Paint Protection Film

[R8 England]

After 300 miles I discovered a stone chip on my front bumper.

Not nice, since the paint comes off completely, leaving a a white colour underneath.

And on a bright blue car it really shows. A bit like a teenager with acne..........

Not nice.

But having seen L3MAN's beast, and his chip on the bonnet, it doesn't look nice on any colour R8.

I had always intended to get the R8 "side sills" covered with Armorfend film. The side sills are easily damaged by heel scuffs or scratched by grit caught in the tread of your shoes.

Having had both RS4's and RS6's Armourfend coated, it really did protect the paintwork. Even after 5 years on my RS4, the film was still invisible and doing its job.

Having used them for years, I naturally contact Armorfend in Essex. However, it seems there has been a "management" change at Armorfend and when I enquired, the reply was "R8 ??? What's that !, I'll get back to you".

They never did.

Elliot, I am indebted to you for the lead. I contacted Paintshield in Grantham, and they were indeed very accomodating. Tom Wakeford is a great character, and he knows his stuff.

Their US operation did the US track cars for the launch events. Apparently Audi contacted them in a panic after noticing the damage caused on the launch track days.

They can cover every panel on the car (a bit of an overkill, but nice to know), Tom's boxster was a marvel......

I now have side sills, front bumper and bonnet covered, with part coverage on the mirrors and lower door sections.

It is genuinely "invisible", and it does the job. Not cheap, but a lot cheaper than a re-spray and it is also highly resistant to "keying".

It does not fade or discolour and it makes cleaning easier, I would certainly recommend it, as a minimum for the bumper, bonnet and side sills.

It anyone is interested, see www.paintshield.co.uk

[N1JEE]

great advice thanks

[GR8]

What sort of cost per panel old chap??

[R8 England]

GR8,

Don't have exact figures to hand, but it was around GBP £600 + VAT for the bumper (full coverage), part bonnet, mirror inserts.

The full coverage bonnet kit and side sills added a few hundred quid.

[elliot]

Elliot, I am indebted to you for the lead. I contacted Paintshield in Grantham, and they were indeed very accomodating. Tom Wakeford is a great character, and he knows his stuff.
www.paintshield.co.uk

Great stuff mate, Tom is a lovely guy and has done all my cars, and we were going to do the entire Gallardo, just never got round to it

Hope you said hi from me!

[SK1]

Guys, anyone having experience with VantureTape Ventureshield paint protection film ? It seems this is the only one available here (actually more dealers switched from 3M to this one as it is told to be more flexible, easier to apply and better against UV yellowing). I also read VentureTape was acquired by 3M recently.
If anyone applied this film please give me some info. Thanks.

[sparkplug]

Premiere paint protection films in the SF bay area installed Ventureshield on my R8 several weeks back. The entire hood is covered (one sheet of Ventureshield believe it or not), in addition to the front fender, rear quarter panels, side blades, and a-pillars. It is indeed completely invisible, and it is absolutely impossible to tell that the car is covered unless you feel around the creases of the car or in between seams.

I will let you know how it stands up over time, but so far its flawless. My car has no paint chips after 1.2k miles, and looks like it did the day I purchased it. I recommend you get a really good detail job prior to having the film applied so all machine swirls etc. are removed. This way the car will literally look flawless.

[Roy Skousen]

Quick! Some one write Car and Driver, or Motor Trend and tell them we need a paint protection film comparo. Who's the best? 3M?? XPEL?? Ventureshield?? I've had experience with the film on my MINI and my RS4. I wouldn't have a car without them. I don't know why, but all the jobs were the "bikini" or "simple" and always left an edge across the bonnet and front fenders. After seeing the XPEL on the whole front end makes me stop and say "hmmm".

[yacoub]

If any of you happen to be in the Washington D.C. metro area and are looking for protectant film, I would highly recommend www.pftfilms.com. They've been protecting exotics and luxury cars for several years now, and are the premiere company doing so in the area. I also know the owner personally and he's a stand-up guy and does excellent work. I believe they use XPEL film and they have the tools and material to allow them cut their own kits and custom pieces.

[Goldenfish]

GR8,

Don't have exact figures to hand, but it was around GBP £600 + VAT for the bumper (full coverage), part bonnet, mirror inserts.

The full coverage bonnet kit and side sills added a few hundred quid.

Thank you for all the info!
How long does the all thing take to put all that? Do you have to plan a full day or is it a matter of a couple of hours? Being based in London, the one in Essex would have been more convenient..

Thank you.