458 Windscreen PPF saved me again!

^ brand?

 

Exoshield on my F8 has saved the day a few times as well.


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I have Exoshield on my three exotics. Love it, the slight distortion doesn’t bother me (in fact, the STO’s windshield has distortions of its own).

 

Wind shield protector is a must! Rock chipped the windshield of a previous Porsche and I said, never again.. It's a lot more common than we think.. Doesn't distort the view by any means.. The only downside is, I was instructed never to use the wipers.. As it also has ceramic coating, the water just slides back...

 

Say more about that please. Never use wipers?

 

I've had ClearPlex on a couple of my windshields and expect to get in on my 458. It's a plastic film, that while much thicker and tougher than typical paint PPF, will scratch and scuff up fairly easily from wipers pushing particulate dirt across it. I think that's its most important to not use the wipers to clean a dirty windshield with washer-spray. I wash the film by hand with copious water instead.

In a rainstorm of course you have to use your wipers, but a solid rain washes off and dilutes out the particulates enough that it isn't a problem.

 

While driving under rain, as long as you keep the car moving, water will easily slide back off the windshield with the wind, due to its ceramic coating. Not sure what would happen if the film wouldn't have been ceramic coated but, in my experience, I've never needed to use the wipers...
Using the wipers could damage the film..
Candido can lead you towards Jason, he did the PPF and windshield protector work on my F8..

 

PPF is great until you have to remove and replace it, which is inevitable. You then wind up with the very damage it was supposed to prevent. On paint, especially Ferrari paint, and particularly on a bumper, it will pull paint. And on windshields, it is nearly impossible to remove due to the thickness of the film and the strength of the adhesive. So beware.

Like most things in life, there is no free lunch. If you are going to use PPF, you need to remove it every 4-5 years and replace it, even if it still looks great, and no matter how much you spent on it. The longer it stays on, the harder the adhesive bonds to paint and glazing, and the higher the likelihood of damage. That is to say nothing of potential damage from cutting to size at the time of installation. Often, that damage is hidden until the film is removed. Most installers are very competent and ethical, but there are many who are not that good and hide their mistakes.

I personally will not touch a car that has had PPF installed. Instant deal-breaker for me. I know this is not a popular position and you will not hear this from most people, but it is the truth of this product and no, "this is the newer film and all these problems have been solved". Not so, and besides, the old stuff still has to come off.

 

The controversy about paint damage when removing PPF is something that is discussed on a continued basis and general consensus establishes that adequate methods do exist in order to eventually remove it with no damage done. IMO, if PPF would in fact cause inevitable damage when removed, it wouldn't be so popular as it is.

In my view, damage potencial if I were to eventually remove the PPF, at this moment in time is purely speculative. I do can say if it weren't for PPF, today, at six months of ownership my car would already have had several significant chips and scratches. (Ring scratch when closing the hood, rock flying from nowhere and hitting my driver door, wood sheet laminate flying through the expressway and ending in my bonnet, etc). Thanks to the installed PPF, all this events have gone by with no damage done at all..

 

I understand your position as well, believe me. I know of at least three cars near me (friends) who have had paint damage upon PPF removal. A 2012 458, a 2015 458 Spider, and a 2015 Cali T. The Cali T had installation damage as well... razor marks. Another guy I know, who has an Aventador, had major issues as well... damage upon install, damage upon removal, and a very expensive removal process due to the complexity. The film had to come off because it had started to peel back in many places. The Uruses have the same issues. People I know locally that own exotics won;t touch PPF anymore due to the removal risks, even though we all know that we have no damage protection.

There is supposedly a new product coming to market which is a temporary film. It works the same way as peel-offs for helmets. It is really designed for use on a road trip and removal around town.

 

I do believe a lot has to do with the experience of those who install and remove it. Also, not sure when your friends ppf's where installed but, this films have been continually evolving in the past years... but, guess we'll have to wait and see.. I'll share my experience when I remove the PPF eventually.. hopefully > 10 years

 

I’d agree that the most important part is the installer. Lots of shops out there these days pushing detailing and ppf. I think only a select few really see it as a craft to take pride in.

 

My PPF installer believes that putting a coat of high quality ceramic on before the film could make removal much easier. Has anyone else heard of this?

 

Not exactly the ask but I’ll share. Whenever I’ve asked about paint correction before PPF, 9/10 a shop has said “oh absolutely and we’d love to do it for you.” Only one shop in my area has suggested it is dubious in terms of result.

Essentially, he asked in reply, why spend money on anything under the PPF when the end result is the same no matter what you do: the PPF has to come off, and you may have to fix something when it does. To him this was an unavoidable truth, so, better to save the money for when it comes off in the event something is needed then anyway. Don’t fix something only to break it, I suppose.

I’m not sure my opinion yet, but it was an interesting view from someone who should be incentivized to tell me to buy more.

 

No

 

The fact that others suffer consequences from using that on their cars, I would not put that on my car EVER. First of all, keep your distance from the traffic ahead. Drive in conditions that do not promote rock damage and drive on the right roads. Since I bought my SpecialeA used, it does have it on the very front of the car and I wish it didn't. I like original paint by itself without the potential for issues from adding the film.

 

All of the issues noted in this thread are due to the installer, not the film.

 

All thing’s being equal, PPF may not have had anything to do with the outcome.
In past 4+ decades, I’ve had numerous rocks & other hard objects of various sizes and shapes hit windshields in multiple vehicles driven at various, including highway, speeds without leaving as much as a smudge.
None of the windshields had PPF.

 

Fine and dandy, I brought up that I don't like the film also.You can bet that I would be very careful when I would choose an installer for just about everything. And having problems with the installation is more the reason not to do it.

 

^^ One of funniest comments I’ve read recently on this site.
Marketing bs 101 !

 

Having problems with the install is reason to find another installer
I would guess less than 1 installer in 10 should be dealing with exotics
Pre-cut films on Teslas? No problem.
Full body, custom film applications to Ferraris? You get what you pay for.