To wrap or not to wrap

Hi, do you mean wrap or PPF? I had the full clear PPF on my Portofino last August. PPF saved the the front carbon spoiler of my old McLaren when I scraped it so I decided to do the complete car this time instead of just half. I used TOPAZ in Bristol and they we very professional and finish is good. Still perfect after nearly 3,000 miles mostly in France and Spain. In my experience, most chips occurs on motorway trips, so may not need compete car covering in London although it will help fend off a gentle parking scuff. Pretty expensive and car needs expensive prep beforehand.

 

Agree with above. To put some numbers on it... £4,500 + VAT for whole car at Topaz in London. Plus £800 + VAT for paint correction (which I think you’d be silly not to do if spending that much on PPF... corrects factory blemishes in paint. The PPF then seals in the perfect finish). My research (incl. viewing their factory) suggests Topaz are the best.

Whole car or not...? It’s a lot cheaper to just do the front sections. But risk of PPF vs non PPF sections looking different over time. I’d just do whole car and call it an investing in protecting my £200k car...

You can’t see a modern, high quality PPF and they last for 5+ years without discolouring etc

 

I was glad I wrapped mine -- easy to wash, always looked great, and peace of mind that some idiot would have a hard time keying it or if I was behind a gravel truck or something -- but I would caution you to go look at a car that was wrapped by the same shop you will be using. I went to a shop locally that has a sterling reputation as a detailer, paid a lot for the wrap and there were visible edges everywhere. You didn't see it from 5 feet away but the people who really know what they are doing with the wraps can do it so you can't even tell it's on the car, and at this price point, that's what you want.

 

I had my Aston Martin (clear) wrapped at the dealer (same one that I will get my Portofino from), and it was perfect--you couldn't tell it was there, where possible the edges were wrapped underneath and invisible. I will have the dealer wrap the Porto the same way. All you need is a couple of incidents on the freeway that need to be fixed and it will pay for itself.

 

I’ve had Cali T and 488 fully PPFd by Topaz. Both cars street parked in London and its definitely prevented paint damage from parking scuffs and generally given me more peace of mind about leaving them on the street in general. Would recommend the product and service (it’s also very difficult to see if applied well).


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Vic's suggestion to get the best people you can is well worth heeding, esp. if you are anal retentive and a visible edge here or there stresses you out.
My Cali was wrapped front, mirrors when I bought it. I added PPF the doors and rear quarter panels.
Now, I don't stress about whether it is spotless or not. I just drive it, and when it gets totally filthy, I hose it off, or wait until my next service visit, and let the fine folks @ Boardwalk give it a spa day.
Less time cleaning = more time driving!
Congrats on the new car.
T

 

My 458 wrapped and ceramic. There’s no way it could ever look any better.
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Always wrap your car.

For me, it wasn't for vanity's sake, just for protection. Had to test it a few times and my 3M wrap worked, completely avoided paint damage from heavy scuffs. It's amazing. The film is 6+ years old now and still looks as good as new.

 

I have had both my 488s fully wrapped and I would recommend it just for peace of mind. In the UK it is a must I think - like the lift for the speed bumps! The Portofino will get wrapped as well.

To illustrate how important, my dealer's Portofino that I borrowed recently was wrapped.

I have used ChipGuard in Waterlooville and I have been very happy. They use Xpel and SunTek (Lomar) - same as Topaz. I would say they are far more reasonably priced as they are outside of London but just give them a call and ask.

The car has first delivery anywhere included in the price, so it goes directly there, then go down and drive it back.

Hope this helps.

 

Wrap, no question. I had my car 3M wrapped. 3/4 of car.


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Well my experience is somewhat different to most other peoples so....

I had my FF wraped before delivery - that has proven som be a big mistake since the people who did this for some ugly reason cut sharp into the PAINT down all the way THRU the paint into the metal/plastic body of 6 different parts in my FF (both mirrors, front bumper, left+right front fender and the motor hood - I might have misspelled this I guess). This is most likely not normal way to do this but anyway the Ferrari Dealer is responsible and the car is now getting a complete paint-job. Makes me wonder why I even invested in this ppf.

On another part, when the ppf was removed, which is how I found out about the cuts into the paint, I also seems to have had one chip from a stone I guess. So when the ppf was removed, it also removed somewhat more of the paint... Again, makes me wonder why I have ppf if this is the end result.

So, from my experience there is no need for ppf.

 

Interesting.

The people I used work from pre-cut templates whereas others cut to the exact shape on the car. In my opinion if the template is good and Ferrari makes it's cars the same then there seems no need for the additional complication of cutting each car. That said, from what I have see most people go to the fitters who apparently cut on the car. The only real difference seems like price.

 

Sounds like they didn’t have a very good installer.

 

Experiences like this made my shy away from PPF. I don't drive when it rains or follow semi-trucks on the highway.

I suppose that's why people say you buy the installer and not the brand of film per se.

 

I just watched a video of an installer in Austin Tx and how he did it. He had a machine with the pre made templates which he cut samples and modified the template for each car. Sure used a little more film that way but less chance of poor fit issues or deep cuts into the paint. To a large extent you do pay for the installer so you have to research the installers as much as you do the different brands of PPF.