Stealther

I had Xpel put on my car today and got what I thought was a good price for it (225 installed for hood/mirrors/headlights/foglights). However, the guy that put it on had only been doing this for 4 months and this was the first GS he had ever done.

I'm concerned about the installation job, it doesn't look good to me, now I realize the water will mostly evaporate and look better but the installer put the headlights on dry or with a very light application of water/alcohol mixture. He said the adhesive would even out in a few days and would become optically clear. Here is what I'm concerned about:

Largish pictures, so I won't imbed them in the message, just click on the links:

<<Click here - Drivers Side with lights on>>

<<Click here - Drivers Side Lights off>>

<<Click here - Will this wrinkle even out? >>

<<Click here - OMG beam pattern splays lines everywhere, is this just the water? Will this go away?>>

The installer had lots of problems with his plotter cutting stray lines in the middle of the headlight paterns, it looks like the material is rising up as the plotter moves it around and the film contacts the blade as it repositions itself. What a pain!

It seems like a lot of hassle, but the other installers locally wanted 240 + 150 for installation! Am I being too picky?!

Ditto

I've had Xpel on my headlights and Armorglove on hood and bumpers.
I've had it for almost 3 weeks now. I did have those bubbles etc on the headlights, but it wasn't much at all compared to yours. It looks like yours has about 10x more than mine. So far, the bubbles did pan out a little, but not much to see a difference. One of your pics shows some finger prints. That should not happen at all if his fingers are wet at all times during a wet installation.
The thing is the Xpel that goes on the headlights are very thick compared to the ones applied on the hood. In my opinion the installer needs to do a better job.
Xpel warrants the product against yellowing, cracking or peeling for 5 years.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

ok i guess you can call me semi expert on xpel (the material) and also the installation, considering that i have done that on couple of cars. i wil ltell you what i *think*

1) the headlight piece. you need to identify if the "bubble" you see are water, or air. first of all, put the car under the sun for couple of hours tomrorow, and then look at the headlight pieces. if it's all foggie (read, foggy, NOT water drops), that's ok. those are full of water, no problem, over time they will dry. if you see a lump that's full of water inside that's ok too. NOW, if you see area where clearly it's air inside, or you see water drops, that's BAD. those are air bubbles and they will NOT go away, forever. yes they will get smaller when the whole thing really dries up, but they will still be there

2) from the pics it's hard to see clearly which are water and which are air (if any)

3) the hood wrinkle, most likely they will not go away. my gs was my first ever install, and i had the same "error" too. i got some wrinkle like what you have, and i have had them for 9 months. they are still there. so take your chances

4) installing the headligh peices on the GS is not easy. now i have done it couple of times it's nothing for me anymore, but it's hard. consider you put a flat piece thing to make it fit over a ball.... you need a lot of hair dryer heat, a lot of alcohol, etc... it's all about experience and technique. honestly i think i have master the headlight pieces much more than the body pieces

5) the headlight peices are SUPER think. put your car under the sun every day, hopefully they will all dry out (the water) in 3 to 4 weeks). i had some water in mine. no biggie, they dried out, but that's after 5 weeks of a bit foggie lens

ligflava

Stealther,

I think the installer did a bad job. The installer didn't use nearly enough alcohol solution to wet the xpel before he put it on the headlight. I highly doubt the look will improve. If it does improve, it won't be dramatic. If I were you, I'd take it back after a week so he can't say you didn't wait long enough. Or, if you wanna try, you can do it yourself. It's not that tough. Get a hair dryer to warm the xpel, so it is a lot more elastic when you mold it to your headlight.

I bought my kit from www.autosportcatalog.com. It took maybe 2 hours to do. Very manageable if you follow the directions. I believe xpel might have instructions with pics online. Do a search, that's how I learned.

Good luck.

Lee

Neo

iTrader: (3)

I'd take it back. The fog lights are relatively easy to do dry. The headlights are not. Wet install there. The cloudiness should go away. The driver side lights off pic does not look right. There looks like an air bubble in the top right. If that is the case, it won't go away. It is hard to tell from the pics though.

The paint piece wrinkle will not go away either. If I did it myself (and I have, just not on my GS), I can live with the wrinkles. To pay a "pro" and get that, I would not stand for it.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

haha that's why i am living with my "mistake" now

Lexis11

Yup I would take it back as well, my car did not even look close to that when it was done. No offense but now you why he was so much cheaper than everyone else.

Seize

I'd break it down for you but but rominL already said most of what I was going to say....well you can say I'm sort of an expert too, but let's not get into that right now...

Just for reference. Here's a few pics of what my installer(X-Pel Certified) did for my brother's ride - 2000 GS3

Full headlight kit...





* these pictures were taken immediately after the installl

joel5150

Seize,

Man that install looks awesome. What a great job. Was that done here in CA?
Can you give me the name of the shop that did it?

Thanks,

rominl

iTrader: (4)

for the record man, this guy (Seize ) is a real pro and i am no match to him

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i think it's somewhere close to san diego?

Seize

hahah, nah bro....I don't install...although I've watched countless installations ;-)

Oh and Joel, check your PM

NT2SHBBY

my $.02 for what it's worth:

I did my hood piece on my previous 03 maxima (as well my friend did his 02 maxima with the same results) and these are my impressions:

1) unless you are a PRO, it is inevitable to get bubbles

2) when you apply the clear bra material, you need to SOAK IT!!!!!

3) bubbles left over after squeegeeing should be left out in the sun and MOST will disappear

4) bubbles that are left after drying out, can be expunged with a tiny needle and a quick *****, and then squeegee right ontop after then air dry in sun

5) romini is right, air bubbles are like almost impossible to get rid of

Stealther

Thanks for the input guys, I went back this afternoon and we did it my way (using your suggestions!) and the install went smooth and the result is 1000% better! The installer asked me to wait two weeks to see if the things that look like creases flatten out, if not he said he would redo them.

I'll post pictures of todays work later this evening. BTW, when this is first put on the water under the film really affects the beam pattern (see my pic) hopefully it dries up soon. FYI, Xpel has changed their recommenation for the alcohol/water mix to use, it used to be 30% alcohol and 70% water, NOW it is 25% alcohol and 75%water.

Thanks for your help guys!

rominl

iTrader: (4)

not sure about the alcohol part, i always just mix it blindly and so far it's working ok

and great to hear that the shop did it again for you