Different finish options available for your paint protection film wrap

Paint protection film or better known as “PPF” is film covering that goes over top of your vehicle paint. There are many benefits to paint protection film including:

•Protection against rock chips

•Ease of maintenance by reducing the need for car washes

•Helps protect the paint finish from fading by sealing it against the environment 

•Prevents chemical reactions from daily driving (sand/road salts/acidic bird droppings)

•Maintains your cars resale value

•Saves money long term

•Peace of mind from the invisible protection

•Self healing properties

•Custom kits for all vehicles 

•Resistance to discoloration and peeling

Keeping your vehicle in tip-top shape through the seasons can be challenging. Especially if there are harsh winters or you do a lot of highway driving. Have you ever noticed a rock chip damaging your paint and wondering if there’s a solution? Well, paint protection film is the key to your answer to offer an invisible barrier to protect your car.

If you’ve ever considered if paint protection film is really worth it and if the benefits are actually noticeable, the answer is an astounding YES! If you’re not convinced that paint protection film is the right option for you, here are several reasons below to change your mind.

Understanding different qualities of workmanship

There are many different shops in the Greater Vancouver Area and Richmond Area offering paint protection films. With this, there is bound to be different qualities of vinyl and labor work installed on the vehicles. To put it simply, not all paint protection film (PPF) installs are of the same quality. Although there are many brands of paint protection film including Xpel, Suntek, Stek, 3M, Avery, & GSWF – the most important factor when selecting a shop is their reputation, quality, warranty and work environment. At Twiisted Media, we have a dedicated warehouse facility specifically setup with proper lighting and a clean space to offer the best installs. We also use the highest quality film from Xpel coupled with their precise cut software which offers templates for every vehicle. On top of this, we have the option to modify the templates so that we can customize each vehicle panel precisely to offer more coverage and to make the install appear more seamless. More on this below.

Not all paint protection film is installed the same. A guide to two different finish options for quality.

Although the intention of paint protection film (PPF) is to protect the vehicle, there are two main install finishes that are available. There is the “standard finish” which uses kits/patterns and “custom finish” which uses a combination of kits/patterns and bulking.

Standard Finish

This finish uses cut software from such companies as Xpel (Dap), Suntek (Core) etc and allows access to templates for practically every vehicle. The templates consists of patterns for every vehicle panel to make install easier. See below for an example of how a template looks like for a Tesla Model 3 and Porsche 911.

The downside is that the standard finish usually goes close to body panels but there is still a visible distance from the edge. This is done as a safety precaution as paint protection film (PPF) does not like to bend around edges as easily and installs can be done quicker this way. A majority of shops will offer a standard finish as the difference is only noticeable up close and the protection is essentially the same. Most customers are just happy to have protection on top of their paint and is not concerned about having visible edges / seamless install.

Custom Finish

A custom finish will further build on the process above by adding “bleed” to the templates. Bleed is essentially extra material added around edges and corners on the template itself so that there is more coverage to make the install appear more seamless up close. This custom finish takes longer to install as the material needs to be custom cut on the panels and heat needs to be applied to relax the film to make it lose memory and adhere properly. A custom finish paint protection film panel may also utilize a “bulking” method where a large sheet of PPF film is used and then custom cut to contour specifically to the shape of the vehicle. This method will allow more coverage than what a standard template may offer.

This type of install is more labor intensive, and the finished product appears more flawless. This finish option is usually only recommended if the customer is concerned to make paint protection film appear as invisible as possible with no visible gaps/seams for the highest quality job. By wrapping around edges and panels, over time when the vehicle gets dirty, the visible edges will be less noticeable as the dust/dirt has no hard edge to sit and buildup. By choosing the custom finish approach, you will minimize this dirt issue above.

On top of everything above, usually with a custom finish, there will be more parts removed on the vehicle to ensure there are no seams. This can include removing side cameras, mirror housings, door handles, lights, bumpers etc.

Reference the pictures below of how a “standard finish” looks vs a “custom finish”.

Summary

While either a standard finish or custom finish protects the vehicle the same, the difference is in quality up close and how concerned a customer is with making the film appear as invisible and flawless as possible. A standard finish will be more cost effective in comparison to a custom finish as these types of installs require more dismantling of vehicle parts (including bumpers, lights, handles, grills, etc) in order to hide the edge of the film underneath it. The most important decision to consider is the specific budget you have, how long you plan to keep the vehicle and if a custom finish will make a difference for your lifestyle.

At Twiisted Media, our preferred method of install is the “custom finish” as it presents a higher quality of install and an invisible flawless look up close. The custom finish option allows for a perfect seamless look to last the lifetime of your vehicle and maintain the finish from Day 1.

Some of our projects

At our very core, we are car enthusiasts and we have taken our passion for vehicles by offering color change vinyl wraps and paint protection film (PPF) installs in Vancouver.

Check out our portfolio of eye-catching vehicles we’ve worked on and see what inspires you!