DynamicATL

They might not like you either. 🤷‍♂️ Either way, the world keeps spinning.

They might not like you either. 🤷‍♂️ Either way, the world keeps spinning.

I've personally never heard of Xpel having failures, and I am friends with a couple of shops that use it. I've had several rolls of Llumar come in with weird defects...just had one 3 weeks ago with linear marks. Then there was the 2017 issue, where several shades were 4-5% lighter than normal. So the 35% out of the box would meter 44% instead of the normal 38%. No problem, we made it through those couple of months. Fast forward 5 years, and we've had a few bubbled rear windows all from that batch. Llumar is great about getting everything swapped and covered, but the point is nobody is perfect. I also carry 3M, which I've had zero issues to date. Since Xpel comes from Garware, the same manufacturer as Global, I doubt there will be many issues in the future.

I've personally never heard of Xpel having failures, and I am friends with a couple of shops that use it. I've had several rolls of Llumar come in with weird defects...just had one 3 weeks ago with linear marks. Then there was the 2017 issue, where several shades were 4-5% lighter than normal. So the 35% out of the box would meter 44% instead of the normal 38%. No problem, we made it through those couple of months. Fast forward 5 years, and we've had a few bubbled rear windows all from that batch. Llumar is great about getting everything swapped and covered, but the point is nobody is perfect. I also carry 3M, which I've had zero issues to date. Since Xpel comes from Garware, the same manufacturer as Global, I doubt there will be many issues in the future.

I've personally never heard of Xpel having failures, and I am friends with a couple of shops that use it. I've had several rolls of Llumar come in with weird defects...just had one 3 weeks ago with linear marks. Then there was the 2017 issue, where several shades were 4-5% lighter than normal. So the 35% out of the box would meter 44% instead of the normal 38%. No problem, we made it through those couple of months. Fast forward 5 years, and we've had a few bubbled rear windows all from that batch. Llumar is great about getting everything swapped and covered, but the point is nobody is perfect. I also carry 3M, which I've had zero issues to date. Since Xpel comes from Garware, the same manufacturer as Global, I doubt there will be many issues in the future.

There is plenty of junk products made in the USA. I've never seen that printed on a product and thought, must be high quality. Premium products can come from any country, just depends on the build house that is making it.

There is plenty of junk products made in the USA. I've never seen that printed on a product and thought, must be high quality. Premium products can come from any country, just depends on the build house that is making it.

So true.

There is plenty of junk products made in the USA. I've never seen that printed on a product and thought, must be high quality. Premium products can come from any country, just depends on the build house that is making it.

We need to know the vehicle so we know the difficulty of glass and charge accordingly especially older vehicles. You could have a 1988 Mustang or a 1988 Porsche 944 which takes twice as long and uses more film. No reason to be paranoid, just answer the questions. That way there are no surprises for you or the shop when you show up.
 
Most shops won't tint glass outside of the vehicle since it is hard to secure the glass. We rarely get asked but when we do, it is a no thank you.
 
Ceramic just helps to block heat. Some may last a little longer than base films but I would expect a same lifespan. The longest lasting film will be metalized.

Mustang glass is flatter, 944 is severely curved which requires more skill and patience to shape it to the glass resulting in a lot more work and time. Majority of shops would not be able to install it on that glass. The glass being in the vehicle or out of the vehicle does not matter besides it bring harder to install on any glass out of the vehicle. It is like you calling a cleaning service to get a quote for your home but don't want to tell them sqft and how many stories. It doesn't make any sense.

We need to know the vehicle so we know the difficulty of glass and charge accordingly especially older vehicles. You could have a 1988 Mustang or a 1988 Porsche 944 which takes twice as long and uses more film. No reason to be paranoid, just answer the questions. That way there are no surprises for you or the shop when you show up.
 
Most shops won't tint glass outside of the vehicle since it is hard to secure the glass. We rarely get asked but when we do, it is a no thank you.
 
Ceramic just helps to block heat. Some may last a little longer than base films but I would expect a same lifespan. The longest lasting film will be metalized.

Mustang glass is flatter, 944 is severely curved which requires more skill and patience to shape it to the glass resulting in a lot more work and time. Majority of shops would not be able to install it on that glass. The glass being in the vehicle or out of the vehicle does not matter besides it bring harder to install on any glass out of the vehicle. It is like you calling a cleaning service to get a quote for your home but don't want to tell them sqft and how many stories. It doesn't make any sense.

Mustang glass is flatter, 944 is severely curved which requires more skill and patience to shape it to the glass resulting in a lot more work and time. Majority of shops would not be able to install it on that glass. The glass being in the vehicle or out of the vehicle does not matter besides it bring harder to install on any glass out of the vehicle. It is like you calling a cleaning service to get a quote for your home but don't want to tell them sqft and how many stories. It doesn't make any sense.

We need to know the vehicle so we know the difficulty of glass and charge accordingly especially older vehicles. You could have a 1988 Mustang or a 1988 Porsche 944 which takes twice as long and uses more film. No reason to be paranoid, just answer the questions. That way there are no surprises for you or the shop when you show up.
 
Most shops won't tint glass outside of the vehicle since it is hard to secure the glass. We rarely get asked but when we do, it is a no thank you.
 
Ceramic just helps to block heat. Some may last a little longer than base films but I would expect a same lifespan. The longest lasting film will be metalized.

ASWF is most likely the issue, very poor quality. A/C thing is stupid af and typically should be 3 days to roll down your windows. Even then, you are most likely good in 1-2 days.

Thanks very much D-ATL.  You are correct, I should have looked at the numbers closer.  Going to pull the trigger with Express.

I would check out local sign shops since shipping on store signing could be pricey. They will also be able to take care of any door vinyl and possibly business cards. If you want the lowest price on business cards, VistaPrint.com will be it. If you want something fancier, we use SilkCards.com.

Hi Damien,
 
I'm in a similar situation as you are! Starting a local shop in the Bay Area, CA. Thought I could share an infographic I've made with you that my customers liked. You can find it here: https://www.richmondautotint.com/blog. It's not exactly related to your business card/sign question but thought it would make a nice marketing addition to your new business. Good luck!

Thank you Dynamic! I didn’t even think of door vinyl advertisement. 

My friend had the same year S10. I would keep the AMG maybe since its rare. There really are a lot of variables for reliability. First its where it was assembled, then how its driven & maintained. I wonder if someone out there has a reliable Pontiac Aztec, like the guy in Breaking Bad?? I knew a guy years ago that had one sitting in his drive way broken down, all beat up missing a headlight. Yeah, he was was wacked out on drugs. 

I've never owned a Ford but known several people with issues across different models. My American vehicle ownership is limited to my first truck which was a custom 1985 Chevy S10.
 
I think the longest I've kept a car is 4-5 years. My current AMG took me over 2 years to find since it is somewhat rare. I absolutely love the car but coming up on the 2 year mark and getting itchy.

I've got a 73 ford in my yard that starts everytime, even in the middle of winter. I somehow doubt that anything modern will do the same 50yrs from now.

Hey hey hey 😠🤣

They have had their issues for sure but most manufacturers do, Honda alone just recalled 1.2 million vehicles. Ford is the #1 selling truck but commonly referred to "Fix Or Repair Daily" and "Found On Road Daily" for a reason. I won't even get started on Dodge.