Scratching And Healing My Own Car - How Protective Films Work

[@clint7312]

Would love to see a side by side comparing how deep of scratches you can put in PPF that would still recover with the heat gun vs. if you apply that same amount of pressure with same brush on ceramic coating and if it would scratch that surface.

[@s2kwidebody]

Test please EE

[@HEMi1995]

It would 100% scratch the coating and even down to the clear coat

[@stephencannon3140]

Just had the same Film for my JGC.....If you are buying new vehicle this is a good investment in protection of the leading edges of the hood and front fenders. I even went a bit crazy and added the A-pillar, mirror caps and the leading edge of the roof. The area between the windshield and the front of the moonroof. This film is pricey however if you get the correct installer that follows procedures it looks good. After pick up I let it sit in the sun for about 12 hours a day for a week to help the adhesive set and cure. Good video as always!

[@500k_e30]

I know Scott personally from the 2 years I lived in Boise. Great guy. Super professional. Also, they can do just the front bumper to prevent rock chips and things for those of you that are saying it's too expensive

[@rileyrr2925]

The reason we didn't see his face is because he had his boo holding him closely, comforting him while he was scratching the hood.

[@volvo09]

doktorbimmer yet you are watching.... And reading comments.... I got it.

[@stubones]

Fk off with your stupidity and watch the barbie dolls you prefer.

[@ElAguila19]

INCREDIBLE EXPLANATION!! I was looking through many pages for the PPF issue and you gave me data that I could not find. Good explanation friend !! Greetings from Mexico!

[@DoctaM3]

Awesome video Jason. I use XPEL Ultimate on all my cars. This product is amazing and is the best product on the market today.

[@predatorishi]

Same here on all my cars.. I have like 1000 cars.. not 2 or 3 .. May be you have 5000

[@puffnpluky76]

I'm currently 3 weeks into training in installing xpel ultimate at my job and I got to use my car to train for free 😂

[@unclegeorge6175]

I would expect this process to be of interest to auto manufacturers. Where body parts can be covered via automation before mounting on the car. They could probably sandwich another layer of Color under the clear coat. Also, if the color layer is truly protected by the top layer including from UV. Then a new body part can be mounted to replace the damaged body with out dealing with the rest of the body. How long does the film last? Does it adhere to any surface aka: Aluminum or Carbon Fiber? I wonder, how hard would it be to peel off the original film for replacement and give the auto a new or different look. The possibilities are endless if this product IS what you state.

[@ny3ali]

Like applying a giant screen protector on to your car

[@ScottXC91]

Explanations For Dummies

[@TheVinceZampella]

I can't speak for Xpel, but I have a 3M equivalent, and I'll say this. I had someone run into the front of my car and tear through the film. Stretched and peeled, did not look pretty. Kept the paint fine, worth every penny. The whole bumper would have been repainted had I not had the ppf

[@ateamfan42]

I had a protection film on my previous car. I found it did little to protect the paint from cracking under the film from stone impacts. Some stones tore right through the film as well. The film itself would get scratched, scuffed and discolored, and couldn't be polished like clear-coat can with a buffing tool. The film tended to peel at the edges over time. It did little to really protect the paint, and left nasty adhesive behind when the damaged film was removed. This required repainting of the entire area under the film later. So nothing practical was gained. I would not waste my money again.

[@S5King7]

Vince Zampella How much did it cost to wrap your car with the 3M equivalent?

[@zipz8423]

R D that doesn’t sound like you used XPEL film.

[@caseysgarage5991]

I'm not going to lie, watching a car get scratched was pretty stressful

[@Patriot_Drone_Services]

This looks to be some pretty neat stuff not hating on it a bit. I think it is a great protection option for a car that has a near flawless finish, is a high dollar car that you generally won’t see in the local Walmart parking lot (at least not around my neck of the woods), or never will see serious “off road 4x4” driving. Nothing was mentioned about cars that have existing paint chips in the finish, or deep scratches below the clear coat that have penetrated the base coat. Correct me if I’m wrong, but this product can’t fill existing deep scratches or chips, it will cover them, but will most likely look like a bubble under the surface. I’ve had surface scratches on the clear coat that were equal to the wire brush scratches, and was able to buff them out with liquid magic (a liquid 15000 grit auto body buffing solution), the cost for this was $30.00 and about 15 minutes. Using a buffer and good polishing compound has the same effect, it produces heat to the clear coat to soften it to a degree, and the 15000 grit polishes out the scratches, while only removing a small amount of clear coat material. If you don’t know what you are doing though, you can “burn” or “cut” through the clear and base coats. The cars that were used in this video were relatively small cars and took a lot of time. as he said. I bet it would cost more then a few thousand $$$ to have my ‘17 Raptor Supercrew cab done. Seriously, I’m very curious to see how well it holds up to the rigors of driving on narrow off road trails where low branches tend to hit the sides of the vehicle that normally mar or scratch unprotected finishes. Can anyone who actually has this applied or an authorized dealer give me some insight to the questions I posed, especially the part about off road driving. It could be worth an investment.

[@TheAverageGamer_CJ]

You can also wrap your car, wrapping can be done in any colour too. I have pearl white on my car but it's more for design lol. I got my wing mirrors roof and partial Bonet wrapped.

[@shouldigetit]

This video was so soothing to watch. Great one Jason!

[@ZUKOKBG]

where was this when my ex keyed my car!!!!!!!!!!!

[@TestingPyros]

It wouldn't have helped if they went all the way through, anyhow.

[@imaliastv4125]

@@TestingPyros In most cases, the film is ruined but it can save the paint. peel that particular panel off and the chances are the film done its job.

[@TheWildernessEnthusiast]

That usually means you cheated on her. Correct?

[@jjf1630]

@@TheWildernessEnthusiast or that she's just crazy lol

[@MoJo01]

Did fixing the keying cost around $1500-$3000? Because this is what this film costs to protect.

[@johng-nd6wm]

This plus an under body spray would really help prevent rust, especially in the northern states.

[@Supep007]

6 month update on how its holding up would be appreciated. Planning on getting this for my dad's new Mercedes.

[@enj5932]

Have the same film. Protects the paint well. Paired it with quartz ceramic coating as well. My 1st uploaded vid shows how car looks after the work is done.

[@CrazeeDee002]

Great move!!

[@Toastmaster_5000]

wow I'm surprised the scratches really disappeared that quickly and easily. I'm interested to see what happens when you try scratching with something like a key or a nail. Does this stuff remove the need to wax your car?

[@The_Kirk_Lazarus]

Thank you for this video. Just got a new 2020 Civic Si and stressed over keeping it looking flawless for as long as possible.

[@zipz8423]

To keep costs down you could do the front in PPF and the rest of the car in a ceramic coating.

[@Sandy-oy2lr]

But, scratches and chips on a sports car are badges of courage. It shows the owner is actually enjoying their car(s)! I have to admit, I wish I could've done this when my Vette was new.

[@DerekLikesCars]

Never realized you were in the Boise area, let me know if you ever want to review a Fiesta ST. Love your videos man, keep it up!

[@quiksr20]

This really pushes me to wanna refinish my semi mint\ E36 front end and put XPEL on it, Awesome job.

[@kalebz539]

I know it's on there but seeing that makes me cringe

[@haaxxx9]

Kaleb Z He had to do it for science! :(

[@zokit7684]

Next video ceramic coating on top the clear bra plus explain?

[@hudsonlucier7646]

Can you do an explained on wheather cuting hole is the fake part of the grill helps performance such as the bottom part of the fiesta st grill is sold while the top is perforated would perforating the bottom help or hinder the cars performance Thank Great videos keep them coming

[@_entrxpy]

hey jason! would you consider discussing how does the D'Alembert principle apply to car dynamics? It would be really interesting to study how does force, mass and acceleration relate togheter in cars! Thanks!

[@nick6154]

What is better to protect your vehicle paint protective films or ceramic coating? maybe you can do a video on that..

[@ziploxian8516]

WAY better film and production. You've been doing really good.

[@33Skygazer]

Very cool... another analogy is a Zamboni, but without the auger scraping the surface of the ice.

[@Fred_P]

Sorry for off topic, but could you please explain what happens when you turn off the engine with the automatic transmission in drive? I mean what mechanically happens in the moment, not what can happen afterwards because it's not possible to remove the key unless you put it in park. My mom does this sometimes and I want to explain to her why she shouldn't do it. It's a "tiptronic" planetary transmission, so no double clutches or CVT stepless transmissions. Thank you very much.

[@5hredder]

so basically, the top coat just gets pushed into the poly, which then pushes the top coat back into the normal position when the poly warms up? pretty cool. i didn't know that they had a film that could take that much abuse... i would think that it would scrape off and remain visable after the poly returns back to it's original shape. maybe i am overlooking the fundamental mechanics of why scraping actually removes material that is otherwise too hard to cut.

[@nickolastiguan]

i love mine. i can use the brush at the wand wash on the wrapped parts of my car with out worrying about scratches; and it saves me so much time compared to hand washing the whole car.

[@Tig3rj]

What I like to know on this stuff is this.. does it change the color of the paint slightly? Can this be waxed over and can it look the same as if I were to clean, clay, polish and then wax a normal car to bring out the shine from clear coat? I know they clay it and polish it to clean the paint..But certain waxes or even ceramic coats enhance the paint appearance afterwards. I like to see two of the same cars, one with and one without and see if you can notice the difference.

[@ParamMehta2012]

Do a video on ceramic coats tooo! Very informative..! 😎

[@worsttintentions]

Are you seeing any 'Orange-ing' with your paint? Almost and orange peel type of finish as with other paint jobs?

[@emperorSbraz]

5:07 clear bra i approve this shop.

[@dobber43]

emperorSbraz world needs more clear bras

[@astcomjakecw]

Ok I appreciate the info on PPF. But that permanent marker stunt.... Did they pay you for that specific one? Sharpie is an alcohol ink. Put it on raw paint and drip alcohol on it, and it comes off just the same. While alcohol does act as a rubbing compound on acrylics, oil based paints, enamels, etc... It does minimal damage to the urea / water paints we now use on cars after the EPA banned the use of previously used solvent based paints that had environmental concerns. In fact, we use alcohol to remove overspray after touchups or panel repaints if some of the masking lifts and lets some mist under it. Its just aggressive enough to get the spray to let go while doing little to no damage to the coat under it, granted everything has fully cured. We've also used alcohol to remove spray paint from a vandalized car, using an alcohol soaked closed foam pad on a random orbital rotary buffer. This dissolves the pad after a few minutes, but done in a timely manner, its fine. No aggressive cutting compounds or polishes, which remove some of the clear coat during use, were needed.... But going on a tangent here... Sharpie and alcohol should not be used as a boasting point for PPF. It has the same affect on raw paint. There is one exception however. Ethyl alcohols cause a problem with carnauba based waxes. If you have wax on the car, with carnauba in it, applying alcohol to it will cause a chemical reaction that converts the carnauba into a non soluble compound. Even hexane has trouble breaking it down. It also strengthens its bond to the paint. If you were to get some of that wax on a plastic piece and it rained for a whole day, hazing the plastic finish as water got into and under the wax, and you used ethyl alcohol instead of mineral spirits to remove it... Well, congratulations. You are now the proud owner if gray and white tie-dye plastic trim for the next few years, till it naturally wears off on its own.

[@groovymotion5706]

Seeing you use that brush on the Crosstrek was hard to watch, I was imagining my own car being scratched!

[@Emilthehun]

It's not a scratch. It's just a surface rearrangement! Haha best line ever

[@stevethibodeaux3764]

The new wheel color looks amazing!

[@Khaltazar]

Do an experiment for us, scratch a panel of that test bar in the shop over and over like 20 times in the same spot hard and see if it still removes it completely or does wear start to show.

[@Mend_Kris]

1:24 "Oh god, scrape that across."

[@tetsmon]

can you still wax and polish your car, or is this like vinyl wrapping where waxing actually damages the film?

[@s2kwidebody]

WAX

[@zack_anderson]

Hey thought I saw you on Eagle the other day man, cool to have you around town love your videos.

[@Addison0526]

You should get the license plate mounting holes in the front number filled. It would look a lot cleaner. On the S2000, that is.

[@BhavinTolia]

Too expensive for regular cars.

[@mcearl8073]

Bhavin Tolia I agree. Much better for collector cars or super cars

[@harris8390]

Says who? Ive seen protective films on everything from a 2017 base model Civic to Subaru WRX's. Its probably one of the smarter things you can do to a new car. Retains value.

[@TheFelepeno]

Normal protective films are more than affordable, but full Xpel wraps can cost upwards of $5,000.

[@neoanderson7]

I agree, if you're buying a throw away vehicle or if you know you'll be getting rid of a vehicle in less than 4yrs time, then yes, this isn't nessassary. However, if you have a vehicle you like and you're planning on keeping it around for at least a decade, this is a worthwhile investment. Especially if the vehicle will be seeing harsh environments. As soon as I put my order in for the Tesla Model 3, I will be getting an entire wrap done. My current daily has seen 242k over 9yrs and I pretty much have to do an entire paint over the whole car. Canadian winters and daily commuting is brutal on a vehicle.

[@neoanderson7]

Yes, you could repaint in 6yrs time. Even change the colour. But would you want the hassle of being without the car for any sort of time? Not to mention "devalue" it since its been repainted. All those things get taken into account. Nothing is like factory painted. Dents and dings are something you'll have to deal with. But more annoying is seeing light scratches if not deep scratches on paint. Drives me crazy. Taking it through car washes without a care. Never have to wax it. So much time can be saved by getting this done.

[@loves2tinker]

Just thinking, hot brake dust gets thrown from the brakes and gets embedded on the paint of the car. Usually I use a industrial cleaner which dissolves. If you don't remove it you see the dust\other material from the brake pads oxidizing on your car paint. looks like your paint is rusting. So how does this clear coat handle this condition?

[@SomeMechlover]

S2k looks sick man

[@carloscruz7317]

By the way props on the brass balls for taking that brush to your toy.

[@PumpUptheJam81]

Small world. I was just doing my homework on PPF and I happen to also live in Boise!

[@kevinheckeler]

Thanks to EE's video I had XPEL installed on the front of my new, relatively expensive car a week after buying it. [bumper, lights, front half of hood] It looks great and despite there being a bit of a line where the XPEL ends on the hood, it's no more visually unappealing than having a bra on it. In hindsight I might have just splurged to have the entire hood done.

[@imaliastv4125]

Should have gone for full hood buddy :)

[@dimi1326]

So when it goes through a car wash...this thing doesnt get all fraked up?

[@DilettanteDon]

Nope, had it installed on the front end of my SRT Charger for 4 years. Many car washes later and it stayed put.

[@24HourRealtySanDiego]

Thank you for posting this detailed & easy to understand explanation! 🙏🏼

[@WPman911]

You should do your next dry erase board drawing on the hood of the S2000, for a dramatic effect.

[@PT82]

For UK people I had this done on my STI last week. Front bumper, mirrors, partial bonnet and wings - £650

[@highline3617]

People in Vegas and Phoenix don’t even need a heat gun, just wait til summer and leave your car outside

[@ginobrugman]

This is sick. This film will make me invincible!

[@s2kwidebody]

NOPE

[@ADR69]

That looks like a ton of work. Is it still cheaper than getting touch ups every year?

[@MsSomeonenew]

Full body cover will set you back 4 grand, so it depends how flush you are...

[@lutyanoalves444]

i mean, the fact that you donta have to wait to do touchups is one of the best things about it. Its always nice

[@07wrxtr1]

Would be cool to get some of it cut custom and attempt a self install. Maybe just simpler areas like the roof, or doors.

[@__tim]

07wrxtr1 They sell precut kits for DIYers.

[@arethouready]

The market on a regular panel you could get off and the scrapes you put into the xpel could be wet sanded and got out

[@Patrick94GSR]

5:59 "soapy wooder" 😂😂😂

[@planet4100]

Had mine done today. Well worth the money!

[@AdamStrock]

The adhesive won't harm the paint job after being on for 10 years, then removed?

[@DucatiDiaries]

Can you please do a review (an actual review, not an overview labeled as a review like everyone is doing) of the 2018 Mustang GT? I already own mine but I'm still interested in reading some reviews. :o)

[@sombojoe]

I was looking for a way to protect paint off-roading, however after seeing installation realized I could have a few cheap paint jobs also.

[@mrbmp09]

Jason, How is the film holding up 4 years later?

[@bryantwhitis1268]

To be true to myself I rather go with a good brand name paint protection film. The ceramic coating is a little too much binding to the paint. In my opinion after all the research/homework I would go with the paint protection film of I had too choose. 😯

[@Superdimensional]

Getting my 2020 GTR done soon, thanks for this video!!

[@Fredwardius_frank]

1:21 the sound of car enthusiasts everywhere crying

[@brwi1]

What's funny about the "healing" ability is almost every ppf does it and was probably discovered by accident since it's a property inherent to the film .

[@shafez666]

cool video as always. But environmental particles, such as dust, PM particulates, pollen and other particles, aren't the only reason for discoloration. If the adhesive is of poor quality, under a lot of sun light exposure, the adhesive will discolor as well. This could leave permanent damage to the paint. Again, that's if the adhesive is of poor quality, and not resistant to sun light. It's funny that water and dust repellent properties weren't mentioned. Usually these type's of car protecting films come advertised with an array of such properties. I've been considering putting film like that on my car, but where i'm at dust is more of a concern. Unfortunately, I can't really find any info on how the film will hold up and deal with accumulated dusted. Like what you may get from a light sand storm. and for the cost of partially coating or fully coating a car, that a big investment on something that may not help much. I wonder if you could let one of your cars get a little dirty, and see how easy does the dirt get cleaned off =)

[@transguardinc2984]

While accumulated dust or dirt or sand doesn't have a particular affect on the film, operating a vehicle in areas that have lots of dust or dirt or sand can indeed cause more wear and tear on the film. But it's worth noting that even on vehicles operating in dusty or sandy areas, and even though conditions might be unusually harsh in some cases, the film has proven to do an excellent job of protecting the paint. So even though the film might take more abuse in one situation versus another, my experience in the 16 years I have owned a shop is that vehicle owners almost always look back and are glad they had paint protection film installed--that's assuming of course that the film is of good quality and that the installation was good. If you take either of those things out the equation you are likely to have, or have had, a bad experience.

[@celeron800]

How much of that orange peel was added by the film or is that all from the factory clear coat?

[@mandipraya]

I was debating on getting it done. But thanks to ee now i will get one too.

[@ArabianOak]

i ordered that same heat gun, what temp did you set that gun to? awesome video

[@EvanMoon]

You can remove permanent marker using dry erase marker. Just mark over the permanent racer and then you can wipe it off it works on Windows in a lot of other things but I don't know if it'll work on the car

[@koimaxx]

Just recently bought a compact SUV and seeing this video made me want to have xpel installed on it. I wonder how much it would cost though...

[@s2kwidebody]

$100-$5000

[@DukeGaGa]

I've always wanted to try XPEL, but when I got my ND Miata there was no installer near where I live so I give up. Recently a new shop with trained XPEL installer just opened, and since I already put an order down for a 2018 Mustang GT, I think I'll give it a go. Just one question, would you suggest wrapping the whole car or just the front end (front bumper, hood, fenders and probably the roof)?

[@sahibjot01]

Would've loved the word '*SPONSORED*' having an explicit mention in the video or atleast in the title. I'd like to know if I'll be watching an 8 min advert upfront. Thanks

[@Fluterra]

Best video I’ve seen on the subject!!

[@PT82]

This stuff self heals? Hmmm, if I liquified and injected it would this turn me into a pre adamantium Wolverine?

[@cichlidprofile6988]

what happens if you already have stone chips on your original paint? say you do add a wrap to the car with stone chips repaired from paint sticks, if and when the film becomes damaged and needs repair, will pulling the film off pull the factory paint off in the stone chip areas?

[@JCTiggs1]

How much does this cost for a car that has templates available?

[@Onyourbiketoo]

so, after 1 month of road dirt what do you was the car with and then what polish would you use to make it shine more

[@carloscruz7317]

That's sweet. I'd spend that on my truck I hope to hold onto it for at least 20 years

[@harman-bhangu]

How would this work on on a commercial truck kenworth dump truck. also would makes it easier to wash and can you use a pressure washer to wash truck after it's on

[@trishanuray3833]

I am in love with ppf. Made my life easy.

[@CanisLupus_666]

What about black cars and hot days?

[@goldenduck7294]

The color of your car does not matter. You are not scratching your car.

[@EngineeringExplained]

Not sure what the question is, but it's no problem.

[@goldenduck7294]

Ohh, are you worried about the film overheating?

[@CanisLupus_666]

Yes... i had my black S2000 nano-sealed ... but once on a hot day, i cleaned it and the black looked wierd. After it cooled down in the garage it looked normal again. So i wonder if this can take some heat without "melting away or something ^^

[@Firecul]

Yeah good question, would it bubble up or melt for example. I guess it would at some point.

[@ooohsaa]

Yo great content dude..is it possible for you to do a traction bars explained (with good and bad points) video ? Keep up the good work

[@Bryantmakina23]

What is the highest temperature it can handle outdoors? If it's too hot outside will it be shrinking too much?

[@ColdWindPhoenix84]

I'm planning on getting a new Toyota 86 soon, I'm really going to look into this. What was the cost for just the S2K?

[@s2kwidebody]

FREE for EE for the same kit $2500-$4000

[@psychopathicunity]

Man i love this guy. He's so solid haha! My heart was almost racing watching you scratch it. Im glad you didnt do it to tge s2000

[@sferreirac]

What about the orange peel look of the original paint, will the film make it worse? How long does the film lasts?

[@basant0908]

You do know that Sharpie can be removed by alcohol from any paint non porous paint right?

[@NPurvis7622]

This sounds pretty damn good for 100k cars, or even Uber cars.

[@MrMarty77]

Can you do a video on paint polish/restoration?

[@AgentWoods]

Lot of good squeaks! Love it!

[@AbhilashKrishnamurthy]

+Engineering Explained there were a couple of phones with self-healing back panels, the LG G Flex and G Flex 2. Are they using the same tech?

[@RWDtech]

If I ever buy a new or gently used car again, I am clear bra'ing the WHOLE DAMN THING. Yeah it might cost as much as $5k, but you can keep your paint looking brand new for 10 years and take it through any car wash as much as you want, without getting swirl marks.

[@TooManyChoices1]

Cool 12g bore brush. What shotgun ya got ?!

[@kirara4953]

This can be done easier if the Xpel stays as glossy liquid, wiped around the entire panel and then vacuum seal it. Same process as carbon fiber molding tho for the Xpel you would need to remove the panels and once you remove a cars panel in never fits the same way.