[cunningjim]

Hello all,

I've owned several European cars and have always like their handling.
I've had my Q3 for one month and really do like the balanced nature on the road. Getting excited to take it out on a few road trips. We've finally gotten some rain in N.Calif and started thinking about paint protection.

I did not go for the dealer IBEX protection system but would appreciate
any suggestions for what to apply to the new car paint to protect it further.

Or, if I found a body detailing shop, what process should I ask for?

Thanks,

 

[cableguy]

keep it in the garage 100% of the time.

OK kidding....there's another thread from 2015 on this topic. You can search for it.

 

[Q3User]

Plastic protector wraps for at least half hood/front bumper, front side fenders, side skirts, side mirrors & top of rear bumper will give you peace of mind against chip & flying debris.
Expect to pay upwards of $1.5K - $2K for above if you go full hood.

Quality is dependent on installer so get a few references or better yet ask if their former customers can show you their work.

Anything Xpel/3M or my own personal favorite Llumar plastic protector will do.
Expect Xpel to be more costly & Llumar at bottom end with 3M in between.

As for IBEX type paint protection or what I call fairie dust, I can't speak to chemical protector only to say that those who spend on that still have to wash, paint correct & wax their cars.

 

[rnlabas]

First, welcome to the forum - here's hoping you find what you need from us and contribute a little too. As a Chemical Engineer I can opine that most applied stuff from a bottle that is poured or rubbed on and buffed off is at best temporary - that is, it will last for some time but depending on what else happens to the surface that time can be VERY short (days) to perhaps a month or more, but hardly much longer unless the car is sitting in an inert gas environment out of ANY light - not the usual place for a car.

As for protectant films (and there are several as already mentioned), you can find some really decent ones. I personally believe from experience that at this moment, Xpel Ultimate has NO rival. 3M used to make a very good film for this, but lost interest in other product diversifications and lost their lead and market share. Xpel who used to do the templating expanded to fill this gap and has not looked back. They offer the only current self-healing film and have an industry-leading ten year warranty. I don't work for them, but know the product well and spent a bit wrapping my ENTIRE R8 with the stuff - it is phenomenal. It is NOT the cheapest and even Xpel has a lesser quality wrap, but if you want the best protection (and ALL of these are cheaper than quality repainting), then it's an almost no-brainer. You can easily expect to get a higher residual on the upfront investment than your car will deliver on resale too - THAT's positive NPV and a no-brainer for me ...

 

[cunningjim]

Thanks to all for the advice.


Jim

 

[annashetty]

Many thanks for sharing this very diverse opinion post where each expert has no doubt shared his best knowledge on the topic. Putlocker

 

[boblepp]

Spam, please kill profile annashetty

Many thanks for sharing this very diverse opinion post where each expert has no doubt shared his best knowledge on the topic. bullcrap link

Spammer...

Can you invoke controls so new user posts must be approved to appear??

Bob