What xPel Ultimate Protective film looks like after 5 years

[EMBPilot]

Garaged, usually covered inside garage, out of direct sunlight, climate controlled and never waxed w carnauba over the film... see for yourself when considering spending 2k to put film over your beautiful paint.

xPel film was 5 years old, and prob didn't have 10,000 miles on it.

Polar silver + Yellow.... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

[tjb616]

"XPEL ULTIMATE also comes with a full 10-year warranty against yellowing, discoloration, peeling, cracking and hazing. If it fails, we’ll replace it—labor included"

Just get it replaced! Mine peeled on my daily around a sharp corner in the bumper and I had it replaced for free no problem.

[LorenzoH]

If you use Plexus spray cleaner it helps with yellowing. But even over 5 years yours didn’t look THAT bad. Plexus helps and it’s super easy to use - spray on wipe off.

[EMBPilot]

I used plexus.
It’s bad when your eye can detect the yellowing film over the paint. Lighter colors are more obvious.

I did get it replaced, and it’s the last time I’ll be going through this.
Also they only cover very nominal labor costs. So you end up supplementing the difference, which isn’t cheap.
Fool me once....

at least this time around, i selected a new installer, who used a single custom cut sheet, so now there are no seams at the headlights like before.

[tjb616]

Originally Posted by EMBPilot

I did get it replaced, and it’s the last time I’ll be going through this.
Also they only cover very nominal labor costs. So you end up supplementing the difference, which isn’t cheap.
Fool me once....

I did not pay a dime to have my full front bumper replaced.

If you're sending your car to get waxed/polished/detailed once a year anyway, it really shouldn't be a big deal to also have them replace the bra at the same time.

[EMBPilot]

lol yeah, uh no.

[tjb616]

Care to elaborate? Or just going to enjoy your stone chips?

[EMBPilot]

okay, i will humor you.

1) i would never give my car to anyone to detail outside of my own care. 2) If you are having your car machined (polished) annually there wont be much clear coat left.. 3) removing clear bra isnt exactly a non-invasive procedure. It is risky, esp if your bumper has been resprayed (or your car for that matter).

lets say the paint lifts on a fender or the bumper during removal of the old crappy yellow film. now you are pulling the car out from the clear bra guy, bringing it to a body shop, having it resprayed $xxxx, blended, cured for 90 days, then put the bra back on. To say you are going to do this on a whim is laughable.

If your guy is doing it for the cost of what expel provides i am going to assume he's not a top tier installer. I've learned the hard way with clear bras you get what you pay for. One guy is going to use pre-cut film and is going to look like garbage. Another guy is going to take twice as long to do a custom cut application.

I didnt start the OP to discuss film logistics, i'm simply saying that after 5 years xPel ultimate looked yellow, and crappy. The pictures show this. I could see the yellowing over polar silver. I'll see how this film looks in 5 years and go from there. If it looks yellow again, it'll come off and stay off. It's only about $700 to $1000 to respray bumper ect, to spend $1500-$2000 for a full front bra every 5 years that is going to turn yellow is kind of silly (see post 1).

[tjb616]

1) i would never give my car to anyone to detail outside of my own care. 2) If you are having your car machined (polished) annually there wont be much clear coat left.. 3) removing clear bra isnt exactly a non-invasive procedure. It is risky, esp if your bumper has been resprayed (or your car for that matter).

Fair enough. I'm of the mindset that there are professionals out there who are MUCH better at paint care than I will ever be. I use one person and I trust him. When in comes to wrenching, I'm very much of the "if you want it done right, do it yourself" mindset. But paint work is not my thing.

lets say the paint lifts on a fender or the bumper during removal of the old crappy yellow film. now you are pulling the car out from the clear bra guy, bringing it to a body shop, having it resprayed $xxxx, blended, cured for 90 days, then put the bra back on. To say you are going to do this on a whim is laughable.

I've never had this issue and of everyone I know personally that have clear bra (countless), I've never seen the issue first hand. Not saying it can't happen, but until I experience it, I don't equate for it.

If your guy is doing it for the cost of what expel provides i am going to assume he's not a top tier installer.

I don't mean to sound like "that guy," but my installer has been flown all over the country to care for 7 figure cars. He has countless investment grade vehicles shipped to him from all over the world to be cared for. Whatever he recommends the car needs annually to stay in top shape, I let him do.

Trust me, I've had PLENTY of horrible body shop experiences and I know there are some terrible outfits trusted with beautiful cars every day. But this isn't limited to paint care. It's no different than finding an engine builder. Finding the right person is the hard part. Writing the check is relatively easy.

I didnt start the OP to discuss film logistics, i'm simply saying that after 5 years xPel ultimate looked yellow, and crappy. The pictures show this. I could see the yellowing over polar silver. I'll see how this film looks in 5 years and go from there. If it looks yellow again, it'll come off and stay off. It's only about $700 to $1000 to respray bumper ect, to spend $1500-$2000 for a full front bra every 5 years that is going to turn yellow is kind of silly (see post 1).

I agree with all of this. I simply don't pay to have my bra replaced under warranty. If your circumstance dictates you must, it changes the equation entirely.

If you're curious who I use, I'd be happy to PM you. I just don't want this post to turn into a promotion.

[macan]

That looks obscene. How is he paint after removal? I have XPEL on my car, curious how the paint survives after removal.

[EMBPilot]

all the paint survived no problem. My car was fully repainted previously upping the removal anxiety. Since i was having the bumperettes filled, as a test i ripped the clear bra off as carelessly as i could from the bumper cover, and nothing came off. It gave me some peace of mind for when the pros re-did the rest of the film.

[Cobalt]

Definite pros and cons to these products. IMO and experience it is a great product for factory paint. My 94 turbo had the original 3M film installed from day one back when very few people had it applied. I have replaced it several times and can't tell you how perfect my 24 year old paint looks. If I didn't have it I would have had to respray my cars several times over. In this application invaluable and a little yellowing is worth it.

My friend installs all brands but used the Xpel most recently. The problem is they all yellow a little and that doesn't look half as yellow as the old 3M fils looked like when I removed them. When you crumple it up like that it amplifies how yellow it is and when stretched out it isn't as bad. I agree Plexus is a key to keeping it looking its best. Might have its shortcomings but I couldn't be happier that I have it applied to all my cars with original paint and it is nice for not caring so much about rock chips.

I have my entire track car wrapped in the stuff and it is worth it IMO.

Paint lifting happens from either poorly prepared surfaces prior to painting or applying too soon after the paint has been applied.

[NLPanamera]

According to XPEL and several professional installers on one of the industry forums, Plexus is not ok for use on paint protection film and causes it to yellow. Not sure how often you applied it, but it would seem this is the source of your problems.

https://www.tintdude.com/forum/topic/70325-plexus-good-or-bad-for-ppf/

[Cobalt]

Originally Posted by NLPanamera

According to XPEL and several professional installers on one of the industry forums, Plexus is not ok for use on paint protection film and causes it to yellow. Not sure how often you applied it, but it would seem this is the source of your problems.

https://www.tintdude.com/forum/topic/70325-plexus-good-or-bad-for-ppf/

This is news to me. I spoke with Jeff years ago and he along with my installer recommended it at that time. Plexus is the best at cleaning rubber marks off the film after a track weekend. Simply spray and wipe the marks away. I had to remove 2 year old xpel film from the back of my track car for paint work after a minor mishap. The wide rear flairs are a magnet for rubber marks and I use Plexus after each event. In fact when removing it we were surprised it hadn't yellowed and I used Plexus quite a bit on this film.

[Brig993]

OP I'm in your area can you provide the contact info for the person you used to do the custom install with xpel? Also you referred me to Robert at final touch collision and he's respraying my car in the spring. Thanks for the referral!

[EMBPilot]

Hi Brig, Final touch did a great job, I always get compliments on the paint on my car.

the guy i used for the new clear film is Don at Advanced Solar Control in Toms River. He does a remarkable job.

[Brig993]

Thank you!

[dc2pcars]

Plexus will damage paint protection film including XPEL Ultimate it causes yellowing and degradation of the Polyurethane.
Plexus is not good for ppf. It has petroleum distillates that dry out the urethane and expand the pores, making it a dirt sponge. The product is also yellow in nature (look at the dried Plexus on the nozzle). It won't yellow film immediately, but repeated use will cause yellowing over time.

The picture below shows to pieces of raw urethane that were run through accelerated weather testing. The left one was left untreated, the right one was treated with Plexus.

[dc2pcars]

Plexus is not good for ppf. It has petroleum distillates that dry out the urethane and expand the pores, making it a dirt sponge. The product is also yellow in nature (look at the dried Plexus on the nozzle). It won't yellow film immediately, but repeated use will cause yellowing over time.

The picture below shows to pieces of raw urethane that were run through accelerated weather testing. The left one was left untreated, the right one was treated with Plexus.