Unacceptable PPF Install HELP

joeexotic · August 23, 2020

Hey everyone, had a lot of prior luck reading this forum and wanted to get your advice on a recent PPF install on my 2020 Q50 Sport. I used an independent shop that I was given a referral to from an Infiniti dealer in my hometown. Looked up all of the guy's work and it looked great. He had pictures on his instagram working on cars from all foreign dealerships in the area, and other cars such as McLaren Sennas, LaFerrari'ys, Aventadors, etc. So I figured he was the best to go for the install. He charged me $1000 (cash) for a partial hood, front bumper, mirror caps, etc..which was more than the other quotes I received, but I always figured that the premium may be worth it in this case. The car has only about 4500 miles and did have some noticeable rock chips and scratches from daily driving, which he pointed out would be there. He also went through and explained everything with other smaller knicks and scratches to make sure I understood that technically it would be a "used" install. I received the car about two weeks ago and it really hasn't been to my standards. I had to go back twice so far to have corners shaved off, untucked pieces cut down, and other small fixes which I find to be pretty unreal for the price. This has made me notice cut marks in the paint that I can say for certain were not there prior to install. I am scheduled to have ceramic pro done from him next week and tried to look past some of the previous fixes that should've never needed to be done if it was properly installed, but after searching through the forum I think that more needs to be done.

I attached pictures if anyone can give me their thoughts. Looks to be a ton of dust bubbles that are sticking out which he said were previous rock chips, even though they move around when trying to release the air with a needle. He also said it is impossible to get it "perfect" due to human error, which I understand, but there are a ton of areas that don't look to have enough coverage. He used a pre-cut kit for everything but the hood from SunTek. I am not sure what to do since I've tried to be very understanding since his reputation was very good, but I don't agree with how this was done and how many times I have to go back to have fixes to the film from a "professional". Would it be best to ask for a refund? Not sure if that is possible or if I would even feel comfortable having it redone.

Thanks in advance!

Edited August 23, 2020 by joeexotic

TintDude · August 23, 2020

I'm not a PPF guy, but that looks like crap to me.

XPEL Jeff · August 24, 2020

You should expect better and should definitely ask for a refund and have them pay to have the paint cuts fixed. If they refuse, contact SunTek to see if they can help influence the shop to do the right thing. Once that process is done, please let me know if I can help you find a different installer in your area.

Capital PPF_Norm · August 25, 2020

I would not be pleased with that installation. I wonder if the shop recently brought on a new employee who was in his learning phase... I'm glad he explained that pre-existing paint chips would show (I ask my customers to bring in their factory touchup pen so I can clean the chips up before installtion), etc. but some of those relief cuts are pretty ridiculous and too many edges showing. Wish I could see it in person as close up pictures sometimes makes it hard to see the overall situation.

Norm

Capitalppf.com

Booms · August 25, 2020

Hole . E . Crap .

I'm scared to think what the paint looks like underneath those relief cuts. And who trimmed that, Edward Scissorhands? :gasp

Edited August 25, 2020 by Booms

joeexotic · August 25, 2020

So I went back yesterday and talked with the installer for a few hours. He went though each step of it from his side. The visible cuts on the paint (bottom section of bumper) he is fixing and said it was due to the film already being dried to the car, so it risked cutting the paint. For the existing pre cut film that was cut with a knife, he said that due to the Q50 Sport having a very complex bumper, the film was more difficult to have lay down on certain areas which was why the film needed to be cut in those areas. He has agreed to fix a few of the areas with new pieces, but was very firm on human error in any PPF job which I understand. I know no PPF job will be perfect and I cannot see any lines from a 3-4 foot distance. Maybe my expectations were too high? I can’t imagine the installer does all of these high end cars without being “good” at installing them.

I know that it is not perfect, but at what point is an install “acceptable”? For $1000, I was expecting more but I figure that the pre cut films can only be so good without needing to be cut in certain areas for complex bumpers...

Booms · August 25, 2020

Nonsense. I'll say it out loud, it's a shitty job. PPF is very difficult to install, however, EVEN IF he had to trim it to make it work, those jagged ass cuts are unacceptable. Sorry.

Capital PPF_Norm · August 27, 2020

Where do you live Joeexotic? I think you should get a 2nd opinion (Or 3'rd) in your area. It is true that some complex bumpers will have more relief cuts, or additional pieces, but they should be able to tuck and hide the lines better than what I can see in some of those pictures.

On the other hand, in the attached picture reflection, IS THAT A FRICKING FLYING JETSKI OR HOVER MOTORCYCLE OR WHAT???