How's your Xpel holding up?
03-11-2019, 10:11 AM
#11
AudiWorld Senior Member
03-11-2019, 11:01 AM
#12
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
Yellowing, blistering, cracking, delaminating... basically manufacturer's defects. I've been putting a drop of clear coat touch up paint on any tear just to keep it from spreading and keep dirt from getting into it. However, I do think the film is working because on my windshield area just above the hood where the tear occurred, there was this huge ding on the glass. A big rock must have hit it and the Xpel protected the paint somewhat.
03-11-2019, 12:23 PM
#13
AudiWorld Senior Member
Yellowing, blistering, cracking, delaminating... basically manufacturer's defects. I've been putting a drop of clear coat touch up paint on any tear just to keep it from spreading and keep dirt from getting into it. However, I do think the film is working because on my windshield area just above the hood where the tear occurred, there was this huge ding on the glass. A big rock must have hit it and the Xpel protected the paint somewhat.
03-11-2019, 05:03 PM
#14
Please see my post in October, 2018 "Xpel saves the paint, for a second time"
https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...-time-2960613/
After about 4 years and 54K miles, I am very pleased. I bought Xpel Ultimate when I bought the A6 as nearly every time I hand washed my previous cars (never go to car washes) I noticed a new chip in the hood or doors
-- and did not want to see this again. So far, the only chip I have is on the roof, where there is no Xpel. It has held up well and there has been no discoloration/cracking/etc: I did not wrap the rear quarter panels, but did wrap the gas cap cover (figured all the pushing would eventually cause wear) --- and to this date you cannot tell the difference between the panel and the cover.
While some may argue for using Dr. Colorchip/similar or getting the hood repainted as a less expensive alternative, I prefer maintaining the factory finish opposed to a repaint. If you don't mind a few chips or a repainted panel, then this would not be the product for you.
https://www.audiworld.com/forums/a6-...-time-2960613/
After about 4 years and 54K miles, I am very pleased. I bought Xpel Ultimate when I bought the A6 as nearly every time I hand washed my previous cars (never go to car washes) I noticed a new chip in the hood or doors
-- and did not want to see this again. So far, the only chip I have is on the roof, where there is no Xpel. It has held up well and there has been no discoloration/cracking/etc: I did not wrap the rear quarter panels, but did wrap the gas cap cover (figured all the pushing would eventually cause wear) --- and to this date you cannot tell the difference between the panel and the cover.While some may argue for using Dr. Colorchip/similar or getting the hood repainted as a less expensive alternative, I prefer maintaining the factory finish opposed to a repaint. If you don't mind a few chips or a repainted panel, then this would not be the product for you.
03-13-2019, 10:04 AM
#15
Thank You
Thank you all for the kind words about XPEL. As mentioned, our warranty on ULTIMATE/ULTIMATE PLUS is 10 years from the date of installation and it does cover: yellowing, staining, delaminating, hazing, peeling, lifting, and other similar things. Installation issues or rock impacts are not covered under warranty. We get the question often of "can I fix my chipped film?" and the answer is no, the film cannot be mended. The piece with the damage would need to be replaced in time. But to avoid spending a ton of money over and over again, we recommend driving the car, enjoying the car, and then when you can't stand the sight of the damage on the film, then it's time to have that piece replaced. It will be much easier, quicker, and cheaper than repainting anything professionally.
As Jamis said
"This is the whole point of this film... to protect against debris and to take the impact instead of your paint. XPEL does have a self healing ability that is activated by heat (ie: the sun) that can make smaller bits of damage (dings, scratches, etc) disappear on the film. Obviously large tears or deep impacts may not be able to completely heal themselves depending on the extent of the damage.
If I found some gouges in the film, I'd just be happy it wasn't the paint and that the film did it's job. I wouldn't expect the film to be impenetrable or for the manufacturer to cover such damage."
Thank you all again for your support and let us know if we can answer any questions.
As Jamis said
"This is the whole point of this film... to protect against debris and to take the impact instead of your paint. XPEL does have a self healing ability that is activated by heat (ie: the sun) that can make smaller bits of damage (dings, scratches, etc) disappear on the film. Obviously large tears or deep impacts may not be able to completely heal themselves depending on the extent of the damage.
If I found some gouges in the film, I'd just be happy it wasn't the paint and that the film did it's job. I wouldn't expect the film to be impenetrable or for the manufacturer to cover such damage."
Thank you all again for your support and let us know if we can answer any questions.
03-13-2019, 10:14 AM
#16
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
Thank you all for the kind words about XPEL. As mentioned, our warranty on ULTIMATE/ULTIMATE PLUS is 10 years from the date of installation and it does cover: yellowing, staining, delaminating, hazing, peeling, lifting, and other similar things. Installation issues or rock impacts are not covered under warranty. We get the question often of "can I fix my chipped film?" and the answer is no, the film cannot be mended. The piece with the damage would need to be replaced in time. But to avoid spending a ton of money over and over again, we recommend driving the car, enjoying the car, and then when you can't stand the sight of the damage on the film, then it's time to have that piece replaced. It will be much easier, quicker, and cheaper than repainting anything professionally.
As Jamis said
"This is the whole point of this film... to protect against debris and to take the impact instead of your paint. XPEL does have a self healing ability that is activated by heat (ie: the sun) that can make smaller bits of damage (dings, scratches, etc) disappear on the film. Obviously large tears or deep impacts may not be able to completely heal themselves depending on the extent of the damage.
If I found some gouges in the film, I'd just be happy it wasn't the paint and that the film did it's job. I wouldn't expect the film to be impenetrable or for the manufacturer to cover such damage."
Thank you all again for your support and let us know if we can answer any questions.
As Jamis said
"This is the whole point of this film... to protect against debris and to take the impact instead of your paint. XPEL does have a self healing ability that is activated by heat (ie: the sun) that can make smaller bits of damage (dings, scratches, etc) disappear on the film. Obviously large tears or deep impacts may not be able to completely heal themselves depending on the extent of the damage.
If I found some gouges in the film, I'd just be happy it wasn't the paint and that the film did it's job. I wouldn't expect the film to be impenetrable or for the manufacturer to cover such damage."
Thank you all again for your support and let us know if we can answer any questions.
03-13-2019, 10:18 AM
#17
XPEL
One of my tears formed a tiny little flap on the film. How to prevent it from getting worse? Should I pull it off with a tweezers, or just dab a drop of clear coat touch up paint on it to "seal" it? I've been putting a drop of touch-up paint on top but want to know if that's the best way to "patch" the film.
05-24-2019, 01:42 PM
#19
I'm really itching to start driving my new car but I really want to get it protected with PPF first.
Tint wise I'm looking at F1 Stratos for it's ~97% IR heat rejection. The only other film that has IR heat rejection that high that I'm aware of is XPEL Prime XR+ and I don't seem to have any installers close by for that.
05-24-2019, 02:11 PM
#20
AudiWorld Member
I'm kind of torn now between DYNOshield (DS) and Suntek Ultra (SU). Originally I was on-board the DS train based on reviews and side-by-side comparisons but it seems those reviews and videos were using Suntek gen 1 or whatever and not Ultra. The main perk to DS I saw was the hydrophobic layer thus not really needing to apply a ceramic coating on top of it. I learned yesterday that SU also has a hydrophobic layer (gen 1 didn't) and the cost of SU is about $1500 cheaper than DS. I think some of that extra is due to the extra work that the other installer does to try and wrap more edges but I still need to confirm what level of install the SU installer will use. Suntek also has a new film called Suntek Ultra Defense. Same features as regular Ultra but 50% thicker so you can apply that to the hard hit areas for more protection while using regular Ultra everywhere else.
I'm really itching to start driving my new car but I really want to get it protected with PPF first.
Tint wise I'm looking at F1 Stratos for it's ~97% IR heat rejection. The only other film that has IR heat rejection that high that I'm aware of is XPEL Prime XR+ and I don't seem to have any installers close by for that.
I'm really itching to start driving my new car but I really want to get it protected with PPF first.
Tint wise I'm looking at F1 Stratos for it's ~97% IR heat rejection. The only other film that has IR heat rejection that high that I'm aware of is XPEL Prime XR+ and I don't seem to have any installers close by for that.