Taking clear bra off?

[Washburn]

So I have this clear bra that was on Gretchen when i got the car...
I know it has been and still is protecting the car's paint, but it was a poorly done job to begin with, (not very exact, and at some points where there are cuts/joints of the clear bra, dirt has seeped inside when it rains etc) and it has become rather yellow - enough to be noticeable at most times and pics. Some of the corners have started peeling a bit, and one day I slowly lifted a corner and peeked underneath : the paint still looks great and doesn't show any difference from the rest of the pain on the hood and fenders, which has been maintained pretty well.

However the raggedy look and the 'dirt lines' on the bumper where water has seeped in through the middle of the bar and has run towards either end look terrible, and has started annoying me lately...

So I have decided to take it off, and risk it a bit - I know I might regret it later when I see the first stone chip etc, but the bra is starting to look worse and worse...can't clean it either...some of the stains and chip marks don't go away.

Shall I do it? I will take good care of the paint and keep it protected as much as I can with detailing products but I know it won't equal a bra...

OR:
I can see if I can get paint protection/clear bra redone - similar product but hopefully better craftsmanship...it might cost a bit though...

what would you guys do?

Here's a pic that illustrates what I am talking about (It's a bit worse in reality)

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b176/nishang/IMG_1199.jpg[/URL]

[Avetiso]

Get a new one?

[M0nk3y]

That is just poor material.

Strip it and find ventureshield dealer


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[gr330zhp]

I would redo it. But immediately, not to get any chips in between.

[SoCalZman]

Yes that must come off, whether you decide to put a new one on or not.

[sillieidiot]

That is just poor material.

Strip it and find ventureshield dealer


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

ventureshield sucks, go with xpel ultimate

[az3579]

ventureshield sucks, go with xpel ultimate

Why do you say that?

Sent from my DROID RAZR MAXX HD

[M0nk3y]

ventureshield sucks, go with xpel ultimate

Yes, ventureshield sucks because I've personally worked with it for over 4 years, has had it on my Z4M for 3 years and currently have it on my 128i.

But what do I know.

Please, elaborate on YOUR PERSONAL experience with Xpel. Please note the additional price difference if you want.

Here is my Z4M, not washed at it's first AutoX a couple weeks ago. Please if you want do tell me where my Ventureshield is at on that car...

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/9004_4968018246476_651331550_n.jpg



Or if you want to do the same with my 128i, please let me know. I'm really interested to hear why Ventureshield sucks, I'll wait

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/883430_10200489890722363_1836099817_o.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc1/902194_10200489893082422_1166622735_o.jpg

Read all the review you want, you can't trump personal experience with the material.

[danewilson77]

ventureshield sucks, go with xpel ultimate

In for reasons you say this as well.

Let's keep is civil in here though.

[M0nk3y]

In for reasons you say this as well.

Let's keep is civil in here though.

In for civil. I just want honest information.

[danewilson77]

In for civil. I just want honest information.

Understood. I don't understand why people say, what they say, and how they say it.....without any data to back it up.

We can get through this.

[Washburn]

As the OP, I am also in for why Xpel Ultimate > VS.

I did some reading where I saw the same opinion and the main reasons they gave are:
XPel Ultimate is much thicker than VS, and that it has a 'self healing' clear coat, and is generally clearer and shows less orange peel than VS.
but then I found others where they thought the opposite (VS > Xpel) .
The only documented difference I found consistently was that Xpel Ult was THICKER than VS and has a 7 yr warranty on material / install as opposed to 5 yr warranty with VS...

I don't have experience with either so I am interested in any personal feedback.

[sillieidiot]

Why do you say that?

Sent from my DROID RAZR MAXX HD

it yellows pretty quickly. has more orange peel. the material is a bit harder to put on than xpel. the warranty sucks now. pretty much, quality went down ever since 3M bought them out. xpel is the best on the market right now. so i would go with that.

[sillieidiot]

Yes, ventureshield sucks because I've personally worked with it for over 4 years, has had it on my Z4M for 3 years and currently have it on my 128i.

But what do I know.

Please, elaborate on YOUR PERSONAL experience with Xpel. Please note the additional price difference if you want.

Here is my Z4M, not washed at it's first AutoX a couple weeks ago. Please if you want do tell me where my Ventureshield is at on that car...

[IMG]https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/9004_4968018246476_651331550_n.jpg[/IMG



Or if you want to do the same with my 128i, please let me know. I'm really interested to hear why Ventureshield sucks, I'll wait

[IMG]https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/883430_10200489890722363_1836099817_o.jpg[/IMG

[IMG]https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc1/902194_10200489893082422_1166622735_o.jpg[/IMG

Read all the review you want, you can't trump personal experience with the material.

can't tell on your color cars. some colors hide it better than others (especially silver/grey). i have a white car. when it yellows, it really shows. if you ever decide to take it off, you should be able to see the yellow. the orange peel is worst. VS also shows stretch marks if you look at it closely (best seen on a black car).

yes there is a price difference though, xpel is more expensive to put on. both work great in terms of protecting the car. as far as it looking new. dirty stuff doesn't come off quite as easily compared to xpel. but if you work too hard on it, you'll put some micro-scratches in it. luckily since my car is white you can't see them unless at an angle. the xpel, i never saw any scratches at all with the time i had with it. i think it's because of the self healing clearcoat. i'm always parked in the sun, so that would help with the healing. but on my friend's car that is black with VS, it's all over it. when you first get the Xpel installed, it's extremely clear, and hard to see. but since it's not completely dry, it's easier to spot. then as it dries, it gets even more clear.

when i said it sucks, i meant it's not as good as xpel lol it offers great protection, but i think it fails when it comes to being stealth on the car. on VS it looks good when you first put it on, and it gets worst and worst as time goes by. for the Xpel i experience the opposite lol

that's my personal experience anyways. i don't have the PPF on anymore though. i took it off thinking that i was going to paint my entire front clip earlier than i thought i would. didn't for awhile, then got a few large chips (enough crack the paint :(). totally going to try to paint this summer, than wrap the front again. i just don't know how they are going to do my vents, cause i had a stock hood when i did it the first time around. it's probably going to show around the vents for sure, no way around that.

the installer i go to now, he worked with VS for like 12 years, then switched over the Xpel as well since it's better in every way. that's gotta tell you something.

should watch the video of it repelling stuff. i tried a little of it lol works just like the video. didn't do the self healing one though. i don't want to purposely scratch/scuff my car lol

[M0nk3y]

it yellows pretty quickly. has more orange peel. the material is a bit harder to put on than xpel. the warranty sucks now. pretty much, quality went down every since 3M bought them out. xpel is the best on the market right now. so i would go with that.

VS was separate from 3M when they bought it. Now they are slowly phasing out and making a VS Premium Elite (basically same as the old film). It is still a separate entity from 3M, although they are phasing out the old film and replacing it...like I mentioned earlier. Just because 3M bought the company doesn't mean anything. Do you know how many companies 3M owns?

Like I said before (with pictures I may add) the film does not yellow with proper care. 3 years ongoing and it has been perfectly fine. As well orange peel is consistent with BMW CC, there is no increase of orange peel on the film.

Stretch marks do show with improper installation/heat.

My dad also has VS on his dark blue E92. I will take pictures when I get home in 2 weeks

[sillieidiot]

yeah i know. but their quality did go down lol this was from multiple installers that i've talked to in the past. then they changed the warranty from lifetime to like 3 to 5 years i think. last i read, it was 3 years.

it still does yellow, it will just be less intense. but like i said, i have a white car. yellowing is the #1 problem in my book. that is more noticeable than anything else. and it doesn't show on pretty much any other color as well as it does on white. sort of like how scratches show more on black than it does any other color. you have a red/silver car. basically the 2 colors that are the hardest to detect the PPF on. though i think bright yellow would also be hard to detect yellowing on lol

the orange peel is more noticeable. to me it is an increase. where you normally see the most orange peel on a car is the door. the front end, not so much. the VS has the same orange peel as the doors, therefore adding orange peel to the front end to match the sides lol

iono how the pictures would really help. it would have to be like an extremely high res. cause the ones you provided earlier wasn't very good. looks like you did a full frontal, i can't tell cause when zoomed in, it's all blocky. but i mean in pictures i can make stuff disappear too. like with angel eyes. all the pictures show no pearl effect. but in person, there is.

[M0nk3y]

Silver actually shows the dirt and imperfections the easiest on clear bra, as well as black.

Here are pictures from my cell phone when I got it installed. I can take RAW Nikon ones if you really want

http://www.zhpmafia.com/forums/showthread.php?6778-VentureShield-Clear-Bar

[sillieidiot]

nah it's cool. i already know how it's supposed to look lol but yeah, in those pictures you can see the orange peel. pictures 4, 5, 6.

i don't have a red car to show pictures of the xpel. but here's one i googled. not exactly the same red, but it has far less orange peel:
http://blog.xpel.com/2013-volcano-red-audi-s5-protected-with-xpel-ultimate-self-healing-film/

[M0nk3y]

nah it's cool. i already know how it's supposed to look lol but yeah, in those pictures you can see the orange peel. pictures 4, 5, 6.

i don't have a red car to show pictures of the xpel. but here's one i googled. not exactly the same red, but it has far less orange peel:
http://blog.xpel.com/2013-volcano-red-audi-s5-protected-with-xpel-ultimate-self-healing-film/

I don't think you really do know, lol.

Picture 4, the film ends where the left edge of the garage is on the hood (approx). If you see the top of the roof line, you can see that orange peel continues up the hood.

Picture 5, the film ends where the light ends on the cloud. You can actually see the line here. The clouds look identical on each side

Picture 6, the film is only on the straight fender lining (approx 1 inch wide by the tire) The whole other part of the side-skirt is not clear-bra'd.




Case in point. I'm happy, it does the job at preventing cones from hitting the paint and rubber flying at my front end while on the track

[sillieidiot]

4, i'm just saying that it has orange peel that is clearly visible. i couldn't see the line. but i just picked a point at the right side of the picture (along the roof line) and compared it to a point near edge where it meets the bumper. it's just slightly more blotchy on the clearbra part in that picture.
5, you need your eyes checked. it's clearly more orange peel. and yes i saw the line. it's more noticeable if you look at the roof line that goes across the paint and the film.
6, yes that is the side i'm talking about lol the line is evident on the top of the picture. but like i said, the side of the car has more orange peel than the front. hence the orange peel would be the same. i didn't say that it increased the amount. i just stated that it was clearly visible.

it could be the pictures too. so yeah, that is why i was saying that pictures would be pointless lol

but yeah, obviously if you've been using something for years, and it works, why do you need to switch? it just so happens i had a bad experience with it. i'm sure i would have been fine, had i not bought a white car lol

[danewilson77]

Sillidiot,

"5" could have been stated without the first sentence.

HTC DNA, Williamsburg, VA

[DetailersDomain]

So I have this clear bra that was on Gretchen when i got the car...
I know it has been and still is protecting the car's paint, but it was a poorly done job to begin with, (not very exact, and at some points where there are cuts/joints of the clear bra, dirt has seeped inside when it rains etc) and it has become rather yellow - enough to be noticeable at most times and pics. Some of the corners have started peeling a bit, and one day I slowly lifted a corner and peeked underneath : the paint still looks great and doesn't show any difference from the rest of the pain on the hood and fenders, which has been maintained pretty well.

However the raggedy look and the 'dirt lines' on the bumper where water has seeped in through the middle of the bar and has run towards either end look terrible, and has started annoying me lately...

So I have decided to take it off, and risk it a bit - I know I might regret it later when I see the first stone chip etc, but the bra is starting to look worse and worse...can't clean it either...some of the stains and chip marks don't go away.

Shall I do it? I will take good care of the paint and keep it protected as much as I can with detailing products but I know it won't equal a bra...

OR:
I can see if I can get paint protection/clear bra redone - similar product but hopefully better craftsmanship...it might cost a bit though...

what would you guys do?

Here's a pic that illustrates what I am talking about (It's a bit worse in reality)

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b176/nishang/IMG_1199.jpg[/URL]


I would agree with most on this thread, go to a reputable installer in your area have them remove it properly and consider installing a full front clear film - full hood, full bumper, full fenders, if you can have the option of custom cut go for that.

The film looks like it was installed when the car was new possibly from the dealer - its a pre cut kit so it probably has been on it for 8 years! that's quite a long time.

When we install film at the shop I let customers know that 3-5 years they should consider changing it.

The film all will yellow over time, depends on if the car is outside in the sun year round etc.

I have found Ventureshield to have the least amount of orange peel on it.

With proper care you can prevent it from yellowing. But over time it will yellow.

On an install perspective our installers prefer Venture over all the others including Xpel.

Just my 2 cents.

[M0nk3y]

4, i'm just saying that it has orange peel that is clearly visible. i couldn't see the line. but i just picked a point at the right side of the picture (along the roof line) and compared it to a point near edge where it meets the bumper. it's just slightly more blotchy on the clearbra part in that picture.
5, you need your eyes checked. it's clearly more orange peel. and yes i saw the line. it's more noticeable if you look at the roof line that goes across the paint and the film.
6, yes that is the side i'm talking about lol the line is evident on the top of the picture. but like i said, the side of the car has more orange peel than the front. hence the orange peel would be the same. i didn't say that it increased the amount. i just stated that it was clearly visible.

it could be the pictures too. so yeah, that is why i was saying that pictures would be pointless lol

but yeah, obviously if you've been using something for years, and it works, why do you need to switch? it just so happens i had a bad experience with it. i'm sure i would have been fine, had i not bought a white car lol

First off, side versus hood orange peel is the same. There is no difference on the cars. The machines don't have a preference on the side of the car to spray more clear coat.

Second, the roof line is all on the film, you can't compare something when it is not equal on both sides.

Third, I don't care about a stupid line. I don't even know what your point is. I put film there to protect that area from stones. It you knew anything about my car you would realize that is subjected to a high amount of stones.


The final verdict is that you're naive, impolite and flat out wrong. You have yet to provide sufficient evidence that I have asked for and keep on trying to target VS like you're making commission off of Xpel. Next thread you're probably going to argue that the sky is purple because the pictures are wrong.

OP. PM me if you need help looking for dealers or what to look for when deciding an installer for any film. I've worked on installing film for 4 years and know the correct way from the wrong way. I'm done with this thread because some people ITT can't have a simple debate w/out personal attacks


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[danewilson77]

I think we've all gleaned a great deal of information from this thread.

Good luck Washy.