ZR1Cat

After a year of considering the best option for me to protect my 2012 ZR1, I finally decided to get an Expel brand paint protection film.

I got it installed during the MidAmerica Vette FunFest in Effingham, IL last weekend. A shop from St. Louis was on site and did a number of cars during the event. In fact they were booked solid for three days. I had to have custom cut hood film to accomadate the black hood strips and hood window on my Centennial Edition. They did it perfectly. Additionally to the hood and front getting filmed, I had the air splitter and the quarter panels and lower portion of the doors done. It took two guys almost three hours to complete the job. They didn't seem to mind my watching or the crowds of passerbys that were watching other vendor installations such as exhausts, seat covers and custom accessories. The installers where meticulous and seemed to really know what they are doing (at least to this newbie at getting a clear bra installed).

It set me back about $1,500 but I feel so much more confident about driving the car now and not getting stone pecks and messing the up paint. I am a happy camper!

09Z06pj

Good move. One you won't regret.

MachAll 2005

Congrats ... I was at FunFest and observed them working on the cars... I noted at one point, them pulling the film back to get a piece of debris that had gotten under it. I put "Clear Shield" on our ZR1 when we got it 3 years ago .. done at a well known dealer .. took the technician 8 hours to do it in a "clean room" with no others around to bother him .. in fact his door was locked until he was done. In contrast to what I noted at FF, my guy used many tools including a "hot steam" machine, heat guns, etc. So far, we are very satisfied with it.

One word of caution though, be careful when you wax/paint protect as the edges of the plastic tend to "grab" the wax making it difficult to clean up the residue....this may partially be due to the characteristics of the laser cut edges while knife cut edges may be different?

TheDingo

Great to have in my opinion. Not sure which one is on my car (installed by previous owner) but its def got marks on it that I wouldn't want on the paint!

OnPoint

Sounds like you had some good installers.

RO55

Well worth the peace of mind you will have. I also did my mirrors as well as headlights & driving lights. Here in Fla the fine sand will sandblast your lights as well as the rest of your front end.

boraxman

fnbrowning

Isn't that XPEL Technologies Corp.: Paint Protection Film?

PM sent for more info on installer/

ZR1Cat

Sent you a reply.

Yes, the correct spelling is "Xpel"!

Clear Auto Bra was the installer. The company is owned by Mark Parafiniuk; he has several locations in the St. Louis area. He is one very professional and pleasant guy that seems to know his business. I was impressed. I would definitely recommend him.

pokerpro

You made a good decision in getting a clear bra, although I did the same but went with Sun tech brand. This one is supposed to be the only one on the market that is "self Healing". A nice little option to have.

PittMD1

I am a big fan of the clearbra film. I hope the vendor that put yours on is available latter on if you have issues. I put my clear bra on 3 days after I bought the car and its flawless.

ZR1Cat

I live out in the sticks in southern IL. Choices of installers nearby is rather slim to none. So a distant installer is about my only choice anyway. The vendor is about 3.5 hours away and seemed very professional about backing his work.


Pokerpro and PittMD1, I am glad to hear that you have been very pleased with your experience with your clear bras. That is reassuring given the bucks I spent on this stuff.

pokerpro

Just make sure before you take that drive out there that the installer uses a computer generated machine to cut the film to the specs of the car. If he's doing this out of his garage and is going to cut the film by hand with a pair of scissors, then run as far & as fast away from him as you could.

klinger

Previous to buying my Vet I owned a Motor home with the clear bra. i did drive it in weather I would not drive my Vet in but after time the edges started to get dirt that I could not remove. On my new Vet I purchased the regular bra. I would not use the clear plastic again.

flaagan

The problem with "regular" bras is that you've now got what equates to a brillo pad rubbing against your body panels when you're driving along. Dirt is going to get under it, and it is going to rub it into / against your paint work. I'd sooner have nothing on the paint than one of those things. I'll be moving up to a C6 soon, and I'm already looking up local shops to get the very 'basics' covered on the car, as I know from my C5 that my commute does a number on the front bumper.

dvilin

The regular bra is great for road trips, and about all you need. For just everyday driving I do not see the need for any protection. Those that have the clearbra swear by them, but if I spent 1500 bucks I would also.

cegusa

Think about the clear bra as sort of a consumable like your tires. It's gonna protect your paint but understandably after a while it's going to show some signs of wear from the road. Unlike touching up chips and scratches, you can just replace the panel pieces as you desire. A good installer is a must and minimal effort keeps it looking good for a long time. So far my protection film kept me from dealing with damagied paint on one mirror and the front lower edge of a quarter panel. About 65 bucks to replace those two pieces and back to normal. I personally think it's a good idea on these low to the ground cars for everything that gets thrown at them.

ButchN

Xpel "self heals" as well.
And Xpel is IMO, the smoothest, clearest clear bra out there.

ARMISTICE

The xpel extreme I just had installed on my 13' GS is scratch and mar resistant. They had it at Corvettes at Carlisle.
Had entire front of car done as well as quarters,rockers,mirrors and door handle area.

Product works awesome, my favorite mod yet...for peace of mind.

Texas_Venom

Motor home manufacturers use the cheapest film out there. I wouldn't install what they use in cars for sure. As with anything else there are different levels of film... some better than others. A good quality film is a much better option than leather bras... plus you can cover any area on the car including the headlights. One headlight is $960 on a C6.