Freshly Painted Car - Prep for Paint Protective Film?

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marker227

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Hey all,

I recently painted my whole car professionally. I've been allowing my car to cure in my driveway un-molested for about 45 days before driving it anywhere. The 45th day will be around the 1st week of February. In February, I'll be wrapping the entire bumper and a 36" section of the hood with a clear paint protector.

I'm wondering, is there any kind of prep I should do to my car before I send it to the shop?

As a side note, I accidentally caused micro-scratches to a portion of my hood when I was wiping down the car after a rainstorm. They are very small and only can be seen in the light. They are not in the paint.

I do own one of the Griots full detailing kits. I have a few Meguiars polish / shine products as well.

I'm a little new when it comes to detailing paint, but I'm confident I can do it with a little patience.

I'm looking for some advice on what I should do to clean up my car if it's needed.

Thanks!
 
Am I being too anal about cleaning up the scratches I made? I thought a person wants/needs to have the car in almost mint condition to apply a clear bra.
 
I don't think there is a too anal on this site. My understanding is you want it in as good a condition you can get because it will be under the bra and visible until you swap it out.
 
That's what my understanding was.

The installer assured me that I wouldn't see the micro-scratches under the film. I trust him and his shop. I still want to buff it out first though :).
 
marker227 said:
That's what my understanding was.



The installer assured me that I wouldn't see the micro-scratches under the film. I trust him and his shop. I still want to buff it out first though :).
Click to expand...


You want it prepped as best as possible before applying PPF. If not,
You will see the defects even after the film goes down.

If they are light swirls, try a polish on a test spot. If that is good, finish off the rest of the area to be covered. I wouldn't do an LSP, the installer is going to use a mix of soap/water along with an IPA.

Are you doing 3M or Expel?
 
marker227 said:
Am I being too anal about cleaning up the scratches I made? I thought a person wants/needs to have the car in almost mint condition to apply a clear bra.
Click to expand...
See if using a very mild polish like Meguiar's M205
will remove those light scratches in the paint.

And:
Don't worry about using any "panel wipes"
or applying any type of LSPs:
The rest of the "paint prepping" for the
PPF will be taken care of by the installer.

Note:
IMHO...You should go ahead and get
the whole hood covered in the PPF.
Why?:
Guess where the first rock chip
is going to happen if you don't?


Bob
 
I believe the installer uses Expel. I don't know what LSP is. Sorry guys.

I already have Meguiars Ultimate Polish and Griots Machine Polish #3. Are any of these appropriate to use?
 
marker227 said:
I believe the installer uses Expel. I don't know what LSP is. Sorry guys.

I already have Meguiars Ultimate Polish and Griots Machine Polish #3. Are any of these appropriate to use?
Click to expand...
LSPs = Waxes, Sealants, Coatings
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...s/24073-lsp-definition-story-behind-term.html


In the sense of being mild polishes:
Both Ultimate Polish and Griot's#3
can be considered "appropriate".

Now...
Whether either one will remove the
"inappropriate" light scratches will
be determined when you perform
"The Test Spot": http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/50162-how-do-test-spot.html


Bob
 
I see. Very good info. Thanks for that!

I forget the name of the type of solution, but I'm wondering if I need it. It's a product that takes off foreign debris / contaminants from a car. It's not for visible dirt. I've seen some people spray exotic cars before they vinyl wrap it. It looked similar to using a clay-bar, but this was a water based product from what I could tell. Does what I am describing make any sense?
 
I own a detail shop and a paint film installer with 13 years experience. You will not see any swirls under the film. Maybe look into full hood and fender wrap.
 
I'm going to consider a full hood wrap. I don't think I can afford to do fenders at this time. It's a lot just to do the bumper and 1/2 a hood. My car is so old, pre-cut templates don't exist for it.
 
Ask if your paint film installer if they can cut out of bulk. Cutting out of bulk gives you the advantage of hiding the edge of the film. The kits I have seen that have been installed by others, the film go to the edge. We cut 1/4" to 1/2" away from the edge and fold into the panel.
 
This is what the installer said when I asked for his recommendation for a hood wrap.


"Ok. For the hood, I will use a length of 36" film so I would say the max depth I can install with wrapped edges is 35". Any deeper than that and it would have to come off a 60" roll and the price would basically double for the hood."
 
Here's a full-hood wrapped with XPel Ultimate PPF.

From this:

image1275.jpg


To this:

image1534.jpg




Bob
 
I'm all set! I had the car buffed and polished at a reputable shop prior to me dropping it off at the place that is installing the clear bra. It came out beautifully.

I also found out that the brand of clear bra is Suntek. I should be picking up my car this afternoon!

It might be hard to tell how well it came out because I had to lower the quality in order to upload photos here. Drat!
 
My apologies, I thought it was Suntek after I saw the box on the table. The installer does use that, as well as Xpel and 3M. He decided to use Xpel. He explained it has a longer warranty as well.

I'm not worried about it. I'm very happy with the job. It came out beautifully! I'll get pictures on Monday when the sun is out and it's not raining.

The only problem the installer had was the ABS lip on the bottom of the bumper. That was painted (apparently without primer) and the clear bra lifted a tiny patch off paint off. Luckily it's the part closest to where the bumper meets the lip. It's not bad at all. I'm not complaining.

Can't wait to upload more pics!
 
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