When you say "the worse it looks", do you mean the overall look or are there certain areas that are bad due to air bubbles, dirt, etc. I have it on my black cab and I can't notice it until I get within a few feet and than it's barely noticable. I think it is really important on who you have do the work. There is not one air bubble or imperfection anywhere on where it was applied. Again, mine was done by Premier in No. Cal. and I've been told they are one of the best.

 

Just to point out a few key points with clear bra installations:

1. installer is #1 key to how this will turn out
2. do not shop based on price. The "cheaper" installers generally do not have much experience and rely on pricing to attract bargain hunters to help gain experience.
3. inexperienced and even some professional installers oftentimes end up damaging the paint on cars with razor cuts
4. important to look at the finished product if possible.

Below are some shots of a C55 with a "cheaper" clear bra installation. Customer decided to utilize another company based purely on price. He ended up bringing the vehicle after his previous installer failed twice on the installation. Just another note, after the 2nd fix, the installer stopped answering his calls and because this installer was mobile, there was no way of the customer tracking him down.

There were deep razor cuts in the paint of this Mercedes. We did what we can to polish, but there were some that were too deep.

 

close up shots of the deep razor cuts the previous installer put onto this "custom" application

Note - not all custom installations are equal. It requires many years of just pre-cut installations to become proficient at clear bra installations. And many more years after that to become a master of this craft.

Too often, consumers would consider all precut installer = to another precut installer and the same for custom = to another custom job.

This is a mistake especially when the priority is cost first. Instead, quality of the job should be the priority...otherwise, if it is out of the budget, it would be better to not do it at all as there is significant risk in paint damage from inexperienced installers.

 

I had mine done through the dealer, and it is far from flawless. I need to take it in for some touchups, but at some point down the line I think it will be a live and learn experience and I'll get it redone by someone else.

Then installer says the car needs to be in the sun for it to cure - is there anything to this? I garage my car and I have taken a few decent road trips where it got sun for 4-5 hours. At any rate, that requirement seems pretty impractical given the weather we have had this year.

If anyone knows a top-notch Atlanta installer, let me know.

 

Here are some shots of the clear bra completed by our team

 

@Premium Films,

Unfortunately I'm in Vancouver, BC which is quite far from you.

What or where do you recommend that I can go to? Thanks.

 

Unfortunately, we do not know of any reputable installers in your region. Just follow our guideline above and you should be ok. Good luck with the search.

 

Had my 2009 C4S Cab wrapped with bumpers, mirrors, full hood and full fenders from supposedly the best installer in the DC area through my dealership using 3M. Had the guy redo it twice and then finally removed it and give me my money back. The full hood was a problem and just did not look even. I was fully prepared for a uniform orange peel effect but not a splotchy, uneven look. Even the dealerships service manager said it looked like a bad, uneven suntan so it was not just me being picky. Once I got the car back, I noticed a few razor marks which my detailer said he could possibly get out. It really shows me the "quality" of the installer.

 

I did not know that there was a significant number of you that had the clear bra installed. At the same time, quite a few either had bad experiences with installers or warned against them.

I will not track the car and I decided to go bra-less.

Thanks for all the replies.

 

Even so, with a black car...if you drive often and on the freeways, it still may be better to find a good installer and get some coverage. Depends on what bothers you more I guess, but the pitted paint just kills me - and can be seen from much further away than minor clear bra install defects.

 

stevepow, the paint chips are on your 09 which must not be more than a few months old? Well my car will be my DD. Tough call.

 

no, the chips - and sand-blasted headlamp covers - were on my '02 e39 M5 after 4yrs the same as my previous 3 black cars - lesson learned. My 550i (stonex) was flawless after 3 yrs as is my 911 (except for some speedfilm issues).

 

I think this illustrates some of the trade offs. I think the high priced jobs are "custom" or at least they should be. But how else are you going to custom fit the film if you don't use a razor? I think there have been major innovations lately with laser cut masks. They installed laser cut masks on my from Venture Shield. I can post pics, but I can tell you it looks really good. No imperfections whatsoever. However, the mask does have edges and they could be susceptable to dirt. Of course we all have the edge around the factor shield in front of the rear wheelwell. Doesn't seem to bug anyone??
I'm sure you can find a reasonable installer in the LA area installing pre cut masks. Check out his work on other cars and watch him do yours. Heck for $2000 I think it's a waste of money. For $500+, probably worth it and replaceable. After a few months of my daily commute I started to notice chips. Certainly better to chip up the plastic and replace it than need to repaint. You also at least want to cover your lights -they're plastic. Good luck and let us know when you cut out the middle man!

 

I was fortunate enough to meet the installer while shopping for my car. I noticed what a great job he was doing and spoke to him about what a great job he does. I purchased my C2S the same day and I asked dealer to include a full front bra. They charged me $2k. Seeing the work the guy did I didn't even haggle the price. I am very satisfied with it though I have to say my color is arctic silver.

 

In my opinion, the product you use is nowhere near as important as the installer. A good installer can make a car look good, a great installer can make the clear bra damn near invisible.

I did a lot of research on this very topic about 18 months ago when I took delivery of my 08 997S. I saw a lot of ****ty clear bra installations, some good ones, and a few truly excellent installations.

I did my full front bumper, full hood, full front fenders, mirrors, a pillars and the area behind my rear tires. I paid a lot for my GT silver paint and after watching the front of the black Acura NSX that this car replaced get sandblasted over time, a clear bra was a no brainer.