I have spent over a year trying to find the right car/color combination etc, and I settled on a 2012 Bentley Continentl GTC, Black with Magnolia, similar to the one in the pic which when I saw it I knew I was done!
Anyway, I am a detailing nut, (a session with Moe is on the menu) love black cars, and the car is just for weekends and good weather, so it wont be driven in the rain.
I have been reading all the post's about clear bra's and see all the nightmare's that happen. I have been checking out Premier Protective and need to go see some of their work for a clear, non matt film. I am pretty sure I should at least do the hood, fenders, pillar, mirrors, and the film they put on the windshield, but then I think I should do the whole car so I don't have to worry about anything.
My concerns are that I have looked at a lot us 2005-2009 Bentleys and the ones just driven around LA don't seem to have a lot of damage, if any for some reason! So I wonder if I need to worry about doing any of the car.
The other concerns are would it be best to give it a good polishing to remove any swirls, blemishes etc before having the film applied?
Also, does the film start to show swirl marks just like paint and can it be polished, waxed with the correct products to make it shine like the original paint, or does it not ever have the same shine and depth I love with unprotected paint?
My final thought is putting film on a brand new car that has perfect, shiny paint and will the film make the paint look dull or??? Maybe it would be easier to take care of than paint, but then again I would miss the ritual of using some of the great products that I see the detailers use and seeing the flawless, deep black paint!
Any advice, thoughts, or experience of both sides would be great.
I have a few months wait until the car arrives, so I plenty of time to decide and do my research in regards to what would be best for my situation, knowing it is just going to be a pleasure car!
Thanks in advance!

 

Follow the exotic car crowd's lead, absolutely put a clear bra on it.

If you do the whole front end - read, full hood - you won't see the start/stop line.

There are a million horror stories about clear bra - all likely true - due to the fact that there are seemingly a million guys installing the stuff.

However, you have some of the best installers in the country near you - go check them out in person while you wait.

Congrat's on the GTC - nice ride.

 

Do whole hood, full fenders and mirrors. Have the car thoroughly detailed first, polish, no wax (vendor will tell you precisely how/why). After wrap, it looks just as glossy and you can use shiny cleaners to make it pop! I can't tell the difference between what's done and not on mine...

 

Anyone out there that has had their car done by Premier Protective in Orange CA?
I am curious about the clarity and edges after a few or many months and does it start to show swirl marks or look dull?
I know black will show EVERYTHING!!

 

I did not use them, but I went to their facility to buy cleaner and protectant for my Carrera S. I read positive about their work all over this site. If you did a search on the forum, you'd see customers you could PM or reply to thread. There are several recent posts around here with cars you can compare to. When I was there, I saw at least three $200K + cars there, for whatever that means. I'd likely use them next, but they are ~30% higher than some others...thereabouts.

 

premier: the best.

 

Yes, the film can swirl and become dull.

 

Congrats on the new CGT Coupe...beautiful car.

IMHO, I'm a purist and want to see the paint. We're not talking about any paint job when it comes to a Bentley. You're talking about craftsmanship and the quality of the paint job is second to none. For that reason, I'd say no film.

However, film is like an insurance policy...so you'll never know when you'll need it.

Give me call and we'll talk about pros and cons and you can see some of the cars we've done with premier.

949-355-4911...look forward to hearing from you.

 

MoeMistry.... Did he call you?

 

No...it's 700 in the morning here

We'll let you guys know how it all turns out

 

I think it would be a shame if he didnt get film. Sure seeing the paint is great... not that the film really changes anything. But seeing rock chips or someone's key mark down the side would be pretty bad. I say get the film and dont worry about it. A good film will shine just as the paint does and if it is properly maintained it will not dull... especially since you wont be driving it much.

 

Since full coverage film is now next to invisible, plus Xpel's Ultimate Film is self healing, I think it's a no brainer. Put the film on, keep the front end looking great, and get more for your car when you go to sell it. Besides, Bentley paint can be overly soft, and easy to mar with poor wash procedures. Film it, and it will be much easier to clean the front 1/3 of your car.

 

Hey Moe, thanks for the reply, I will give you a ring when I get back in town.
I know what you mean, the paint on a Bentley is a work of Art, that is my reservation with the clear bra, I know I can take care of "real" paint, I am mostly concerned with how obvious the film looks at the edges etc, and another concern very few people talk about, like what happens when you want to have it removed, or redone, would there be a lot of adhesive left on the paint that would be very hard to remove and would end up damaging the paint due to the products needed to remove the film or adhesive??
But I still know the real world all it takes is a few chips and I could really, really regret NOT protecting it! The "getting keyed" thing was my second motivation, I would just hate to imagine how much it would cost to have any modern, expensive car repainted because nothing is ever as good as the Factory paint results, and we all know the World has too many haters!
I will be sure to look at as many cars that have been done, I guess that is the only way to know what I can live or not live with!
It sucks being born a perfectionist in the real world of what our cars are exposed to every time they leave the garage!

 

This XPEL Technologies sounds interesting, do they have a dealer in the LA area? It looks like they only have the matte film, which is not what I am looking for but may be interested to do on my daily driver!
Has anyone had their car done yet to comment on it? I am curious to see what some of these cars look like 3-6 months after having the film put on!

 

What's your Daily Driver?
Where?...are you buying the GTC?
Dealership?