How to Choose Paint Protection Film For Your Car

You've done your research, you know what Paint Protection Film is and you've decided that you want the protection and the durability that PPF offers. We're going to guide you on how to choose the right PPF for your car.

The demand for PPF have exploded in the last couple years and a lot of different brands have been popping up on the market. PPF material is going to vary in thickness and clarity. Since 2007, we have been testing hundreds of different brands including popular ones such as XPEL, 3M, and Kavaca. Some films have Self-Healing properties, some of them are not going to have that feature. There are even films that have a hydrophobic top coat.

So how do you tell the film's good or bad? It's hard to tell if a film is good or bad just by looking at it, generally the more clear and thicker the film is, the better. There are a lot of very good PPF brands in the market but we've chosen to carry just two brands (SunTek and S-TEK) that we think are the best and works well with Houston weather.

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My best advice is to find a reputable installer with the best reputation. A reputable installer is not going to jeopardize their name with a lower quality film. You want to do your research on the PPF you want installed on your vehicle. Make sure they have warranties against cracking, yellowing and peeling. Most warranties are between 5 to 7 years and some even go up to 10 years

You're maybe asking yourself well how do I find a reputable installer? There's five things that you want to look for:  

1. Make sure that the installer is using high quality materials.
2. You want to ensure that the installer is reputable and put out quality work.
3. Are prices too good to be true?
4. The installer has the capability and experience to correct any paint issues before installation. If these paint issues aren't corrected, it's like putting lipstick on a pig or painting a dirty house. What's the point?
   
5. Look for an installer with a clean organized shop. The best shops take extreme measures to make sure they have a clean, well-lit environment for high quality installs.

You may be thinking: "Well is this something that I can tackle myself on the weekend?"

That's probably something I would think twice. For us, we took our entire team to training and the first twenty hoods that we tried to install went into the garbage. There are a lot of companies out there that sell these pre-cut kits online that you can order and install yourself, but it's incredibly difficult to get a quality installation if you don't have a lot of experience. Not everyone gets their phone screen protector installed perfectly on their first try, so imagine doing this on a car.

It's important to understand that PPF is installed to provide a protective layer from physical damage. By finding a great Installer, the film can hardly be noticed once it's locked into place, but remember it's called Paint PROTECTION Film and not Paint PERFECTION Film. Any existing defects or blemishes in the paint will still be visible after the install, that's why I recommend applying the film as soon as you buy a new car.

Take some time to have a discussion with your installer and ask to see some examples of his or her work, understand exactly what to expect from a finished product.

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I hope this was helpful. Even if you don’t let us work on your car, there are plenty of really good shops in the Houston area. Do some research, find somebody with a good reputation and they are going to steer you in the right direction. It can be a lot cheaper paying for a good quality job, than fixing a bad quality job. Not to mention a waste of your time, effort and just the hassle of going back.

If you are shopping around to get your car protected, we put together a quick guide with 9 Essential Questions to ask. Click here.

Have a great day and let me know if you have any other questions!

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