VidPro

Here you go.

FromZto5

Hard to see from that pic, but is it the horizontal whitish line in the middle of the grille? Sometimes, creases and stretches are inevitable esp on dark cars. But that looks like a scratch more than a crease. I can't tell for sure from the pic. Worth asking your installer and see what they say, but I doubt they will redo that piece for you for that little a scratch/crease.

kcoTiger

It's going to stretch and fold in some places. The film is flat; it's going to have to be stretched in some spots, compressed (folded) in others to fit properly--even if it's pre-formed/cut to fit your car. Mine was installed two years ago and there are a couple of spots that are not perfectly smooth. I asked them about it and was told they re-applied the film twice on one area because of the difficulty in getting it to lay properly. It's one of the only drawbacks of a clear bra: they're not formed/molded to the shape of the parts they'll cover, they're just cut to that shape.

VidPro

Ok. It's not a scratch in the Xpel but it's really difficult to tell. They said they'd take care of it. I don't want to be a pain so if it's not all that uncommon I can live with it.

FromZto5

Great points. Agree.

Coyote5-0

Who's to say you'd have to paint the entire front clip? You would likely only have to paint the front bumper, which can be done for less than $650, plus you don't have to deal with seams and get to see the true finish the entire time. But thats just my 2 cents...always been a non-bra guy

FromZto5

I think when he said front clip he meant front bumper. The 650 cost is material and labor for not only the bumper, but also the hood, fenders, mirrors and doors. As far as seeing the seams, you will be hard-pressed to find them on a properly installed vehicle hood and esp bumper. The seams end right where the panel ends. Again, the key to all this is the skill of the installer.

Have you ever seen in person a well, properly installed clear bra on a vehicle? I'm talking the best of the best. These guys really are good.

As far as seeing the true finish of the paint underneath, that's why it's clear. It's optically trans parent. So you can see the specs and the flakes and the shine of your paint underneath. This is why it is crucial that you properly buff and Deswirl the paint underneath prior to taking it to the dealer for installation.

Fwiw, I was also a non-bra guy. But it turns out, I was only that way because of all the install films that I've seen were horribly botched jobs. And then I saw a perfectly installed film on a friend of mine's car, and that's when I knew I wanted it on all my cars as well.

kcoTiger

There are cars you've seen that you thought looked **** good that were wearing a clear bra. You just didn't realize it because it was that good of a job.

Coyote5-0

You always say this, but I see them eeeeevery time. I got to Cars and Coffee almost every weekend and there are hundreds of cars there. I notice them every time. And when I dont notice, I look real close just to make sure, and no clear bra. They are always noticeable no matter how "good" the job is.

And you're not seeing the true finish, there is still plastic on it. I can be "clear", but its still not invisible.

$0.02

Coyote5-0

Common excuse clear bra guys use. I've asked people about their clear bra before and they said "how could you tell?" as if the job was so good no one could tell.

FromZto5

Yes... of course they're not INVISIBLE. Of course you can SEE them if you look for them. They're there. The lines are there. For sure. If you knowingly are looking at a finish and know there is clear bra there and you're looking for a seam and a line, of course you will see it.

If you're thinking that clear bra's should be literally and physically invisible before you'd think about installing it on your car, then no... Clear bra is not for you. You can live with your rock chips, and repainted surfaces. For me, I will live with my "seams" and "non-true" paint surfaces that pretty much no one can see unless they are looking for it.

Sounds like you are set with not liking/willing to try clear bra because of these "seams" that you claim are visible. That's fine. No problem there. Best of luck!

Coyote5-0

We all have our opinions, I respect yours, I won't press mine any further

Horspla

Nope, I meant the full front clip…hood fenders and bumper. If your bumper is getting hacked by sand/rocks/junk, so are your fenders and hood (primarily the leading edges). I saw it happening to mine and decided $650 was better spent now than several thousand dollars later. You can’t do panel blends (Half hood or half the fenders) and if it’s attempted is looks pretty terrible and doesn’t last.

I fully admit I can see the Clear Bra and never said or even implied it was invisible. I’m willing to live with that verses a sand blasted front end. I’m not trying to convince anybody to have it installed on their cars. Everybody has a different threshold of what is tolerable. Mine is low, especially having a black car. Not everybody cares if their car looks sweet for a long period of time…I get that and know mine won’t either no matter how hard I try unless I leave it parked in the garage all the time. Trouble with that is I bought the car to drive and have fun with. But taking proactive steps like Clear Bra, side splitters and rock deflectors to defend it against the elements will keep it looking it’s best for as long as possible….just how I roll dude.

Cheers,
john

FromZto5

well said John. Essentially, what do folks want to live with:

a) seams that you'd be hard-pressed to see unless your looking for it under close examination

or

b) rock chips, and repainted surfaces that you will be paying for every so often?

Horspla

There was a guy looking at my car a few weeks ago at a local car show and when I told him I just had Clear Bra installed, his furst utterance was, "Seriously? I can't even see it". From the front you really can't unless you study on it pretty hard. From the back of the aplica you can see the trailing edge line. I could care less! I could see the sandblasting (That luckily I was able to correct with a bit of compound and my 7424) from every angle and much worse when the sun hit it. NFG If the CB get's hacked...and it will, another $650 and we're rolling like new again

John

kcoTiger

And what about all the guys who you thought didn't have one that do? Hm.

puma1552

I've never used a clear bra, and by using a true safe following distance and then some, I've not had a rock chip on my front end on any car that I can remember in the last X years. If you are one of those jackasses on someone's rear bumper at 60 mph, well duh you're going to get nasty road rash on the front end. If you are waaaay back like you should be, you will be so far out of rock chip zone anyway. If you do get a rock chip, one tiny chip here and there would be so few and far between that you wouldn't even notice once touched up. At the rate I go, by the time I get three pin size rock chips I'll be trading the car for something new anyway.

Food for thought.

Not a fan of plastic between my paint on some parts of the car only (even if full panels done) and my detailing products. Not going to be a popular opinion, but I've found clear bras largely unnecessary, even in year round salty daily driving conditions.

kcoTiger

There are other uses, and those who track their car are particularly aware of the benefits of having a clear bra attached to the front end. I have the headlights covered and have been spared at least one cracked lens after having a rock kicked up onto it. The 3M film took the beating, and was all of $10 to replace it as opposed to the much higher price of purchasing a new lens.

Not everyone who doesn't drive ten car-lengths behind the guy in front of them is a jackass. Quite honestly, sometimes it's impossible to keep anything resembling a safe distance between you and the car in front of you, either because it's bumper-to-bumper or because it's heavy enough that every time you open a gap, someone fills it. It's called traffic. It's part of life. There are some who do care about "a tiny chip here and there." They're noticeable on these cars, and they're eyesores to many. You're of course welcome to let your car look like you don't care what it looks like, but many do. The clear bra is the perfect solution to taking fingernail polish to your front bumper.

The clear bra I have installed is intended for use with any and all polishes/treatments I can throw at the paint. It works wonderfully and, yes, looks just like the rest of the car does. I'm still amused by the vehemence some are showing with their dislike of clear bras.

ScottV

[QUOTE=puma1552;6847834]I've never used a clear bra, and by using a true safe following distance and then some, I've not had a rock chip on my front end on any car that I can remember in the last X years. If you are one of those jackasses on someone's rear bumper at 60 mph, well duh you're going to get nasty road rash on the front end. If you are waaaay back like you should be, you will be so far out of rock chip zone anyway.

You can stay back but someone will usually fill the hole when you are in traffic. Also, even if you can keep a good distance - you can't do much about oncoming traffic. I especially like how easy it is to wash off bug splats on the Clearbra. They wash right off where as you have to rub like hell on a painted surface and that usually ends up with scratches over time. To each his own but I' m one of those people where the stone chip might as well be in me as in the car and over time a bad one or a lot of small ones will bug me enough to trade the car in. I'm not into washing and waxing every other week (ok - maybe washing) but i can tell you where every stone chip and blemish is in my car.

Scott

laserred38

Clearly you don't live in California or anywhere where there is traffic and/or tons of trucks on the road.