[gnews77]

Hi all!
Long time lurker, but first time poster here. My 2024 Tanzanite Blue II Metallic XB7 order is scheduled to start exterior assembly on March 18th, so I am starting to make some plans about Winter wheels, PPF, etc. I have two questions for you all and would love any and all input.

1: I am debating whether or not to protect some of the truck with PPF or not. I would do the entire front bumper and diffuser, head lights, and all 4 doors. Goal would be to try to mitigate rock chips on the front end, and door dings on the doors (assigned parking lot at work with tight spaces). Cost would be about $3000 - $4300 from the higher-end shops in my area (full truck is $8500-9600). I would love the protection, but worry that it won't be cost effective vs. touch up paint as needed and will eventually start to peel or yellow. Any strong opinions either way? The PPF brands offered by the different shops are 3M, Xpel, Bodyfence, and Stek Dynoshield, if that matters.

2. Hoping you all can help me decide between two color choices for my winter wheels. I ordered the 23" CS16 wheels with my XB7 so am downsizing to a set of squared 21" Vossen HF7 in factory spec to deal with midwest winters and pot holes. Would you all go with the Anthracite (gunmetal colored) or Gloss Black? I have attached pictures of both options below as well as a Tanzanite XB7 for reference.

Thank you all, and so excited to be joining the XB7 (and X7) family!

[skrontz]

Originally Posted by gnews77

Hi all!
Long time lurker, but first time poster here. My 2024 Tanzanite Blue II Metallic XB7 order is scheduled to start exterior assembly on March 18th, so I am starting to make some plans about Winter wheels, PPF, etc. I have two questions for you all and would love any and all input.

1: I am debating whether or not to protect some of the truck with PPF or not. I would do the entire front bumper and diffuser, head lights, and all 4 doors. Goal would be to try to mitigate rock chips on the front end, and door dings on the doors (assigned parking lot at work with tight spaces). Cost would be about $3000 - $4300 from the higher-end shops in my area (full truck is $8500-9600). I would love the protection, but worry that it won't be cost effective vs. touch up paint as needed and will eventually start to peel or yellow. Any strong opinions either way? The PPF brands offered by the different shops are 3M, Xpel, Bodyfence, and Stek Dynoshield, if that matters.

I would do PPF on the full front end, side mirrors, and A pillars. You could toss in the rocker panels and rear bumper as a stretch, but the film won’t do much against the door dings. Basically, you are protecting against small road debris.

[ledphut]

I have gunmetal HF5s as the winter setup on my XB7.

These are better then black in my opinion as they do a much better job of hiding the brake dust than gloss black would.

[willzyx]

For PPF, I can only recommend xpel, as it’s probably the one most high end shops use. All the detainers I’ve met in my area use xpel and they all wrap Lambos and Ferraris.

Make sure you find someone with A LOT of experience. They’ll be putting a knife to your paint, so research and “interview”. I ended up doing full vehicle ppf with xpel and then ceramic coat. I also had interior panels PPFed (wood trim, piano black trims, around all console buttons).

As for wheels, I’d go with gunmetal. Just a personal preference.

[khai37]

I have PPF on my front end and ceramic coating the rest of the car. Just do your research. The material is subjective and the most important part is the installer. You want to find a shop that is reputable. Avg PPF for front end is around 3-4k and entire car is 8k+ depending on your area. I would shop around. I got it because I drive my XB7 alot. There’s always construction in my area also. If you don’t plan on keeping your car for a while then I wouldn’t do it.

[AvGeek]

First thing I did was get the front end PPF'd, it's the bare minimum I do on all my cars. See this thread for confirmation as to why you should do it.

In terms of the PPF itself, definitely find a reputable shop as the install is as important as the film itself. Thankfully in my area I actually have a couple of very good shops, one using STEK and one using XPEL. I opted for the one using XPEL as there just isn't that much info on the STEK and seems like the markup was actually higher as well.

[skrontz]

Originally Posted by AvGeek

In terms of the PPF itself, definitely find a reputable shop as the install is as important as the film itself. Thankfully in my area I actually have a couple of very good shops, one using STEK and one using XPEL. I opted for the one using XPEL as there just isn't that much info on the STEK and seems like the markup was actually higher as well.

Suntek Ultra should run about 20-25% cheaper than the comparable XPEL Ultimate Plus. From the technical data sheet perspective, they are extremely similar if not identical. XPEL does a better job publishing their specs, including test criteria. Suntek only does it for installers. My friend’s neighbor has a Pagani done in Suntek, and if that’s good enough for him, it’s good enough for our rattle boxes 😂

Generally speaking, shop the installer not the film. I’m doing full front PPF with rocker panels and rear bumper on a 760 in a couple of weeks, and the particular installer lives and breathes car detailing. He prefers Suntek, so that’s what I’m going with.

[blutob2]

Originally Posted by khai37

I have PPF on my front end and ceramic coating the rest of the car. Just do your research. The material is subjective and the most important part is the installer. You want to find a shop that is reputable. Avg PPF for front end is around 3-4k and entire car is 8k+ depending on your area. I would shop around. I got it because I drive my XB7 alot. There’s always construction in my area also. If you don’t plan on keeping your car for a while then I wouldn’t do it.

Ouch...I had a very reputable shop do both PPF on the entire front (first 24" of hood) which was xpel and ceramic the entire car and only paid about $2500.

I've used them for multiple wrap jobs and ceramic on my other car.

But over $3K just for front PPF sounds insane to me.

[skrontz]

Originally Posted by blutob2

But over $3K just for front PPF sounds insane to me.

The most expensive and reputable XPEL shops are charging about $2700 for the full front PPF on an X7 (“full size SUV”), including the mirrors. Interestingly enough, that quote was literally same between two different shops in two different (not even adjacent or close) states. Equally (if not more) skilled Suntek shops are about $2000 for the same job.

[blutob2]

Originally Posted by skrontz

The most expensive and reputable XPEL shops are charging about $2700 for the full front PPF on an X7 (“full size SUV”), including the mirrors. Interestingly enough, that quote was literally same between two different shops in two different (not even adjacent or close) states. Equally (if not more) skilled Suntek shops are about $2000 for the same job.

Copy. Well my area and local shop is less than $1300 on my X7 and my ZL1 was $1K. They both look great and the X7 has been over 2 years now with zero issues. But my full front was just the first 24" of the hood, I believe that saved $500ish for the full hood. But it did include the mirrors and front fenders to blend in with the hood. So maybe with full hood, it would be closer to $2K.

Maybe prices have jumped in 2 years, idk. But obviously it also depends on the local market.

[skrontz]

Originally Posted by blutob2

Maybe prices have jumped in 2 years, idk. But obviously it also depends on the local market.

I’d say “jumped” is a gross understatement 😂 Easily 70-100% more than anything 2 years ago.

[BMW5and7]

If you go with SunTek, Llumar or Xpel, you will not have any yellowing no matter what.

I’d recommend Llumar Valor, which is the best with 12 years warranty. This film is made by EASTMAN (one of the largest chemical companies) and it is the same exact film as SunTek Reaction (same 12 years warranty). Self-healing is just outstanding for these films. Again they are the same exact film under two different brand names, so it does not matter which one you get.

I have my car fully PPF’d, because I always hand-wash it, so why not PPF it and keep it brand-new shine with literally zero swirl marks. The shiny clean look worth the investment. PPF is a subjective thing. If you appreciate a car with zero swilk marks and do not want to polish it every-year, PPF is they key for easy washes and low maintenance. Park in the sun, or wash with very hot water, and self-healing kicks in for a fresh and new swirl-free surface!

[khai37]

Originally Posted by blutob2

Ouch...I had a very reputable shop do both PPF on the entire front (first 24" of hood) which was xpel and ceramic the entire car and only paid about $2500.

I've used them for multiple wrap jobs and ceramic on my other car.

But over $3K just for front PPF sounds insane to me.

My area didn’t have a lot of reputable dealers. Next closest one was over 1.5 hours away.

[XB7]

I did a full PPF on my XB7 when I got it late Nov.
I did not do the headlight as they said there are issues doing head lights
Glad I did a full PPF (mine XB7 is Alpina Blue)
I did not go with the 23 tires as Michigan roads are pot hole hell.
The XB7 is amazing! My wife is not a car person at all but we just did a 4 hour road trip each way and she said it is the smoothest, most comfortable ride she's even been in. The majority of the trip was in Comfort + and transmission in sport mode, plenty of power without sport or sport + to get around anyone I wanted/needed to.
Only issue is the car is so smooth and comfortable I got pulled over for going 92 in a 70.... The Trooper commented he's read about Alpinas for years but this was the first he has ever seen LOL

[PeteSD]

Nobody has mentioned paint correct yet... so some of the lower quotes you are seeing here may not include that. Paint correction to some shops is just a quick clay job. True paint correction will take a few days and the whole car must be masked off during the process. Just get the full skinny on what is going to happen and stay involved. Show up at least every other day during the process.

I have my cars & trucks done in thicker film than most shops use. Its the self-healing type. Some films are total garbage and thin. Also, most are done in a kit now. I have seen some terrible fitting kits. Just check out what kinds of cars are in the shop and make them show you completed jobs in person. Also ask for the more seasoned installer to do the work and got back and make sure he's the one doing it w/surprise visits. I also find tipping the worker in advance can help the outcome. ;-)

One area on the X7 & X5 that is often missed is the top of the lower tailgate. The upper tailgate will mark the paint from the slight contact it makes closing over time....