Abby Normal

Dr. Ferdinand

Anyone use Lamin-X? Have them on my RS4 and after 4+ years still going strong (no delamination, though some pitting has occurred and may re-do with a new set). They come pre-cut and an easy DIY.

marcvv

Read through this whole thread and my installer said exactly what you are saying. He does the 991's all the time without issue. He also uses the steamer to install and remove. Never an issue for him so far.

He also said if the UV ever does peel he would rough sand the lights, re-spray with UV coating and then reapply new xpel. Says it isn't difficult or a big deal to do if it ever came to that in a worst case scenario.

My 991 RS was just dropped off this morning for full body end to end XPEL along with headlights in XPEL.

He said do not use the Clearplex on the windshields. Not good. Applying them you have to use lots of heat which can melt the weather stripping around the perimeter. He won't install that stuff anymore. I'm looking for something good like a clear track film I can put on for the day.

Jimmy-D

I have had 2 installer saying they have no problem installing - except - the one installer(one of the two) who did my 991 GT3 said they can not be held responsible if some thing happens if they are requested to take the film off. Even using a heat gun ect does not guarantee it will come off perfectly. They will do it but their recommendation it not to. Reason - if you have stones hit your headlight w/ PPF it will look worse than if it did not have any PPF because it sort of tears ect. So- then when you request to replace the film you still take the chance of delamination. Makes sense to me

Jenner

Problem with quick "single use" films is that you usually don't care about looks...in other words there are tons of bubbles and wrinkles in it because you are just installing them on a body panel for a short time and then removing. That kind of a product won't work well when you have to see through it.

Check out this thread:
https://rennlist.com/forums/gt4/9321...l#post13253693

I've got the Bray Group windshield film on my GT4. Been installed 2x now due to a rock strike that went through both layers(film saved the windshield though!). No issues with heat installation either.

flk

Xpel and suntek are self healing though, so how would it look worse?
It's like any other part of the clearbra that you heat gun or pour hot water over to heal. Just sayin'

poofyo101

My car is in now for clear bra. Should I clear bra the headlights? They are using Suntek Film. Has anyone had problems with delamination with suntek film?

jphughan

No easy answer to your first question (I'd recommend reading this thread), but I opted for Suntek on my headlamps and my installer did it perfectly, so I don't have any issues.

marcvv

I read all the threads here on rennlist and elsewhere on this topic plus spoke to some pros. My decision, in the end, was to cover the headlights in XPEL (I also wrapped the entire car in XPEL). If installed correctly they won't delaminate but if you ever do want to remove them the risk is that they could. It's also possible if taken off properly and slowly they won't.

On the flip side of this argument is that if you don't do it you may have lots of chips in the lens instead. Take your pick.

At least with XPEL small defects will self-heal and if you do ever want to pull it off you can. If it delaminates then you can sand down the headlight lens and optionally reapply UV coating. My installer says this is trivial to do.

Also, note the UV coating is to prevent the lights from yellowing. The UV coating argument assumes your vehicle will be exposed to lots of UV light. Depending how much you drive and when, the UV coating on these lights may not even matter. You could simply sand off the UV and leave it off.

For example, if I put on 3000 miles/yr on my RS with a combo of track and street driving and even if you assume every mile is during the day that isn't a huge amount of time exposed to the sun's UV each year. Average speed 60mph is 50 hours in the sun based on 3k miles. At that pace, it would take 20 years to yellow untreated headlights.

Now take the above equation and inject some real world use case mathematic reality into that. Some driving will be at night so knock those hours off. Some driving won't be at high noon where the sun is strong so UV damage is lower. Some driving won't be mid summer but instead spring or fall where sun is weaker. Probably half the time while actually driving the car it won't be facing the sun (i.e. the sun is behind you) and thus even less UV exposure on the lens.

Take all that into account and I think the concern over UV is overblown. Most of us garage these cars and don't put on 20k miles per year. If you leave your car outside and/or drive it 10k to 20k per year it sure may be a concern. Otherwise, the whole UV coating concern is not much of a concern (IMHO of course!)

Crazy Eddie

You know that suntek is about 1/2 the thickness of 3m pro or xpel ult
?

jphughan

Yes, but I consistently read that the difference in thickness is in the adhesive layer, not the protective polyurethane layer, although I have no way to independently verify that.

okie981

XPEL has an adhesive that is "tackier" upon first contact with a surface. This is one of the differences in installation technique, dealing with the good/bad aspects of a tackier first contact. Once installed and "set", they both adhere such that the adhesive difference is negligible. There may be slightly more adhesive on XPEL, and it is definitely a more tacky adhesive. The XPEL film is definitely thicker regardless of the adhesive, but it's not twice as thick. I'll have my GT4 in for PPF on 13 July and I'll measure both products with a micrometer and report what I find. As far as the optical quality of both products, I have both on my BS, and the Concours judges at the Porsche Parade last week had no comment on the two products being right next to each other on the headlights/rockers/mirrors (Suntek) and hood/fenders/bumper (XPEL). I won first place in my class of 11 cars, Preparation Street.

BTW, the concours judges will ding you for a visible PPF defect or tear just like a paint chip.

Jimmy-D

Self healing??? - Xpel does not self heal tears. If a small stone hits your hood or headlight your Film is not going to self heal a tear or a nice rip form the impact. Been there done that before. Sure, it will protect the paint underneath but the damage is still done to the film instead of paint.

jphughan

They won't self-heal tears, but with both XPEL and Suntek, when left in a warm area they will absolutely self-heal small scratches and scuffs in the film.

ShakeNBake

Oh great, so you're saying I need to put some kind of think protectant on top of my clearbra to keep it perfect....this seems like a vicious cycle that results in encasing the car in a solid brick of acrylic.