3G TL (2004-2008)
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Old 10-20-2008, 03:54 PM
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3M ClearBra

Winter is coming and I was thinking of putting 3M clearbra on my car. I called around everybody gave me different quotes but 1 place in markham got good reviews and charging $799+tax to do bumer, hood, fenders and mirrors. what you guys think??

Anybody else have on your TL?
Old 10-20-2008, 04:20 PM
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I got front bumper, all the way up to about 1/3 of the hood, mirrors and edges of doors done for ~$400. If they are going to do your entire hood and fenders they price you got quoted sounds about right.
Old 10-20-2008, 04:29 PM
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Also .... he is in Ontario so the price for service is also different.
So 800+tax seems reasonable... see if you can bump the price down a bit.
And if you go through with this company, please come back and give a review =D Maybe I'll drive to Markham myself to get a clearbra installed after a repaint.
Old 10-20-2008, 04:39 PM
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Anticipate waiting 3 months before getting a clear bra put on after a fresh paint job.
Old 10-20-2008, 05:09 PM
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I am in alberta and its expensive here too but not that much.
called 2 places, one wanted 650 for the hood, mirrors, fenders and bumper. The other wants 350 for the bumper, and 220 for hood mirrors and fenders. And they are reputable shops everyone is talking about. Now I found a new shop and they are willing to do 7 window tinting and 3M for 700, with a life-time warranty which is pretty good I think
Old 10-20-2008, 05:13 PM
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Originally Posted by myron
I am in alberta and its expensive here too but not that much.
called 2 places, one wanted 650 for the hood, mirrors, fenders and bumper. The other wants 350 for the bumper, and 220 for hood mirrors and fenders. And they are reputable shops everyone is talking about. Now I found a new shop and they are willing to do 7 window tinting and 3M for 700, with a life-time warranty which is pretty good I think
hey your in edmonton right? if u dont mind me asking which shops did u call to get those quotes? i was considering to get mine done..
Old 10-20-2008, 06:53 PM
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Originally Posted by o4Komodo
Also .... he is in Ontario so the price for service is also different.
So 800+tax seems reasonable... see if you can bump the price down a bit.
And if you go through with this company, please come back and give a review =D Maybe I'll drive to Markham myself to get a clearbra installed after a repaint.

Sure I will let you know.
Old 10-21-2008, 03:48 AM
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The price could also be dependent on the type of coverage they offer ,the design they are using and skill of the installer. This is a very good investment for the short/long term ownership because when you sell a buyer will have more confidence in a sense that you take care of your vehicle. I am not saying that owners without it do not take care of there vehicle but it could help with selling the car. Another thing to think about, what if you were looking at a used car and saw a car with a bunch of rock chips on the front vs one with the clear bra? Think about the cost to repaint the hood, bumper and fenders. Say if you didn't buy the clear bra then repainted the front end 5 years down the road and decided to keep the car another 5, the parts there were not painted will probably be more faded and when I see cars like that I assume they were in an accident. My last car was a prelude and when I bought it the paint was fresh, after three years the front end was shot to hell.

Ask if the front end kit will include a headlight/fog kit. Did you know that 3m film is able to stop a rock at a velocity of 120mph? It could also save your headlights and fogs from being cracked by a rock or debris from the roadways. I have also seen film save paint from minor scrapes where the film is the only thing that was damaged. I have seen where people have hit the side of there garage with there bumper or where a car backed into there car in a parking lot and the film was damaged not the paint.

I used to be an installer, 800+tax is pretty fair make sure they give you a 3m warranty card and also ask if they are a certified 3m installer. Ask if they offer extended hood coverage and about the design of it. My hood kit had a curve at the top instead of being straight across to flow better with the curvature of the hood. After a couple days check for peeling or any bubbles, there may be a few bubbles that will go away overtime but some will not and should be taken care of.

Last edited by xmrgoodcatx; 10-21-2008 at 03:51 AM.
Old 10-21-2008, 09:21 AM
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I paid $600 US for VentureShield when I bought the car.

I am generally happy with it but the install wasn't the greatest so I'm thinking about replacing it myself.

Sorry if I am hijacking this thread, but does anyone have any opinions on 3M vs VentureShield?
Old 10-21-2008, 09:41 AM
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To the OP, I just negociated $575 US down from $600+tax for my entire front end installation of 3M....front bumper, fenders, 1/3 of the hood and side mirrors. I don't know what the conversion of $ is, but I hope that helps.

To the thread highjacker, I dont know if 3M is better than Ventureshield, but I am thrilled with the way the 3M looks on my 08TL. I would imagine that the products are of similar quality, so it might just be the quality of the installation that makes the difference.
Old 10-21-2008, 10:44 AM
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Originally Posted by bsprinker
To the OP, I just negociated $575 US down from $600+tax for my entire front end installation of 3M....front bumper, fenders, 1/3 of the hood and side mirrors. I don't know what the conversion of $ is, but I hope that helps.

To the thread highjacker, I dont know if 3M is better than Ventureshield, but I am thrilled with the way the 3M looks on my 08TL. I would imagine that the products are of similar quality, so it might just be the quality of the installation that makes the difference.
that seem a little on the high side for us prices...i assume you had it done at the dealership....i would think you can get it for around 400 or soo...i still whish i would have done it, too late now....
Old 10-21-2008, 11:00 AM
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Originally Posted by vinnier6
that seem a little on the high side for us prices...i assume you had it done at the dealership....i would think you can get it for around 400 or soo...i still whish i would have done it, too late now....
Actually, it was an independent contractor who services the local BMW/Audi dealership who installed the product. I got her name from my father who has had his car serviced their in the past. She came to my house and installed the material in my garage...I thought it was a great deal for $575 OTD.

I had received some other quotes for around $700 from a couple other places. And, unfortunately, their aren't a lot of places in Pittsburgh that install the material, which drives the prices up.

It's really not too late for you to have it installed, unless you have some major marks on the front of your car from road debris. I had my dealership re-spray my front bumper before I had the 3M installed, and now the car looks brand-new.
Old 10-21-2008, 12:57 PM
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I bought my 3M clear bra off ebay for 125 i believe and put it on myself. I have one bubble under my bumper but for the most part it looks great. I did the hood, front of the fenders, mirrors, and full bumper and all I can say is take your time. I did my TL first and then came to my moms and put one on her Lexus RX and it is perfect.

If you are willing to take your time and put a few hours aside you can do this despite what everyone else says.
Old 10-21-2008, 04:44 PM
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Originally Posted by xmrgoodcatx
The price could also be dependent on the type of coverage they offer ,the design they are using and skill of the installer. This is a very good investment for the short/long term ownership because when you sell a buyer will have more confidence in a sense that you take care of your vehicle. I am not saying that owners without it do not take care of there vehicle but it could help with selling the car. Another thing to think about, what if you were looking at a used car and saw a car with a bunch of rock chips on the front vs one with the clear bra? Think about the cost to repaint the hood, bumper and fenders. Say if you didn't buy the clear bra then repainted the front end 5 years down the road and decided to keep the car another 5, the parts there were not painted will probably be more faded and when I see cars like that I assume they were in an accident. My last car was a prelude and when I bought it the paint was fresh, after three years the front end was shot to hell.

Ask if the front end kit will include a headlight/fog kit. Did you know that 3m film is able to stop a rock at a velocity of 120mph? It could also save your headlights and fogs from being cracked by a rock or debris from the roadways. I have also seen film save paint from minor scrapes where the film is the only thing that was damaged. I have seen where people have hit the side of there garage with there bumper or where a car backed into there car in a parking lot and the film was damaged not the paint.

I used to be an installer, 800+tax is pretty fair make sure they give you a 3m warranty card and also ask if they are a certified 3m installer. Ask if they offer extended hood coverage and about the design of it. My hood kit had a curve at the top instead of being straight across to flow better with the curvature of the hood. After a couple days check for peeling or any bubbles, there may be a few bubbles that will go away overtime but some will not and should be taken care of.
Thanks man I will go ahead get it done in 2 weeks.
Old 10-21-2008, 04:45 PM
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Originally Posted by bsprinker
Actually, it was an independent contractor who services the local BMW/Audi dealership who installed the product. I got her name from my father who has had his car serviced their in the past. She came to my house and installed the material in my garage...I thought it was a great deal for $575 OTD.

I had received some other quotes for around $700 from a couple other places. And, unfortunately, their aren't a lot of places in Pittsburgh that install the material, which drives the prices up.

It's really not too late for you to have it installed, unless you have some major marks on the front of your car from road debris. I had my dealership re-spray my front bumper before I had the 3M installed, and now the car looks brand-new.
My hood has no marks at the moment. we had really bad winter last year in my area..thats why I worried this year.
Old 10-23-2008, 11:10 AM
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Speaking from experience, buy the 3M material from whomever does the installation. That way you'll only have 1 entity to deal with if there's ever a problem. Same goes for tires!
Old 10-23-2008, 11:27 AM
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ok thx.
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