It's a wrap - or is it?

[bigfoot57]

Anyone got any experience of wraps?

I've had my 51-plate 996 C4 Cab for nearly 4 years and it's still mostly all the car I need. Still low mileage, doesn't use a drop of oil, good history etc. (maybe a bit tempted to go to a 997 for the better seats and a functioning phone system instead of the crap PCM, but that's another story). However, one big pull to change is that I have always fancied a stronger colour. Mine is Arctic silver - very restrained. Speed yellow is more my taste, like some other nutters on here.

So the question is, has anyone had a wrap done which looks sufficiently good enough to adorn one's P&J??

[kingstondc5]

Couple of my mates have had their cars wrapped and apart from them being satin/matt, youd think it was oem.

And on the other hand, ive seen some very poor wraps so try and find out who is rated in your area.

[domster]

Go for a single colour or satin/matt.

I had a printed wrap done by the best in the biz and it was shocking - the printed films aren't the same as the single colour/matt ones, which can look superb. Basically it's to do with adhesion/air movement below the film.

Quality of 'trimming' is also important. Stress you want the best fitter and the best job. My job didn't stand up to close scrutiny and was a disappointment. From a distance it looked OK, but I would go for airbrushing next time.

[993kimbo]

Wraps when removed can take the very thin layer of lacquer off the edges of bodywork. Flat paint wraps tend to look a bit fibre-glassy in my opinion. Printed wraps can look very dodgy. All okay from a distance but it depends what your standards are. I've never seen one that looks like 'paint'.

[993kimbo]

domster said:

I had a printed wrap done by the best in the biz and it was shocking

And that was?

[marky911]

I've seen some great wraps but up close you can tell it's a wrap.

Two main things to remember are that although they can wrap some parts of the door-jam, the front (A-post), where the hinges etc are, will usually still be original colour and also in the engine bay, boot etc. If you can live with that, then fine.

The other thing is no matter how good the vinyl is that they use, it generally won't polish up like a deep coat of paint will. It'll still look shiney, it just won't have the depth.

I desperately wanted this car last year but the dealer wanted his cake and to eat it, the usual, hence I missed it. Not bothered now mind but anyway, here is a good vid of fitting -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VmQCOLtofg

I say go for it if everything else about the car still makes you happy.

You do need the best in the business though or you could end up with stanley knife marks all over.

[DuraAce]

Plasti-dip instead?

I'll be doing mine over the summer.

[Jibberingloon]

All i will say is Plastic Dip You Car


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNY9Dx617N8


Simple and cheap and easy to remove if you get bored of it.

[Koll]

Im a fan of wrapping cars. Gives you the change you want and the best thing is that you can remove it if/when you get bored of it. Recently had my r8 wrapped by KiKCustoms. Their attention to detail was second to none and could not be happier
Few pics for you...

[ClarkPB]

Just don't remove the wrap yourself if you decide you don't like it - it can be a complete pain in the ass to do!

Last one I did was a full PPF wrap removal from a basalt black 997.1 GT3 and it took my hands about a week to recover. Admittedly PPF is thicker than vinyl but it can still be a pain.

[bigfoot57]

Guys - thanks for the advice. I'm going to watch the vids you've mentioned tomorrow. I am a bit fussy though so sounding like perhaps not for me.

[Moog72]

If you are sure you want a new colour, is it beyond the realms of possibility to get it professionally re-sprayed instead? Or is that cost prohibitive? (I have no idea on that)

[domster]

993kimbo said:

And that was?

N&S rules prevent me from saying but they did a Veyron printed wrap recently, hopefully to a higher standard than mine, so they are known for working on very expensive cars and for the biggest clients inc bluechip corporates etc. I went to them as I know what a nightmare wraps can be and wanted the best chance of success by using a reputable company rather than back st vinyl guy. It shows that printed wraps (at least) are a minefield. Should have gone for a single colour as the finish can be far better.

[993kimbo]

Jibberingloon said:

All i will say is Plastic Dip You Car


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNY9Dx617N8


Simple and cheap and easy to remove if you get bored of it.

Thanks for that link, very interesting, but quite a laborious job. Mind you, so is car wrapping and it doesn't half hurt your hands trying to get the damn stuff off, as someone else said.

Remember with wrapping you need Perfect Paint - any stone-chips etc will encourage the paint to lift when you take it off. It's all a bit of a nightmare really.

Domster - I know who you're talking about. Printed wraps are indeed pants. I got some samples of Gulf Blue printed and the vinyl had lines on it like it was printed on a home printer. And it was around £70 per metre.

Edited by 993kimbo on Friday 1st February 11:01