ddayton217

Ive seen a few people with these on and the local tint shop wants 500+ to install the whole kit. Ive seen alot of kits on eBay and they range from 9.99 to 214+. 3M seems to be the one to go with but has anyone used the cheaper ones and have any experiences to share? If they work the same why not right? Any input would help. I did a seach and it doesnt come up with much. thanks..

kennyc

My A4 had clear bra on it and it got hit in an accident. I decided to go the cheap route and get a kit to do it myself.

Boy was it hard... it took me 8 hours to finish the front and mirrors - it's very difficult since you have to stretch the film to make it fit. You can over stretch the film and you can also leave fingerprints if you're not careful. I actually got quite good but I will not go through that again.

IMO most money they charge for the clear bra are for the labor. and for around 500 it's well worth it.

Just make sure your car does not have stone chips on it already. Clear bra tends to magnify stone chips.

neuronbob

Don't install this yourself. Leave it to those who are experienced. The TL is a VERY difficult install and takes several hours.

$500 is a fabulous price if it includes the hood, bumper, and side mirrors.

I have used 3M film (sold by Xpel, which makes a kit for the TL) on my TL and RL and it works well. I do not know about other brands as I have no experience with them.

DMZ

Buy the 3M film from the person who installs it.
That way, you'll only have 1 entity to deal with if there's ever a problem.

mickey3c

pay the money it is well worth it... !!!

K-Shawn

3M is the best on the market and I think Expel clearbra is good also, checkout lorenzotint.com.

Kevin

neuronbob

Xpel uses 3M material for its clear bra. http://www.xpel.com

K-Shawn

That is why I said 3M first........Expel second, comsumers don't know the differences.........if they had choice in the matter, most likely will pick the 3M brand. I have the Expel on my hood and 3M on the front bumper and custom piceces........so trust me I know the difference........lorenzotint.com I'm not just client.........I'm a representive also.

Kevin

Hawhyen51

After reading your post several times, you're saying there is a difference between 3M PPF and the Expel PPF which is a 3M product. Does 3M produce a different film for Xpel? What are the differences? Just curious as to what they are. I know for a fact 3M produces PPF in bulk form and they do come in two different thicknesses. Third party resellers/installers in turn purchase bulk material and use a computer/plotter to generate precut kits or do a custom install.

neuronbob

Sorry, wasn't sure from your post. Rock on!

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

any recommendations for Clear Bra installers in NJ area???

K-Shawn

KaMLuNg...........you can get it done at lorenzotint.com, I think you viewed mine at the Edgewater Meet. PM if you're interested.

Kevin

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

yeah i did... it looked sweet... did he give u a good deal??? but man bronx is so far.. i really don't want to drive over there...

pimpin-tl

They are well known, but they are not the best anymore. There are others out there that are thinner, clearer, and don't fade like 3Ms. Llumar makes one. I can't think of all the brands off hand though.

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

u have to watch out for the thinner ones tho... instead of protecting from rock chips, those cheaper quality clear bras implode the rock into your bumper... my friend has this issue on his G35...

K-Shawn

I'm sorry to inform you but my clearbra is going on 3yrs old and no signs for discoloration and also customers that have the Llumar..........they complain that they should of went with 3M. 3M & Expel are in the top five for paint protection and 3M tint products are rated #1 by customers that want a good product.

Kevin

pimpin-tl

They aren't cheaper. They are more expensive and work better. I had the 3M and LLumar on a few cars. Both were great, the 3M made my silver car more yellow where it was placed, but did its job well. The LLumar had no clear coat so it didn't scratch as easy as the 3M, but wax took care of the protective part on it. It also didn't fade.

K-Shawn

From Bellville it will take half hour to get there........I'm one of his reps at Lorenzo's and also that's my good friend, we grew up together.

Kevin

pimpin-tl

Where are these rattings? I use to be a SA dealer for StonGard which is 3M material. I then backed out of that (too hard and too time consuming to deal with). But I know from my dealer, and others in the area they all prefer the other material like LLumar, and Vanguard (I believe is one). Easier to install, lifetime warranty.

Show me these reports. I am not doubting you, but show me these reports that rate 3M better than these new products? If 3M was better, how come it took 3M 2 years to come out with a better more transparent product over its old line which is also thinner?

On a black car, I rather have a more transparent material that doesn't make it look like it has orange peel all over the front of the car. The newer material allows this to not happen.

K-Shawn

You must be talking about back in 2000-2001.........that's the only time I heard of discoloration in paint protection and that was due to UV rays hitting the paint protection. Just like tint protects your interior from UV rays, paint protection know is treated to prevent UV discoloration.

Kevin

pimpin-tl

http://forums.freshalloy.com/showthread.php?p=1084618

http://www.6mt.net/forum/showthread.php?t=9627

http://www.digitalcorvettes.com/foru...t=50670&page=2

pimpin-tl

Nope, talking recently. Since 2003 and on. It is a common known issue with the 3M material if you actually do a search.

pimpin-tl

There is a big reason why 3M / x-pel / stongard do not warranty the 3M material for very long. Usuually 2-3 years. Llumar, Ventureshield, and so on are all LIFETIME. There is a big reason for this.