Has anyone applied a Durashield clear plastic paint protector on the front of their car?

[650pony]

Wondering if anyone has applied a clear plastic paint protector/clear bra on their car, and if so, how did it work with the matte stripes?

 

I've used a similar product on my H-D Road King, which worked well. I'm just concerned how this protector will affect the matte stripes.

 

Thanks!

[bergenfelter]

I did mine - but my Colorado red stripes are semi-gloss. I used the 3M product - works very well - does add a bit of gloss to the stripes - but not really noticeable as the break line for the coating is at the heat extractor on the hood. You will get a very slight (1/4 mm) air pocket at the edge of the stripe. Honestly - you will probably be the only one that knows it it there.

[650pony]

That's good info, thank you Bergenfelter. Did you apply it yourself or did a dealer apply it for you? One of the drawbacks of living in California is that the roads/freeways are terrible...I worry about the "flying junk" that can hit my car. Today is my build day--super excited!

 

I hope it's shipped by train to my area. If it were shipped by truck, I wouldn't be surprised if the car(s) incurs damage as soon as the truck enters onto the lousy

California freeways...

[MJN]

Just on another side of the story I had it done to my Raptor on the rockers and over the blk matte digital mud sticker and you could defently tell where it went over the graphic it was glossy. As broken up as the "mud" was and the small pieces the clear made glossy it was no big deal though.

[bergenfelter]

That's good info, thank you Bergenfelter. Did you apply it yourself or did a dealer apply it for you? One of the drawbacks of living in California is that the roads/freeways are terrible...I worry about the "flying junk" that can hit my car. Today is my build day--super excited!

 

I hope it's shipped by train to my area. If it were shipped by truck, I wouldn't be surprised if the car(s) incurs damage as soon as the truck enters onto the lousy

California freeways...

 

 

I had an independent installer do mine.

 

John.

[bergenfelter]

That's good info, thank you Bergenfelter. Did you apply it yourself or did a dealer apply it for you? One of the drawbacks of living in California is that the roads/freeways are terrible...I worry about the "flying junk" that can hit my car. Today is my build day--super excited!

 

I hope it's shipped by train to my area. If it were shipped by truck, I wouldn't be surprised if the car(s) incurs damage as soon as the truck enters onto the lousy

California freeways...

 

 

Another comment is that this stuff is already doing it's job - noticed where a couple of small object strikes have been deflected by the film in only 500 miles. Good investment.

 

John.

[svt13]

If your going to go with clear bra only use 3m scotchguard. Do not use ventureshield or xpel. Those are crap. scotchguard is the best.

[farmboy90]

I am going with XPel Ultimate. The stuff is amazing. My car has the fat matte black stripes, so my installer is cutting around those. So the stripes won't be covered by the XPel, otherwise they would look glossy and not match the rest of the stripes.

[Obiefox]

I went in to have mine done this week, but after looking at it, I decided that it made the matt stripes way too glossy. It looked silly where it stopped below the hood heat vents.

 

I had it on my 12, but the stripes were silver and semi gloss.

[svt13]

I am going with XPel Ultimate. The stuff is amazing. My car has the fat matte black stripes, so my installer is cutting around those. So the stripes won't be covered by the XPel, otherwise they would look glossy and not match the rest of the stripes.

 

Go google what xpel looks like after 3 years and still see of you want it

 

I did a lot of research on clear bras and the pictures I saw of what xpel and venture shield looked like after a couple years made me cringe

[svt13]

I went in to have mine done this week, but after looking at it, I decided that it made the matt stripes way too glossy. It looked silly where it stopped below the hood heat vents.

 

I had it on my 12, but the stripes were silver and semi gloss.

 

Have them cut around the stripe or get the whole hood cover

[VaporDude]

Have them cut around the stripe or get the whole hood cover

 

 

Getting the whole hood done is an option but expensive as hell. I had the 3M done on my 08 and it looked just as good as the day it was put on and that was about 4 years. I plan on doing it on my new one whenever it decides to show up.

[WJinLV]

I have the 3m clear bra on another vehicle of mine, but that car is charcoal color. Im hesitant to put it on performance white as it may yellow or get dull over time and not look good on white. Any experience out there?

[farmboy90]

I have the 3m clear bra on another vehicle of mine, but that car is charcoal color. Im hesitant to put it on performance white as it may yellow or get dull over time and not look good on white. Any experience out there?

 

 

Yeah, my installer said this same thing to me actually. I don't have a White car though. But he asked me what color I had because if I had white, he would ONLY install XPel Ultimate on it. He said it's the only one that won't color on you. He does all the Bentley's and Ferraris, so I trust him on this recommendation. The Ultimate is so slick that nothing sticks to it. He said it's the contaminates and bird droppings, etc that cause discoloration over time. But nothing can stick to this stuff, so if you have a white car he wouldn't recommend anything else.

 

Here is a video of the XPel Ultimate stuff healing itself:

 

Pretty sweet.

[Grabber]

If your going to go with clear bra only use 3m scotchguard. Do not use ventureshield or xpel. Those are crap. scotchguard is the best.

 

 

My "crap" Venturshield bra has been on for 5 years and has been protecting my car from road damages. The stuff still looks great.

 

just sayin ! ^_^

[svt13]

The 3m scotchguard does the same crap as xpel but actually doesn't yellow. I know 3 people with xpel ultimate that yellowed within 3 years. Its all BS. 3m won't yellow for at least 10 years. And even if it does they will replace it 100% free.

 

I decided not to even go this route because its too much hassle. I just got a paint protection kind of polish and it works fine. I have tons of rocks hit my car every day and not one scratch yet.

[svt13]

My "crap" Venturshield bra has been on for 5 years and has been protecting my car from road damages. The stuff still looks great.

 

just sayin ! ^_^

 

 

Well the person I know who had ventureshield, yellowed in one year. The shop I was going to for my clear bra stopped selling ventureshield because everyone was coming in and complaining how it yellows in a year. The company that made ventureshield before it was bought out by 3M was going bankrupt for this reason. 3M bought them up but never bothered to upgrade their product because they had the scotchguard which is the best thing on the market. So maybe your lucky or maybe yours is the scotchguard and not ventureshield.

[bergenfelter]

If your going to go with clear bra only use 3m scotchguard. Do not use ventureshield or xpel. Those are crap. scotchguard is the best.

 

 

3M acquired ventureshield a while back and the installer told me they incorporated a lot of 3M technology in upgrading the product.

[Grabber]

Well the person I know who had ventureshield, yellowed in one year. The shop I was going to for my clear bra stopped selling ventureshield because everyone was coming in and complaining how it yellows in a year. The company that made ventureshield before it was bought out by 3M was going bankrupt for this reason. 3M bought them up but never bothered to upgrade their product because they had the scotchguard which is the best thing on the market. So maybe your lucky or maybe yours is the scotchguard and not ventureshield.

 

 

All my paperwork and warranty says Ventureshield. When you look at my car....you can't even tell that I have a clear bra on it unless I point it out.

 

[farmboy90]

My "crap" Venturshield bra has been on for 5 years and has been protecting my car from road damages. The stuff still looks great.

 

just sayin ! ^_^

 

 

Yeah I had ventureshield on my 2012 Boss. Good stuff IMO.

[Obiefox]

I've had a clear bra on my white '08 since day one and it still looks fine. I don't know what "film" it is, but it has not yellowed at all. I also had it on my white 2012 Gt500 for a year and it looked great also.

 

I wouldn't hesitate to put it on white at all.

[svt13]

3M acquired ventureshield a while back and the installer told me they incorporated a lot of 3M technology in upgrading the product.

 

 

Well its up to the person then to take the risk or not on ventureshield. My experience witnessing it has not been good at all. But again its like all of these things really, its hit or miss.

[svt13]

All my paperwork and warranty says Ventureshield. When you look at my car....you can't even tell that I have a clear bra on it unless I point it out.

 

 

 

How many miles are on your car and how often do your drive it per year? Just wondering because the whole thing looks brand new like you just bought it yesterday.

[WJinLV]

The 3m scotchguard does the same crap as xpel but actually doesn't yellow. I know 3 people with xpel ultimate that yellowed within 3 years. Its all BS. 3m won't yellow for at least 10 years. And even if it does they will replace it 100% free.

 

I decided not to even go this route because its too much hassle. I just got a paint protection kind of polish and it works fine. I have tons of rocks hit my car every day and not one scratch yet.

 

 

 

What paint protection products do you use? Also use it on stripes?

[WJinLV]

What paint protection products do you use? Also use it on stripes?

[svt13]

Its called xzilon. Plus I use some zaino protection stuff together with it. The xzilon goes on the inside and outside of your car. I got it at the dealership and it needs to be reapplyed every year but it works. I mean unless you live somewhere that you are driving on rocky highways like texas, mountains, california I can understand the clear bra. But a city where you drive slow or isn't gravel everywhere you go the paint protection stuff is fine. At that point clear bra is over kill. A rock isn't going to dent your car at 30 mph. Now 70mph is a different story which is why I don't drive around construction on highways.

[blackonblack]

Its called xzilon. Plus I use some zaino protection stuff together with it. The xzilon goes on the inside and outside of your car. I got it at the dealership and it needs to be reapplyed every year but it works. I mean unless you live somewhere that you are driving on rocky highways like texas, mountains, california I can understand the clear bra. But a city where you drive slow or isn't gravel everywhere you go the paint protection stuff is fine. At that point clear bra is over kill. A rock isn't going to dent your car at 30 mph. Now 70mph is a different story which is why I don't drive around construction on highways.

 

 

Yea like Texas, where the roads aren't even paved....! What are you talking about? Texas has tons of very well constructed cement highways...unlike the asphalt up north. We do have plenty "rocky" roads in deep east Texas and in far west Texas..but the likelihood of someone in either of those locations purchasing a car like the GT500 is low.

[Snoopy49]

What is the average cost for the application of a clear bra? The biggest threats I have seen are big rigs, gravel trucks, dump trucks and sand storms.

[Snoopy49]

Yea like Texas, where the roads aren't even paved....! What are you talking about? Texas has tons of very well constructed cement highways...unlike the asphalt up north. We do have plenty "rocky" roads in deep east Texas and in far west Texas..but the likelihood of someone in either of those locations purchasing a car like the GT500 is low.

 

 

I thought you people in Texas just got indoor plumbing last year and now I'm finding out you got paved roads too, damn, I guess I'm going too have to get out the house more?

[bergenfelter]

What is the average cost for the application of a clear bra? The biggest threats I have seen are big rigs, gravel trucks, dump trucks and sand storms.

 

 

I paid $760 - front end, mirrors, door handle recesses, head lights, fog lights. From watching the installer - he earned every penny.