Need opinion on paint protection film | FerrariChat

Need opinion on paint protection film

Discussion in 'Ferrari Discussion (not model specific)' started by SCIronMike, Jul 9, 2019.

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  1. SCIronMike

    SCIronMike Rookie

    Dec 4, 2010
    44
    I have a '09 430 Scuderia. When I purchased it, it had PPF on the front end of the car, side skirts, and partial coverage on the rear bumper behind the rear wheels. The PPF was starting to look old and the lower part of the front bumper had some minor damage from just being so low, so I asked my body shop guy to remove the PPF from the front end and refinish the front bumper. When he removed the PPF from the front bumper and side skirts, paint lifted. I had my wrap guy go to the body shop and help remove the PPF from the front fenders and hood. Even with tremendous care, large pieces of paint lifted from the front fenders as well. Fortunately the hood, with the stripes, came out unscathed. My body shop guy says the front bumper was a respray, but the fenders and side skirts were factory paint. Both the body shop owner and the wrap guy say that paint lifting from Ferraris is more common than other brands.

    The car is now repainted. It's been curing for 3 weeks now. I plan on letting it sit at least another 3 weeks if I decide to put PPF on the car again.

    I need some opinions. Should I have it wrapped again? I was originally planning on doing a fully body wrap with Xpel Ultimate. Is the adhesive of other brands less likely to lift paint? Is there some method of coating the paint prior to wrapping that will prevent paint lifting? Maybe I should forget about the PPF and just do a good ceramic coating?

    I'm really OCD about my cars, so I'm inclined to wrap the car again, but potentially having to paint the car again would be difficult to stomach.
     
  2. APA#1

    APA#1 Formula 3

    Nov 5, 2003
    1,311
    Central Florida
    So now the front bumper has been repainted twice and the fenders and side skirts now once. How much did that cost in comparison to what an Xpel will cost? Maybe don't wrap it at all as in 5 years you will have to remove it again and perhaps the same problems will appear/occur. Why bother?

    When I bought my car the PPF was coming loose from the side skirts and looked bad. I asked the PO why he did not remove it. He said that Ferrari recommended against it as it might lift the paint. It looked like crap and I did not want to drive around with it.

    I got lucky and was able to remove it with no damage. No ppf went back on.
     
  3. 338Lapua

    338Lapua Formula Junior

    Sep 5, 2015
    802
    Michigan
    Full Name:
    Tony
    430's are known to lift paint when removing PPF. Yours isn't an anomaly....

    If the paint was applied properly by your body shop, then you shouldn't have any issues with putting PPF on the car. The adhesive from brand to brand isn't any more or less aggressive from what I have seen and researched. When I removed the old PPF on my '08 I had, paint lifted on the fender. After a long conversation with the body shop (Ferrari authorized), I decided to wrap the bumper and impact areas (behind the rear wheels and rocker panels). Just like you, I am really OCD about my cars and can't stand to have stone chips and therefore I chose to protect the areas that are going to have a higher chance of being marred.

    BTW - we had found that the front bumper was repainted from the factory (or receiving port) and that paint under the trunk cosmetic shield could be removed with your fingernail. Yes, it seems the factory 430/Scuderia paint wasn't applied in a robust manner.
     
    Caeruleus11 likes this.
  4. ttforcefed

    ttforcefed F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Aug 22, 2002
    18,772
    if the bumper has been sprayed then dont bother wrapping. just respray whenever you feel like it. whole point of ppf is to avoid having to respray
     
    Modena_2003 likes this.
  5. SCIronMike

    SCIronMike Rookie

    Dec 4, 2010
    44
    Painting both bumpers, front fenders, and both side skirts cost $6400. Full body Xpel Ultimate would cost me $6000. At this point I've pretty much decided to not wrap the car and just get a ceramic coating.
     
  6. ttforcefed

    ttforcefed F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Aug 22, 2002
    18,772
    If ur gonna do ceramic then do ppf and ceramic on ppf. I wldnt put something as hard as ceramic directly on paint. In a cple years when the ceramic deteriorates you will need very aggressive polishing to get the paint prepped again.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
    Caeruleus11 likes this.
  7. Schulz308

    Schulz308 Formula 3
    Silver Subscribed

    May 21, 2014
    1,450
    STL USA
    Wax your car.
     
  8. Julia

    Julia F1 Veteran
    Silver Subscribed

    Feb 22, 2014
    6,339
    Houston
    This is the first I've heard of the ceramic deteriorating...
     
  9. Modena_2003

    Modena_2003 Karting
    Rossa Subscribed

    May 16, 2008
    229
    Saudi.Arabia / London
    Full Name:
    Moe Al-Bayat
    Keep in mind that the PPF will start yellowing after two years. That’s from my personal experience. Even though, I recommend it if you gonna use your car as a daily driving.

    Moe
     
  10. OneFastM3

    OneFastM3 Rookie

    Nov 5, 2006
    23
    My concern is the stripes on the scud. Respirating the front bumper isn’t a big deal but repainting the stripes is, isn’t it?
     
  11. Caeruleus11

    Caeruleus11 F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Jun 11, 2013
    10,860
    My opinion is the likely culprit isn't a make of film or their adhesive but rather how much adhesive originally used. Its a bit lazy by some installers, but they can use way too much adhesive. They know the Ferrari paint is easily pulled up- and by the way- this is not limited to 430s! It can happen on newer cars also.

    In terms of what to do now- of course @ttforcefed is right- his logic is perfect. But, my opinion is if you feel better having it wrapped, then go ahead and do it. Why should you have to look at all kinds of stone chips over the years until you would have to get it repainted. Just find the best installer you can.
     

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