Hey guys,

So I got into an accident a while ago, some of you may know(created a thread), and instead of painting the front bumper/fender, I have decided to do a little project and just use paint money to wrap the car in matte black. I was thinking of ordering from here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/3M-10...item3cb7afdf44

Anybody use/purchase from that vendor? Also, approximately how much wrap do I need to buy to wrap the whole car? Someone suggested I buy 45 feet in length, how about the width? Thanks.

 

in for pics

 

+1!

 

Im guessing you have a lot of time on your hands but also look into pros and cons of having a wrapped car.

 

here's a link for a DIY that me and my buddy used when wrapping parts for his benz: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=376442

really detailed and helpful

 

yea ive seen that diy, and will be using that as well. I wanted to know which material members on here have used, I went through the bmw thread but never said where he bought it from.

Also, I don't have a lot of time on my hands haha. I will be doing part by part after work each day. Ive tinted by own windows, and vinyl wrapping is pretty similar, so shouldnt be too difficult. If it is, oh well, I will learn while doing it :]

 

It's not very similar to tinting. You don't use water/lubricant.

Good luck, have a clean garage to do it in, with a second person, and clean the car really well.

 

i need to either get my brother's g wrapped professionally or myself.
we are in the same boat hehe

 

+2!

 

OP, wrapping a car is exceedingly difficult. You will waste alot of material learning and its not a rewarding job. very tedious work.

Wrrapping piece by piece wont work either. Its far easier to lay a large piece over the car at a time.. and most 3m wrap is dry apply, theres no water.. if you use water, expect it to leave alot of bubbles that wont pass thru the air egress easily.
The end result is awesome but i left mine to a pro.

Ill throw you a few shots of mine in the process.

 

OP,
I noticed that you said 'instead of painting the front bumper/fender'. What surface is the vinyl going to be applied to? Damaged paint? Primer? The surface of the substrate is extremely important to this job. Primer itself isn't a sealer, so if any moisture gets in, you could have serious rust issues under your wrap. Vinyl is best applied to a properly prepped surface, so cutting corners by applying vinyl instead of paint isn't the best option in my eyes.

Also, vinyl isn't a permanent fix, it only last 5 years or so (heavily dependent on environment), so once that time is up, you'll either have to re-apply vinyl, or get the paint job done.

 

the vinyl will last pretty much forever, it just wont be easily removed after 5 years, commonly what the manufacturers are referring to.

Thats why 3m costs much more than Oracal calendar film.. its clean remove ok to 5 years.

Also, its extremely thin, so any surface issues beneath will clearly show thru thr vinyl.
I wouldnt worry about rust as you say only the front bumper was damaged.. its a cool idea man, but to have the car wrapped is basically the same $ as paint.

 

Seems like the vinyl wrap gets stretched pretty tightly around the body of the car. What happens if something sharp scrapes across the surface and cuts through it? Does that whole panel start to come undone?

 

They make bubble free vinyl now that supposedly breaths so it makes wrapping alot easier..i have yet to hear of anyone personally using this stuff though but read up on it...it might be worth a shot...

 

SRY...no, not at all, dinoc is bad like that tho, it loves to retain its natural shape
cv3 wrap by 3m is totaly diff stuff.
VERY sticky and once its heated and shaped its permanently that shape.

JUNK... its never bubble free.. my car is 3m cv3 w full air egress and is THE top of the line film.. still is an absolute nightmare to install.. left it to pros, i gave up fast.

 

one more thing to add.. you aint getting vinyl over a kit like mine.. IMR painted it w clear and flat base mixed to match as close as possible to the vinyl.

 

i talked to a couple of installers. They all said vinyl wrapping won't last forever. 7 years at the most. They guess half of that.
And 3m lasts lesser time than oracals.
It turns out that my bro's g roof can't be wrapped. The damaged is so bad that it needs to be repaired and repainted even if i want it wrapped.

 

orocal is a laminated film.
3m is not, but if you want to remove your oracal, youl be peeling itty bitty tiny pieces off the whole car.

I will tell you right now that in 115 degree direct sunlight, it has lasted a year with absolutley no defect so far.
Its extremely easy to clean as well.
Not a chore as i had thought, in fact its quite a pleasure.

 

this should be interesting. subd

 

https://my350z.com/forum/exterior-an...ite-vinyl.html

matt black is great choice! cause matt white is a b*tch to maintain