UUronL

My 3M has been on for 3 years. I have a lifetime warranty. The company that did it does all the Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati cars in Washington, DC. They also do many BMW dealerships. Autobahnd is the name. http://www.autobahndint.com/ Installers become licensed partners.

There aren't many kinds of film, mostly the difference is in the patterns and warranty. The company that did mine claims to be the only pattern that wraps the film under the leading edge of the hood - they actually remove the roundel to apply the film.

I did the headlights, side mirrors, full front, and the door edging. It's a great investment.


When the car is dirty it looks different from the rest of the car, but with a clean car it's indistinguishable. The 3M film is the only film that is clearcoated. You can wax it, etc...

UUronL

If you have a lifetime warranty, you just have them redo it once it discolors. If you're suggesting that the bra reduces sun fading or environmental damage - and that this will make the covered paint a different hue than the rest of the car... I would say that would be highly dependent on the amount of time the car spends in the sun and in harmful conditions. Mine is never outside for extended periods - it's always garaged since most of the places I go have garage parking, etc...

I suppose if you leave your car in a parking lot 8-9 hours a day 5 days a week, you have damaged paint as well as a damaged clearbra.

ctc1010

I'll second this. I installed the clear bra on my wife's MDX a few years ago, including the headlight/foglight and mirror areas. When the car is dirty, you can clearly see the clear bra, but after a quick wash you wouldn't notice a thing unless you knew exactly where to look.

As for whether or not it's worth it...well, I think it is. If you have a fist-sized rock smashing into your fender at 80 miles an hour, obviously this wouldn't be a great deterrent; however, it will prevent pebbles and pieces of asphalt that skip up and scrape against the car from leaving scratches.

I'm not sure about the paint discoloration effect, as I haven't ever taken the mask off the MDX, but again I'll echo UUronL here and suggest that if a car sits outdoors for hours at a time, you'll probably see some color difference in the paint eventually, as the weather will have different effects on the exposed vs covered areas of your car.

bigbadbull

I talked with my friend that works the Auto auctions for Many dealers and body shops, He said under normal conditions It helps , and will increase the value of your car.

There was a but, If the car spends most of it time in the sun ( like here in the Deep south) they yellow and look very bad. So if you garage you car they are good, if you don't have a garage or leave it baking in the sun while you are at work don't get one.

Nuff said

08E60

Thanks for all you inputs. Base on all your feedback, since I am working at a place with no covered parking, I don't think I will be getting it. Thanks again...

r9ndy

I just got my 545i Black Sapphire done with venture shield which includes a lifetime warranty. The whole hood, fenders, and front bumper which set me back $1200. If you have a black car i definately think you should put one on. The rock chips will pile up and in the long run you'll end up having to paint it.

TurboChris

I agree......did it on my M5 and not looking back......and mine does sit outside 8-10 hours a day........

bradleyjs

I decided to put one on 550i because here in FL there are way too many bugs that get smashed on the paint. And, if you don't immediately take them off it screws-up the paint; especially during "love bug" season [if anyone's familiar with that]..

beaker

I was looking into that since it seems stronger than the 3M one, but from all the pictures I've seen the Venture Shield looks a little "plasticky". Does it look that way in person?

beaker

That's the same company I was thinking of going with. What did you pay for product and install?