2006 Clear Bra

Thanks to the wealth of info from this forum, I got the 3M paint protector installed today by Accutint, one of the certified shops in Seattle. They used a precut kit and added a wide band above the windshield. It looks nice and cost 799. The pics were taken tonight in the rain and aren't so good. I was told that to cover the full hood could cost $200 and they would have to take the hood off to make a pattern. Because of the undulations in the hood towards the upper and outer edges, the installer said there could be some wrinkles in those areas.

I'm pleased with the look and now drive without fear of getting a ding! Cheers & Happy Solstice!

 

I have had my clear-bra installed for 1 year now, 23K miles. It still looks great and no chips on the front end. I did install the 2006 chrome center grill piece. It cost me $58 and took about 15 minutes to install; looks terrific.

 

Great information.
I will be getting my 06 silver #8 in about a week.
I am from Seattle and found my Prius in Portland. I will need to drive back (about 2.5 hours) without protection. Wish me luck.

I will definetly get the 3M once i get back to Seattle.

I also want to get the black mask/bra just for looks. I've seen some Prii with it and I like it. One dealer told me that he did not recommend the bra because it causes paint and other kind of damage to the hood, water gets trapped under it and sits there, etc....

I thought that if I have the 3M intalled that it would protect my hood from the possible bra damage.

Does anyone have amy input on this?

Thanks!

 

I should be getting my Prius in a couple of weeks as well. I put a small deposit down at the local shop that will put the Xpel (pre-cut 3M stuff) on my car. It'll probably be in the $600 range for the bumper, mirrors, extended hood, and some of the front quarter-panels. I might get the headlights/foglights done if it doesn't make it a lot more expensive.

 

Bill:

Can you say please where in the Portland metro area you had your paint protection applied? I don't have my Prius yet, but the Clearbra of Oregon dealer near me was quoting about $860.

Also, did you have the film applied to the entire hood or just to the front part?

Thanks

 

I just set up an appt. for our soon to arrive Prius at Auto Spa Seattle. They quoted me $540 for hood, front bumper, mirrors, door edge guards. I have a choice between 3M and VentureShield. 3M will cost $25 more. VentureShield (VentureTape.com) has a lifetime warranty. 3M has a 5yr. warranty.

Has anyone used VentureShield? It is a relatively new product. Installer says the benefit is that it is almost invisible, less surface orange peel than 3M. However, he recommends waxing every 6 months because it doesn't have the clearcoat layer that 3M scotchguard has. He says the 3M is a little lower maintenance, but shows up if you are looking for it.

http://www.venturetape.com/final/automotiv...ucts.asp?id=610

 

So how did the installation go? Are you satisfied with the result?

 

Got it done today. Well, sort of. I thought it looked pretty good, but the installer (Jeff) isn't happy with the roll of film. He detected minor color variations under bright fluorescent lights and called VentureTape. They checked the batch and confirmed Jeff's good eyes. It sound like they were pretty flustered, it's the first time that they've seen this. Jeff, left the film on until we can reschedule and he gets a new roll from VentureTape that he is happy with. They'll peel off the old and will start all over again. I've got to travel next week, so it will be the week after that before it gets finished.

 

Getting my 06 Barcelona Red in a week or so. Found an amazing installer on the 3m website. They are called Detailing Dynamics and are located in Mineola NY. After calling around I realized what the difference was between the "pre cut kits" and having all the peices custom cut to your vehicle. First of all let me state that I am very anal to the point of being a perfectionist, especially with my cars. I went to this shop and was shown cars like Ferrari, Mercedes, Porsche etc. with the 3M protection film on. This installer does such a good job that you can't see any lines other than the one on the hood. But even that was hard to see. However in my case he said he would be able to cover the entire hood making it invisible. The difference is that this installer takes pride in his work and goes the extra mile by taking off emblems, taking out the headlights, fog lights, etc so the film can be installed completely with no visible lines. With a pre cut kit, the lines are alot more visible because there isn't enough material to totally wrap around in certain areas, and the kits often shrink. Don't get me wrong, the kits do offer the protection, but if you are a perfectionist like me, get the peices cut to your vehicle. It may cost a little more but the difference will be in the final product.I felt his price was very fair and left a deposit. After the install is done, I will post pictures.. B)

 

I found a good price for the installation of the 3M paint protection. They quoted me for 500 to get the bumper and mirror and part of the hood.

Before i go and get it done...theres just this one thought that keeps bugging me....


Why do I have to put an expensive protecton on my car?? It is just a CAR!!! in 2 years, no one will care how great it looks because' it will be old in everyone's eyes. putting the protection wont increase the selling value of the car anyway.


that thought keeps popping in my head....can y'all help me out with why i should spend money on that protection?

 

First of all, if you say it's just a car, you aren't as passionate as some of the Prius owners on this website who really take pride in making sure their pride and joy is protected. I don't agree with you when you say it won't help in the resale value. Someone would definitely be willing to pay more for a car that has paint in much better condition over one that doesn't. The cost for someone just to repaint the hood alone could run someone over $400.00 alone. Not to mention nothing is really as good a match as that of factory paint, especially when you are painting the plastic front bumper. And in two years it will look like it did when you first got it. If you really don't mind the front end getting chipped up then definitely save your money. And it will get chipped up if you drive on the highway, reason being is that todays paints which are more environmently friendly have much less durability than those made 20 years ago. I guess it's just up to you to decide whether you really care what the car looks like in two years. I just recently sold my Lexus Rx300 and it was only 3 years old, but it was so chipped on the hood and front bumper as well as the mirrors, I know I could have gotten more had it been protected. Sorry I didn't know about this film sooner.
The price you got is pretty good. Is that a kit or is it custom cut? If you want to see a really good website about the installation, go to www.detailingdynamics.com
Good luck

 

I would like the protection of PPF, but installers in my area want $550 to $800 for my Prius. I could repaint the front end for that -- especially since it's a white car and has none of the paint matching problems of metallic finishes.

I found a guy on ebay that sells 3m kits for the Prius for $175. The kit can be used by an installer or as a DIY project. God help me, but it *looks* easy enough to do on my own. I'm rushing in where only fools go -- wish me luck, I'm gonna apply my OWN 3M PPF film...

 

One of the most major problems with the kits are that they give you just enough material to cover the areas of the bumper that go around certain area such as the fog lights etc. Having the peices custom cut to your vehicle allows the installer to tuck the edges under the lights, as well as wrapping under the hood as well. You may say what difference does it make; but the major difference is this...The lines that you can barely see when you first install it will become very visible once you start driving and dirt starts to accumulate on the edges where the lines are. You are going to notice it more than anybody because you have a white car. It isn't as easy as you think to clean off. When you wax your car, it is recommended that you put 1/4" masking tape over the lines where the film meets your car so a wax line doesn't show up. If it happens it will be a real pain to get off without possibly lifting the edges of the film. I am a big fan of Ebay and a fan of saving money but after talking to my installer and realizing the difference between the kits and a custom job...I chose the latter. True, you could repaint the car, but do you really want to go through that hassle? Not to mention, its just going to get chipped again and again. Truthfully I don't think the installation is as easy as you think. My installer said that some bumpers take four people alone to install properly. When you are sticking this stuff on you have one chance to get it right. If its crooked you cant pull it off an reapply it. Not to mention if you get a fingerprint on it, it will be there for life. Check out the installation video at detailingdynamics.com...Good luck on whatever you decide.

 

Oddly enough, none of the quotes I received offer this level of installation. All of them, from the $550 low bidder to the $800 high bidder, were offering pre-cut kits with professional installation. They all quoted about $180 for the labor, the difference was in their "kit" price. It all makes me a bit suspicious, to be frank. How can the same 3M film be offered at such different price points?

I'm sure I'd like the custom fitted clear bra even more, but I can't even imagine how much they'd want for THAT service. What would it cost in my area? $1000? $1200? How much is too much? At some point you just have to draw the line.

If I screw up the film, so be it. It'll be an adventure, and I like challenges.

 

I've just about finished up with my do-it-yourself installation. I've done it over a couple of different days - at my own pace - according to what time I have available. If you like doing stuff yourself I'd recommend this. It gets addictive and you start looking for things to put the film on.

It's not terribly difficult, and practice makes you better. I got pre-cut pieces for the hood, front bumper, mirrors, and headlights. I ordered bulk material and cut my own sills, rear bumper, and roof pieces. I did the hood first and that took 30 minutes. The headlights took about the same amount of time because the material was thicker. The pieces I cut myself took some time, but making the patterns was part of that. You can install without a pattern and cut directly on the car if you like. I did that for a few edges and it's not difficult once you get your nerve up.

From what I can see, the biggest down side to wrapping most things on the car is removal of the piece and anything else in the way (badges, emblems, washer nozzles, etc.). Then, there has to be enough paint on the edges and back side for the film to adhere properly, and the shape of the piece becomes important (it could mean some relief cutting on the backside).

At least when it's clean and new, if you can see the edge of the film from three feet away there's something wrong.

 

Wanted to pass along my recent experience with my clear bra. I had it installed middle of last year on my 2004. i personally love it and know its saved me from getting more paint chips on the hood. But i did run into a problem recently with it. Around November of last year i began running the car with the foglights on all the time. I always drive with the headlights on like daytime running lights but also added running with the fog lights on as well. Didnt pay any attention to the clear bra. In late January i noticed that the clear bra over the individual fog lights had turned brown. the clear bra material had actually heated up and started to burn from the heat of the fog lights being on all the time. i went back to the installer who told me another prius owner had just come back with the same problem. after he removed the burnt clear bra material the plastic underneath it was fine. no lasting damage or residual effects. i wish i had taken a picture of it before he cleaned it off. anyway just something to be aware of. i still definitely love the clear bra though and would get it again.

 

Was it a kit or custom...What areas did you cover?

 

Well the place i bought it from had a CAD computer cut the pieces form a giant roll of the 3 M clear bra material. i got the hood, both mirrors, front bumper and headlights and foglights. all of them are individual pieces.

 

Has anyone had the experience of bringing the precut kit, say bought online, to an installer? I wonder if they would still charge the $180-$200?

 

I'm considering having paint protection/clear bra but I can't even find anyone in my area who does this--all recommendations here except one in New York are West Coast . Not even sure how to "google" it. I've tried several phrases w/ no luck except the product suppliers. My brother-in-law has a sign shop, his work includes vinyl sign installation on trucks--similar process??? It looks like it according to the product sites. Anyone think I should get him to help me with it?