Vinyl Wrapping your 986

[myn8m3is8ndy]

Im planning to get my car vinyl wrapped. I found 2 that seems like a good wrap.

Matte black vinyl car wrap kit with complete toolset 30ft x 5ft VVIVID8 decal
Matte Black Vinyl Car Wrap Kit with Complete Toolset 30ft x 5ft VVIVID8 Decal | eBay

60in x 240in 3M 1080 MATTE BLACK Vinyl Scotchprint Car Wrap Film Sheet
60in x 240in 3M 1080 Matte Black Vinyl Scotchprint Car Wrap Film Sheet | eBay

Both are Matte Black. Only difference is that one is 3M and one is some brand that I've never heard about. MY questions are:

1.Has anyone ever tried vinyl wrapping their car themselves? If so, how was it?
2.Is the 20ftx5ft 3M enough to wrap the whole car? or should i go with the 30ftx5ft VVIVID8 cheaper one?

[John Thomson]

I am a signmaker with over 20 years experience.

Wrapping a car is not an easy thing to do if you want it to look good and last which is why a pro will take 3 days to do it and charge £1500+.

John

[jeroen]

What John says...
A good wrap takes a lot of practice

[Dlirium]

Originally Posted by jeroen

What John says...
A good wrap takes a lot of practice

Dip the car!!!

https://www.dipyourcar.com/home.php

[Top_Ramen]

Originally Posted by Dlirium

Dip the car!!!

https://www.dipyourcar.com/home.php

x2 for this idea!

[myn8m3is8ndy]

Originally Posted by all_mota

x2 for this idea!

from what i heard, plastidip is terrible.

[Joe B]

Why would you want to Plastidip or vinyl wrap your car anyway? Is there something wrong with the paint job? Bad color ?

[jb92563]

Based on general experience since I have not done a wrap before, I would get the longer role so you have extra to replace sections you F'd up.

Also since your new to it, I would go with the better quality product as cheaper ones usually have less tolerance of mistakes. I assume 3M is a better product.

Granted you don't know the tricks of the trade but if you do enough online research and practice on a couple pieces first, a person with determination and plenty of time should be able to pull off a good wrap if they take it slow and careful.

I think it would be worth your while to buy some scraps of the brand you want to try and practice first to see how it might look and how it will go around the Boxsters compound curves on the fenders. Harbor Freight has adjustable heat blowers to help with the stretching and wrinkle removing process.

[myn8m3is8ndy]

I've decided to go with the longer cheaper one. that way i have room for error.
I have a general sense on how to do it, and have all the time in the world, literally. I'll let you guys know how it goes lol

[RandallNeighbour]

I've seen a matte black boxster and was not impressed. But to each his own I guess.

I also put an invisible bra on the wife's new Lexus with a precut kit and woah, that was a lot harder than I thought it would be and the results were not all that great, and I'm a perfectionist and went slow and steady. I decided to do this myself to save $350 in labor. Now I see every bubble and crappy cut on it and I will throw good money after bad to have it all redone by a professional. Ugh!

In my opinion, wrapping a car should be left to a professional.

[particlewave]

People hate it when someone shares a product or method of doing something that is every bit as good, but 10-100x cheaper than what they did.

Example:

Joe - "I paid $3k for my paint job"
Paul - "Really? I just Plasti-dipped my car for $300 and it looks amazing!"
Joe - "No, it doesn't. It only cost $300, so it's ghetto and fugly. I must protect my ego at all costs!"

Shut up, Joe...


That said, a Plasti-dip job isn't going to look nearly as good as a $3k+ paint job, but I think I made my point. People will defend to the death the choices that they have made. I'm as guilty of this as anyone else

If vinyl wrap is more economically feasible for you, go for it! Vinyl has a learning curve, but you'll probably get the hang of it after a panel or 2.
Mistakes are easy to remedy and the entire thing is reversible.

[Joe B]

Originally Posted by particlewave

People hate it when someone shares a product or method of doing something that is every bit as good, but 10-100x cheaper than what they did.

Example:

Joe - "I paid $3k for my paint job"
Paul - "Really? I just Plasti-dipped my car for $300 and it looks amazing!"
Joe - "No, it doesn't. It only cost $300, so it's ghetto and fugly. I must protect my ego at all costs!"

Shut up, Joe...


That said, a Plasti-dip job isn't going to look nearly as good as a $3k+ paint job, but I think I made my point. People will defend to the death the choices that they have made. I'm as guilty of this as anyone else

If vinyl wrap is more economically feasible for you, go for it! Vinyl has a learning curve, but you'll probably get the hang of it after a panel or 2.
Mistakes are easy to remedy and the entire thing is reversible.

So what that long-winded reply is trying to say is that it's cheaper than a new paint job? Kind of a roundabout way of making your point (which was what exactly?). You could have just said it's cheaper ! Who said anything about anyone hating anything? I just asked why do it.
"Shut up Particle !"

[particlewave]

I really wasn't talking to you. The name was just a coincidence.

The point of my post was that one's ego goes out of the way to protect oneself, even when it's abundantly clear that the choice was a bad one.
The secondary point of my post was that I'm sick and tired of these so-called "purists" bashing on anyone that wants to do something nontraditional with their Porshe or, God forbid, buy a non-Porsche part or DIY something.

Do-it-yourself! Everything!
That's just how I roll. Are you just now figuring this out?

[cfos]

Originally Posted by particlewave

I really wasn't talking to you. The name was just a coincidence.

The point of my post was that one's ego goes out of the way to protect oneself, even when it's abundantly clear that the choice was a bad one.
The secondary point of my post was that I'm sick and tired of these so-called "purists" bashing on anyone that wants to do something nontraditional with their Porshe or, God forbid, buy a non-Porsche part or DIY something.

Do-it-yourself! Everything!
That's just how I roll. Are you just now figuring this out?

It's called cognitive dissonance. And you forgot, in your secondary point, "or an automatic".

[Van914]

Be careful when trimming? Knife or blades will scar the paint. Saw a Cayman wrapped, the owner had it professionaly done. He says the use fishing line to trim no scars.
Good luck

[John Thomson]

Originally Posted by Van914

Be careful when trimming? Knife or blades will scar the paint. Saw a Cayman wrapped, the owner had it professionaly done. He says the use fishing line to trim no scars.
Good luck

A blade should never be used on a car/van directly........it is not fishing line...but a product called Wrap-Cut or Knifeless Tape ( the difference is where the cutting line is placed in the tape)

The car MUST be cleaned to the vinyl manufacturers specification ( usually their cleaning product).....if not and the vinyl fails they will not honour any warranty claim.

All handles/badges should be removed..........all recessed should be post heated with a heatgun to the manufacturers specs and checked with an infra red temp gauge.

I have been a signmaker for 20 years,completed 2 vehicle wrap courses but would not take on a wrap job.....

Best of luck, I hope it goes well.

[truegearhead]

I thought the matte black thing was dead....or I'm I just getting old? Good luck, I imaging the boxster is a relatively easy car to wrap since it has no trim and no real grill or roof.

[papasmurf]

and it is not something I would recommend to the first time user. I have probably wrapped well over 100 cars over the years and it still can be a challenge from time to time. I have been trying to get my employers to try out the vvivid brand vinyl as it appears to be decent quality. That being said, you know what you are getting when you purchase avery, 3m, or oracal materials. You are probably going to get some adhesion promoter (3M primer 94), a heatgun (we use propane torches), and have the car washed with an aggressive soap to get any wax and oil's off the paint before wrapping. The knifeless tape is expensive and kind of hard to use but is what you want if you are not going to put knife to paint. Frequently we would use masking tape under the edge and cut on that before peeling the vinyl back to remove the tape. There really should not be too many areas you have to cut on the body. To do things right, remove the headlights, sidemarkers, tailights, air vents, etc. The material stretches easily with heat so working in a cool location is always a plus.

Good luck....been thinking about wrapping my boxster in a green similar to signal green or a lime green color.

[particlewave]

I don't have the time or energy to explain it to you, just like I won't waste my time explaining to you what a "rim" is. Play "senile" all you want
I honestly don't have anymore troll food, so please stop begging.

Originally Posted by Joe B

I actually think it's hard to improve on the looks of a 986 without making it look tacky (except for rims).

[Mark at Pelican Parts]

Let's stick to the topic.

Good luck with your project OP and post some pics of the finished product!