and your car will get swirled to hell) her car. She can get away with it because it's white though. Just be sure to PPF before coating. A good coating should prevent PPF from adhering. To me, both are a no brainer on cars of this price range, coating especially on darker colors. I get PPF on high risk areas (headlights, front bumper, 1/3 of hood, mirrors, rocker panels) and it's about $800 or so. I do my own coating. It's very easy, but you need to be patient. $110 or so for Adam's graphene kit. Do it in your garage. Use a black light and you'll see exactly where you missed a spot, so it's super easy. Again, just take your time. It's a very noticable difference, even just running your hand on it. It feels hyper smooth. How fast it beads water and how easy it is to wash off dirt is dramatically better too. And of course, it will make a dig difference in preventing swirl marks. You can be fairly careless using the two bucket system if you pressure wash it first and not worry about it. I dont really care for the PPF, as you can tell its there if you're looking for it- especially if you don't do the entire panel, you'll see the seam. But I hate rock chips a lot more. Definitely let them remove the panels so they can tuck the ppf behind the seams. edit: also, there's no need to wax your car after coating.
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10-29-2021, 03:44 PM | #19 | ||
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10-30-2021, 12:12 AM | #20 |
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Not sure what "this price range" has to do with anything ... either you want your car of whatever price to look shiny ... or you don't
For me, the PPF business case just isn't there for tiny paint flecks since anything larger will be repaired by pros anyway - PPF is only useful in a very small set of circumstances ... that said, I totally get why those tiny paint flecks would bother someone, especially if you're the one detailing the car! I typically don't keep my cars more than 3ish years so by the time any of those flecks are large enough to bother me the car is going away anyway, but it's all an individual thing - there's no "right". |
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10-30-2021, 12:47 AM | #21 |
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I used to be a Griot's garage regular customer back with my e46; all the toys and tools. I may just do ceramic to make it a little less work ongoing, but I def will have someone do it. To do it to my satisfaction, I'd need to spend far more time than I'd want and it's just "cheaper" in time to pay a top quality place to get it done right. My time is worth more to me now than my younger (and single) days.
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10-30-2021, 07:09 AM | #22 | |
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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.
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