Paint Protection Film

[Olive Groves]

Paint protection film on a 2007 Boxster what are the pro's and con's ?

[SV_WDC]

Is it already on there or looking to install?

[Royal Jelly]

Pros:
Protects front end and rear quarters from stone chips.

Cons:
Costs more than a front end respray.
Looks horrendous when it starts to peel.

[Olive Groves]

£400 For a front end respray, £1000 (special offer normally £1499) for protection film, have I answered my own question ?

[Vsix and Vtec]

I went through the same thought process myself when I bought my XK. I came to the conclusion that PPF is maybe worth it on a car where "never had any work to the paint" is a selling point (supercar or rare original) but it's utterly pointless for the more "ordinary" car such as mine which will almost certainly have some sort of previous scuff or stonechip repairs on it somewhere. Especially in light of the cost difference as you say.

[WG]

I have had ppf on a couple of my cars but in my view the cost has now increased to the point where it is no longer economical. I believe that the fitters are pricing themselves out of the market.

[LiamH66]

Olive Groves said:

£400 For a front end respray, £1000 (special offer normally £1499) for protection film, have I answered my own question ?

You probably have. Depends on overall car condition and how you are using it..

I’ve had it fitted on the front bumpers of a couple of Caymans from brand new. While it’s dearer than getting the front bumper resprayed at 2 years old, the good films really do self-heal, so you don’t have to do anything. I don’t know for how long yet, but last one was as mint as the day I got it when I sold it at 18 months old. I’ve heard it can stay perfect for years, and I don’t find that hard to believe.

Same can’t be said for a similar car on similar mileage without PPF that needed the front bumper painting at about a year old (peppered with small stone chips from many motorway miles). It was done by a “Porsche Recommended” body shop back in 2018, and even back then, it was a lot more than £400. Getting the front bumper resprayed every couple of years to keep a car mint is a pain. The car’s generally off the road for a week or 2 at least while it’s done. Consequently there’s hassle to be considered in addition to cost.

Given the age of your car, it’s probably not a great investment versus risk of anything needing painting. If it’s a really mint and original example might be worthwhile. In any other case, more worthwhile to make sure all drain holes are clear, and make sure there are no corrosion issues underneath that might come back and haunt you. (Track control arms aka “coffin arms”, corroded or missing under-tray mounts, etc.)

Hope that helps.

Liam

[Armitage.Shanks]

Olive Groves said:

£400 For a front end respray, £1000 (special offer normally £1499) for protection film, have I answered my own question ?

Yes. Plus I doubt the paintwork on a 2007 Boxster will be of the quality to benefit from PPF. Effectively you'll ned to have it resprayed first and then have it applied so you're now at £1,400.

Personally I don't like it and certainly wouldn't pay the money for it, and unless you're paying top money by an expert installer using top quality film you risk having an orange peel or yellowy finish effect. That said there's a lot of smoke and mirrors in the PPF world where the 'top' installers I suspect are no better than some of the smaller outfits who charge a reasonable price.

Then there's the risk of a scrape/chip that cuts through the PPF into the bodywork requiring full removal, repaint and replacement.

[Olive Groves]

I've had the car from new it has FSH and has always been garaged, I have just had all the wheels refurbished and the front lower apron re sprayed after which I was offered the PPF treatment. She looks mint and I intend to keep her for the forseeable.

[reddiesel]

Armitage.Shanks said:

Yes. Plus I doubt the paintwork on a 2007 Boxster will be of the quality to benefit from PPF. Effectively you'll ned to have it resprayed first and then have it applied so you're now at £1,400.

Personally I don't like it and certainly wouldn't pay the money for it, and unless you're paying top money by an expert installer using top quality film you risk having an orange peel or yellowy finish effect. That said there's a lot of smoke and mirrors in the PPF world where the 'top' installers I suspect are no better than some of the smaller outfits who charge a reasonable price.

Then there's the risk of a scrape/chip that cuts through the PPF into the bodywork requiring full removal, repaint and replacement.

I had Xpel fitted to a pair of Aston Martin Vantages by the Bloke that does all the Work for Aston Works , around £5k complete with guarantee I couldn't rate the job highly enough . I am not a great fan of PPF personally but like the 911 Porsche these cars were very vulnerable around the rear wheel arch area and indeed shortly after fitting the PPF was already peppered with small marks and this was purely through normal driving . I totally agree with you that there is a both a great deal of cowboys out there doing the application and also a great deal of variance in the quality of the material being used .

Edited by reddiesel on Sunday 26th November 18:16

[LiamH66]

Given the car and its provenance, I think it’s worth considering. However there is not much point putting it over paint that is less than perfect. From my experience so far, the chances of a stone cutting through the PPF are pretty slim. I’ve only had XPEL film fitted by good fitters so far, and it’s incredibly tough stuff. Doesn’t peel when fitted correctly, and doesn’t go yellow, even on a white car.

I had XPEL PPF on the front bumper, and a good ceramic coating on the rest of the car from new first time I tried it. Was happy with the result at time of sale.

Latest GTS 4.0 has similar, but with added XPEL patches in areas that tend to pick up “gravel rash”. Also so far so good, but only about 2000 miles in.

I tend to have relatively well used Caymans that are garaged, and I try to keep looking like “garage queens” even though they are not. I’ve been planning to get the gravel speckled bits of my 981 GT4 painted when I have time, and it get covered with PPF in all the troublesome areas as soon as the paint is fully cured.

Liam

Edited by LiamH66 on Sunday 19th November 23:25

[Olive Groves]

Thanks all.