3M protection film question

[growler]

taking delivery of a 2015 sr5 soon and was considering getting the protection film applied. I'm on a tight budget.....Which areas should I prioritize?

It will see some very light trail riding, but lots of dirt and loose gravel, poorly graded, washed out, steep country/cottage roads.

any thoughts!

side note....the wait for delivery is killing me. This will be my first 4runner.

 

[CSix]

My dealer gave me the Colorado Package that covers the front of the hood in 3M as well as the side mirrors. They also match the tinting of the windows front through the back...

 

[flyinhawaiian01]

Hood, headlights, mirrors for starters. If you want more, then full bumper and partial fender by the headlights. You could even get crazy and put a strip above the windshield, as that will get some rock chips too.

Ask them if they'll throw the door handle cups in for you. Oh, and never get it directly from the dealer! They just job it out to a local shop anyways (unless they have their own tint/graphics/clearbra shop on-site).

Try calling your local, TRUSTED window tint shops around your area (where's GTA anyway?) and see what they charge and what films they use.

3M is always great film, as they are one of the few clearbras that are actually able to be cut and buffed like you would do with paint, but there's some newer brands that seem to be performing as well as 3M. Suntek has a new one, been playing with some sample film for a week now and it looks and installs well, but I won't know for sure until I get a full bra installed.

 

[NoDak]

well I went with the oem package and it will only cover metal painted areas on the front leading edge of the vehicle.

for my purposes its enough, but if I had within a reasonable distance a proper installer I would have gone 3rd party with better coverage albeit at a higher price than the oem cost.

I have full length oem running boards which help for area between the wheel wells so that wasn't an area of concern for me.

I have notice black divots in the front painted plastic areas where film would have probably saved those areas. those areas covered by oem film have zero issues.

 

[Royal 7]

Expel Clear Bra

I just had the Expel Ultimate Clear Bra installed at a local shop. I had 18" of the hood, front bumper, headlights, mirrors, door cups, fender flares, 8" up the rockers and fogs covered. After a little negotiation they did it for about $600. I researched all of the clear bras and liked the Xpel as it has a 10 year unconditional warranty and it is almost impossible to tell that it is even there. The only time you notice the film is when waxing...another little edge to break out the q-tip for. I had the 3M in the past and it seemed much more noticeable on the car. Although time will tell, I would definitely recommend the Xpel product. One other thing with waxing; you can wax the Xpel. They recommend using a synthetic wax like a Maguiars NXT or Ultimate Polish. I don't really think that it made it look any different, but water really beads on it. I also asked them about covering the entire car, as they had a Porsche GT3 and a BMW M4 there covering the entire car for race use. They quoted $3900. If I had the cash, I would definitely go for it. It made the cars look like they were covered with a thick layer of glass. Absolutely gorgeous, and no worries of trail kisses for 10 years.