Question from consumer regarding price quotes on tinting

Irazabul · October 17, 2022

First post here, so my apologies in advance if I am off on any posting etiquette here.

I have researched to death the best tint for a new car (and another upcoming) and think I know fairly well the pros/cons of the films out there, from dyed to the latest ceramic. I also understand that like many things, the quality of the installer is paramount. Typically, I DIY almost everything as my philosophy is that no one can cares for my stuff more than me, so I tend to spend the 3-5X amount of time more than a pro on doing it myself. However, as I get older, I appreciate that I can find someone who will take care of my stuff almost as good as I would and that is okay with me. I've decided window tinting falls into the latter category!

I have narrowed my choices down to what I hope are competent installers and also the film down ceramics, spefically, Llumar IRX, Expel XR or Expel XR Plus (I started on the lower end with brands like Lexen and Solargard, but decided to spend more money for better quality).

I assume that labor and shop materials is the same if you install, say Expel XR vs. XR Plus. So my question is, why are the quotes so wide between the two example films? The price quote difference I am consistently getting is $225 - $300 difference between XR and XR Plus. Given what's publicly available out there, there does not seem to be that wide of a cost differential for one vehicle between the XR vs. XR Plus film. Is there something I am missing?

I do understand that for a premium product, businesses are able to command higher margins, I'm not trying to get any trade secrets, I am just trying to understand it better. From a business perspective, I'm betting that a shop would earn more money pricing the the XR Plus film more competitively (I am assuming that (1) more customers would choose XR Plus over XR if the spread was a little less and (2) the lower XR Plus price would still result in higher gross margins over the sale of XR. You could apply this concept really to any higher end option.

Thanks for any responses, and thanks for all the information I was able to learn from this forum. Btw, I stil have tons of questions to ask, but thought I'd start with the most potentially controversial!

Dano · October 18, 2022

Good questions here.

If a given mid grade film (materials) cost x, the ceramic can be close to 2x. If an installer bungles a piece of film the margins start to fall pretty quick.

Ceramics in general are a much tougher product to install. These films are rigid and unforgiving and take alot more care in installing. They also tend to show any imperfections alot more clearly and can't be rushed.

The softer mid grade films are much more pliable, go in quicker and aren't as finicky.

When someone pays the premium for a top grade film they expect a top grade install which takes more time and often more materials to get it right. Service before and after the sale is also more demanding. People want and deserve a good explanation as to why 2x is reasonable. These things all add up to more time/ attention to detail. That's what you are paying for in the end.

I think you're on the right track looking at the xpel and would add 3m crystalline to your list. If you're not a brand junkie Global makes an excellent ceramic. It's usually carried by independent installers that don't want to play the corporate game. I've personally used it for years without any issues.

DynamicATL · October 18, 2022

Honestly, the price increase between films will not add up; too many variables vary from shop to shop. The film cost is where it starts and can be vastly different between films. 3M, for example, Crystalline is 2.3x the cost of their Ceramic IR, which is the next film down from Crystalline. Some films are harder to install, requiring more difficult techniques than the rest of the lineup, which increases the installation time. From there, the shop may set the price based on what they feel they can get for that film or a recommended price from the manufacturer. If there are other dealers in the area, they might set their prices to compete with them. We call other dealers every 6 months to see how their price compares to ours and may adjust ours if we are too low. If there are no other dealers in the area and the shop is carrying a known film, they may raise the price since you can't get it anywhere else. So say XR Plus is the more popular film; they will keep a high price on it since it is in demand but lower the other options to be more attractive to consumers to upsell them to the more expensive film. Lastly, manufacturer price increases can vary from film to film. XPEL raised their cost by 4% on all films, beginning in November. However, some manufacturers may increase one film by 2% but do another by 5%. Since different films use different materials, something in the more expensive film may have increased. That said, it will mostly come down to what the shop feels they will get for a particular film, so there is no way to calculate that.

DynamicATL · October 18, 2022

Forgot to add an example of pricing not adding up. Crystalline costs more from the manufacturer than XR Plus. Crystalline also blocks more IR heat than XR Plus. However, there is a shop is my state that charges $100 on average more for XR Plus than we do for Crystalline. Why? No other reason besides they feel they can get that price.

Dano · October 18, 2022

There's an old adage that says "quote the highest price possible while keeping a straight face", and if they don't flinch, add "plus installation".

Irazabul · October 18, 2022

Great responses, thank you. I had dismissed 3M early because I had some installers give me the "you are just paying extra for the name" line, which is a pet peeve of mine. Maybe I bought in to that too quickly, so will reconsider the Crystalline.

Follow up question, when you mention Global, are you talking about the HP Charcoal?

thanks again.

Irazabul · October 18, 2022

What's weird is, I just called 3 shops that advertised they were Crystalline Certified, asking for a quote on a high end tint. When they said they would work up the quote and email me, I asked all 3 if it was Crystalline and all 3 said it was for Xpel XR Plus. I then asked them to quote the Crystalline as well and all 3 "seemed" not as enthusiastic about it. When I dug deeper, none of them said anything negative about Crystalline, in fact it was positive, but again, I percieved hesitancy and had to ask for it. Just passing it along.

DynamicATL · October 18, 2022

39 minutes ago, Irazabul said:

I had dismissed 3M early because I had some installers give me the "you are just paying extra for the name" line, which is a pet peeve of mine.

Typical response from non-3M dealers. They are simply tired of people calling about it, so that is there response.

21 minutes ago, Irazabul said:

What's weird is, I just called 3 shops that advertised they were Crystalline Certified, asking for a quote on a high end tint. When they said they would work up the quote and email me, I asked all 3 if it was Crystalline and all 3 said it was for Xpel XR Plus. I then asked them to quote the Crystalline as well and all 3 "seemed" not as enthusiastic about it. When I dug deeper, none of them said anything negative about Crystalline, in fact it was positive, but again, I percieved hesitancy and had to ask for it. Just passing it along.

I can only assume the reason which is XR Plus costs them less and they can charge the same price to the customer plus it is easier to install. Another reason is they do not have any Crystalline installers, maybe they were certified but that installer is no longer there. Once again, I'm just assuming.

I am not promoting you to get Crystalline, I was just using that as examples since we carry Llumar/3M.

Edited October 18, 2022 by DynamicATL

Dano · October 18, 2022

30 minutes ago, Irazabul said:

Follow up question, when you mention Global, are you talking about the HP Charcoal?

They make a good hp as well as ceramic.

Crystalline is a pain to install. They may not be thrilled because they don't actually have it in stock or are just using the 3m brand to drive traffic.

Other than the crystalline I'm not really a fan of their automotive line. They do have great marketing, but then again so do alot of other McProducts.

Dano · October 18, 2022

1 minute ago, DynamicATL said:

I can't be sure the reason but it could be that XR Plus is easier to install and costs them less but able to charge the same amount.

That would be my guess.