Clear Bra?

[SpeedyDad]

Anyone have experience with clear Bra’s? I’m curious how well they protect the front of the car from paint chips as well as how they hold up over time. What brands are best?

[jboud18]

Xpel. Find a licensed installer on their website. Works great. Had it on my M3. You can even ceramic coat for easy washing.

[Nate@IND]

We are also going with Xpel + ceramic coating on top. I’ll document the install process and post on here.

[dcbigbaps]

I have xpel ultimate on my cayenne only in bra configuration and llumar platinum on my mclaren with the entire front end and rocket panel. I wouldn't buy a car without it. I would recommend doing the entire front end and rocker panel. The whole car is probably not worth it unless you have matte paint.

Personally, I like the llumar platinum better than the xpel ultimate. Xpel is nice, but too thick in my opinion.

3M has a mixed reputation. They make some of the best stuff, but different individuals I spoke to stated their older stuff had some issues and their newer product hasn't been around long enough.

Good luck!

[dcbigbaps]

And for what it's worth, it has saved the front end of my cayenne many times. Usually you can just buff out any scrapes and the clear bra is as good as new with no body damage.

[SpeedyDad]

Thanks all for the advice! What benefit does the ceramic coating provide if you are going to wrap with a paint protection film?

[Nate@IND]

Originally Posted by SpeedyDad

Thanks all for the advice! What benefit does the ceramic coating provide if you are going to wrap with a paint protection film?

List of benefits to adding ceramic over clear bra.

- Higher gloss finish
- UV barrier (most films don't yellow now but the ceramic adds an extra layer of protection)
-Extends life of the film
-Less maintenance (debris won't stick to film as much vs. non treated)

[neohh]

I am interested as well. My concern is if I only do the front bumpers, hood, and fenders will it look different from the rear after awhile?

[dcbigbaps]

Originally Posted by neohh

I am interested as well. My concern is if I only do the front bumpers, hood, and fenders will it look different from the rear after awhile?

If you are only doing a clear bra, there is no issue as long as you use a high-quality product.

[sybaek9]

Originally Posted by dcbigbaps

If you are only doing a clear bra, there is no issue as long as you use a high-quality product.

No matter how good of a quality, over time the protected area will look different from the unprotected area on the car. Most noticeable on darker colored cars.

I'm honestly not sold on the protection of cars. There is an element of ease of maintenance, looking cleaner, protection, etc. but car is meant to be driven and because I'm not the type to park miles away trying to avoid dings and I'm probably a minority on this stance but I like natural as little dings or rock chips don't bother me.

[jh_m5]

I have had clear bras on all my cars since new and it has saved the paint many times; especially when I bring car to the track
I am picking up my M5 via European Delivery and want to have a clear bra installed prior to or day after delivery ( in Munich ) . Anyone have any clue how I can arrange all that? would hate to have stone chips in my paint from driving in germany ( hopefully the "Ring" ).
thanks for any help you can give me.

john

[SpeedyDad]

Originally Posted by dcbigbaps

I have xpel ultimate on my cayenne only in bra configuration and llumar platinum on my mclaren with the entire front end and rocket panel. I wouldn't buy a car without it. I would recommend doing the entire front end and rocker panel. The whole car is probably not worth it unless you have matte paint.

Personally, I like the llumar platinum better than the xpel ultimate. Xpel is nice, but too thick in my opinion.

3M has a mixed reputation. They make some of the best stuff, but different individuals I spoke to stated their older stuff had some issues and their newer product hasn't been around long enough.

Good luck!

From doing a bit of research on the subject, I’m actually leaning towards 3M Pro instead of Xpel Ultimate. It sounds like 3M solved the yellowing issue with the release of 3M Pro. Xpel had the same yellowing problems before they released their ultimate line. From what I read, 3M Pro has all the protection and self healing characteristics needed with the benefit of being less porous (which means easier to clean) and is about 20% cheaper than Xpel Ultimate due to the massive economy of scale 3M can realize being a giant company.

[dcbigbaps]

Originally Posted by sybaek9

No matter how good of a quality, over time the protected area will look different from the unprotected area on the car. Most noticeable on darker colored cars.

I'm honestly not sold on the protection of cars. There is an element of ease of maintenance, looking cleaner, protection, etc. but car is meant to be driven and because I'm not the type to park miles away trying to avoid dings and I'm probably a minority on this stance but I like natural as little dings or rock chips don't bother me.

I definitely think it depends on the color. I have carmine red and I can't tell after almost 5 years.

That being said, if you want to maintain the value of your car. I think most would like to keep the front end as nice as possible. I think it just comes down to personal preference.

At the end of the day, if you do it, use whatever product your installer has the most experience with. The high-end stuff is mostly the same.

[dcbigbaps]

I found a great write up. Again I think llumar platinum is the best. But it's only as good as the installer.

http://exclusivedetail.com/best-paint-protection-film/

[Phatcat]

Originally Posted by sybaek9

No matter how good of a quality, over time the protected area will look different from the unprotected area on the car. Most noticeable on darker colored cars.

I'm honestly not sold on the protection of cars. There is an element of ease of maintenance, looking cleaner, protection, etc. but car is meant to be driven and because I'm not the type to park miles away trying to avoid dings and I'm probably a minority on this stance but I like natural as little dings or rock chips don't bother me.

For me if the car is leased, I wouldn't bother with all this. But if the car is bought and meant to be kept for a long time, then I would do it. I have it on my F10 M5 (entire car, to avoid the color difference like you said) and it does make the car much easier to clean especially dead bugs, I can leave it on for a few days and it still comes off easy unlike on the actual car paint.

[AustM5]

I will be picking up the M5 this Saturday! I will be wanting to instal the Xpel Ultimate but ti appears that Xpel do not have the template for the F90 yet. I hope I don't get stone chips on it before the template is made.

Cheers

[neohh]

Originally Posted by AustM5

I will be picking up the M5 this Saturday! I will be wanting to instal the Xpel Ultimate but ti appears that Xpel do not have the template for the F90 yet. I hope I don't get stone chips on it before the template is made.

Cheers

Are you planning to install by yourself? The PPF installer should be able to custom-cut the film to fit the car.

[AustM5]

Originally Posted by neohh

Are you planning to install by yourself? The PPF installer should be able to custom-cut the film to fit the car.

No, I will not be installing it myself. The installer has not quoted me for a custom job yet. I think he prefers to use the Xpel template when it becomes available.

[Eric S]

looks wise, suntek will look the best out of the big 3 - 3m, xpel, suntek

all have a 10 year warranty
all are 8ml thick
all are self healing

one has massive online marketing, doesn't make it the best, just the most well known

3m has a cool warranty option. $3500 coverage for damage that goes through the film on the front end...covers film removal, paint, film replace up to 3500 if rocks penetrate through the film. That is their big advantage. The additional warranty comes at a small cost as does everything, but it might be worth it to you (or not).

but side by side by side, suntek ultra looks the glossiest out of everything.

[AustM5]

The "Xpel Ultimate Plus" wrap has finally been installed on the car, as Xpel have the templates for M5 now. For the bonnet, I choose the "bikini" cut, thinking in past experiences I've never had a stone chip higher than the leading edge of the bonnet.

But on the alpine white car, at certain angles, you can just see the where the wrap ends on the bonnet. My OCD may get the better of me and I might redo this in the future!

My installer was meticulous on his work (he took nearly an hour on each wing mirror!) and the result is fantastic.

The installer mentioned that I should apply some sealant to the wrap. This is because the wrap itself will not turn yellow or fade, but because the film has pores in it, whereby over time dirt and road grime may get within the pores and darken the wrap. So my next step is to apply some sealant!

[Bluehinder]

Originally Posted by sybaek9

No matter how good of a quality, over time the protected area will look different from the unprotected area on the car. Most noticeable on darker colored cars.

I'm honestly not sold on the protection of cars. There is an element of ease of maintenance, looking cleaner, protection, etc. but car is meant to be driven and because I'm not the type to park miles away trying to avoid dings and I'm probably a minority on this stance but I like natural as little dings or rock chips don't bother me.

+1

[Detailers Domain]

clear film is a great piece of insurance to will protect your car over time so if you are afraid of rock chips and damaged paint from road debris etc it would be a great option to install clear film, if not then no worries drive the without one.