Vinyl wrap installation problem

fresh · August 21, 2012

Having a difficult time making for a clean installation where the windshield sill is involved. When vinyling the roof, I do not have any issues up until where I start tucking the film underneath the windshiend sill or trim. Either I cut it a little too short to make the installation easier and/or it's just a pain in the a**. Is there a trick to installing this without any issues and of course with ease? Specific tools and methods?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

December 4, 2012

windsheild: most older cars have a rubber seal around the glass and the a pillar.

IF you can get a thin screwdriver/squeegie under it and run it along the entire length of the rubber seal you should be ok. Heat the entire rubber seal area up and get it kinda warm and soft, but not too hot that it melts it!! run your squeegie under it a couple times to get it a lil loose. then wrap your part, wrap over the rubber edge and cut the vinyl on the rubber edge leaving about a 1-2mm overlap onto the rubber area. then pluck the vinyl off the rubber area around the entire rubber seal. then use 2 squeegies, 1 to slide under and lift the rubber seal and the 2nd to press the vinyl under the rubber seal area. you will notice that you will switch off with the 2 squeegies as you do this. kinda alternating which one lifts the rubber seal and which one presses the vinyl under the seal. once done, use heat gun and heat check the entire area. sometimes the rubber seals will be a bit wrinkled looking from lifting it. heat it up a bit it will soften up. and as the weather changes the rubber trim should go back to the way it was. it shouldn't look like a rats been chewing on it, but it shouldn't be perfectly smooth either (this depends on age of car).

IF you can't get anything under there because it's A too old and its dried out/ starts cracking as you run it, or B it's like glued down or something, theres not much you can do. I had this issue on a old 240sx that I wrapped, the moldings were completely dried out and pretty much felt like plastic instead of rubber. luckily the car had a nice gap between the area so it was very forgiving.

3 options:

1- just squeegie as tight as you can against the rubber seal then cut slowly and precisely on the edge of the rubber and not the paint area maybe .5mm. and leave it be.

2- wrap over the rubber seal and cut it 1mm or so on top of the seal and leave it be.

3- do #2 and then wrap the rubber seal in matte black to hide the seam ( I did this to the 240sx since it was so dry and it made all the seals look like new).

front windsheild where the roof and the front glass/rear glass meet is the same technique as the rubber seal. BUT make sure you actually squeegie the material up to the edge of the rubber 1st b4 cutting it back so this way you are SURE you have enough to get there. I know for the rear windsheild on some cars the rubber seal is pretty deep, usually this is the case with cars that have a rear windsheild that is raised or above the rubber seal (lots of newer japanese cars, hatchback type cars like 350z, some newer mercedes benz). in this case usually if you keep the vinyl nice and smooth and cut it along the edge of the rear glass it will be enough vinyl to tuck under the rubber seal that's like 1/4" deep. the tricky part is tucking the material down the 90 degree drop and keeping it from wrinkling up as you squeegie it! use a little heat, basically keep the heat gun like 2' away from the area so it gets soft but not flimsy. then same 2 squeegie technique to tuck it under the rubber seal.