Show car shine vs paint protection film?

[Mike Phillips]

Good info on PPF here


Machine Polishing 3M Paint Protection Film (Clear Bra)

[crystalclearsolution]

Thanks.
A few thoughts.
1. I was searching for the use of the acronym "PPF" (and frankly I am not certain the search function works properly or I am using it properly)
2. He is clearly discussing PPF in the post above but no where does he say he ever uses them at all... even on a daily driver/not when attempting to achieve "show car shine"
3. "lots of people apply wax to these as well." Lots of people take their car to a standard car wash (and it is fine as it works for them). He isn't saying HE is applying wax to PPF. No horror stories = good but a lack of a horror story never won any competition.
4. "only use our paint care products on the paint portion, not the clear bra portion." I am not certain what all he is defining as a paint care product but wax is generally included in this definition. If so, I believe Mike's answer is (well, may be):

a. Wax is needed for "show car shine"
b. I only use wax (aka paint care product) on the paint portion of a car and not the PPF portion
c. You can use wax on the PPF and not get a horror story (but not getting a horror story doesn't win you a show car competition).

I may be completely wrong but it seems pretty clear that Autogeek's detailing guru (and others) doesn't use PPF on show cars and doesn't believe "paint care products" (wax?) should be used on PPF.

If that is true, my question is why? Why no wax on PPF? Do you believe that the "self cleaning" (or other) properties mean that the wax won't stay on the PPF? Are you concerned the wax has kerosene or other ingredients that would be harmful to the PPF? Are you concerned that the wax (although not a horror story) would yellow the PPF? Would (for example) Brazilian Ivory Carnauba alleviate this concern?

I am an XPEL certified installer and have recently completed factory training at their headquarters in San Antonio. We touched on this subject and I had the same questions.

There are three things that are not warrantable on XPEL PPF; dye, kerosene, and naptha. Wax will not void the warranty but certain brands of wax will increase the yellowing process of the film. Urethane film is porous, just like the paint on your car. Wax will fill those pores and actually increase the rate of oxidation of the clear urethane film. Some of the waxes are more aggressive in this process than others. Although I don't know the specific active ingredient(s) that cause the color shift I can tell you there is a big difference in products. I have a list of the color shift produced in lab testing of most major waxes and there are a few that are far worse than the rest and a few that are relatively harmless.

You must keep in mind that PPF is a temporary product (5-10 years). It's objective is to stand between the debris on the road and the paint on your car. All film will eventually pit and discolor but unlike your paint it can be easily removed and a new kit installed. If you adhere to a few basic guidelines the film will look its best while on your vehicle.




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[Long Beach James]

I like your article. Many threads recommend CarPro Reload over Xpel Ultimate but the product has both Stoddard solvent ( kerosene) and Naptha. I have been told the Naptha concentration is less than 5% which makes it OK to use on Xpel. With the amount of the Xpel investment on my 2018 Long Beach Red Corvette, I do not want to guess. Are sealants in the same category for color shift problems as waxes? Common sense would tell me to simply lay off any wax or sealant over the Xpel but then I have the rest of the unprotected car to work with. GM says do not use a sealant over their paint for what that is worth. They say wax is OK but no sealant. I have not heard back yet from GM on that owners manual comment.

Being a professional and factory trained, your color shift research would be great information to digest.
Thank you,
James