[CarFanatic90]

Out of curiosity, how many X5 / X6 owners have done PPF on their vehicles? I have an M50i and I'm seriously evaluating if I can justify the cost of a full front PPF (~$2.5 - $2.7K).

Do you all feel like it's worth it? If you've done it, have you had any regrets? Does it hold up?

Thanks in advance!

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by CarFanatic90

Out of curiosity, how many X5 / X6 owners have done PPF on their vehicles? I have an M50i and I'm seriously evaluating if I can justify the cost of a full front PPF (~$2.5 - $2.7K).

Do you all feel like it's worth it? If you've done it, have you had any regrets? Does it hold up?

Thanks in advance!

Lots & lots of threads about this that basically boil down to:

(1.) If you don't your spendy baby is unprotected and you should be jailed for abuse.

(2.) If you do it's a giant waste of money and you're an idiot.


The middle case might be something like:

* Where do you live & drive?
Snow state? Follow a lot of semis on the freeway? Do your cars typically have a lot of rock chips on the front? If yes to any of these, the answer may be yeah, PPF might be a good idea.

* How long will you keep this vehicle?
3 years or less? And a "no" or "sorta" above? Then PPF is probably not a good idea.

* Do you do your own washing & detailing?
Are you OCD when you do? Then it can go either way: yes because otherwise every tiny knick will have you kicking yourself or no because the lines & plasticyness will drive you insane and one night you'll get out a blow dryer and tear it all off in a fit of perfectionist rage.

For me I don't because I live & drive on the West Coast and having driven the entire thing 4 times including twice to Vancouver and once to Whistler I have one tiny knick/chip in the hood that my body shop will fix for $25. Also I priced out a front end respray with them when I got the car last Nov and it was $1500-$2000 so I figure I'd have to trash the fucker, respray it, and trash it again before it'd have been worth it.

That said, the door panels behind the front wheels have a zillion teeny-tiny chips on them that you can see if you're stooping down when it's freshly washed in direct Sun. If I was gonna PPF any of the car it'd be the bottom 1/3 of the front doors. Too late now, and I'll sell the car in 2 years so, eh, it's not a museum piece.

But I'd be lying if I said it didn't slightly get me squinty eyed when I see it if I'm washing it outside.

[malvern_man]

Originally Posted by CarFanatic90

Out of curiosity, how many X5 / X6 owners have done PPF on their vehicles? I have an M50i and I'm seriously evaluating if I can justify the cost of a full front PPF (~$2.5 - $2.7K).

Do you all feel like it's worth it? If you've done it, have you had any regrets? Does it hold up?

Thanks in advance!

I've had my X5 PPF'd (and paintwork/wheels ceramic coated) and don't regret it at all.

PPF'd....full front end plus...headlights, A pillars, mirror casings, sills (rockers) and the door shuts front and rear.

[nZtiZia]

full ppf and ceramic, but I did it for aesthetics in addition to protection

don’t expect any ROI unless you decide to sell it privately

[TX-BMW]

Originally Posted by CarFanatic90

Out of curiosity, how many X5 / X6 owners have done PPF on their vehicles? I have an M50i and I'm seriously evaluating if I can justify the cost of a full front PPF (~$2.5 - $2.7K).

Do you all feel like it's worth it? If you've done it, have you had any regrets? Does it hold up?

Thanks in advance!

I had the same questions and decided a good ceramic was the best option for me.

I tell myself that I am going to keep a vehicle for 5 years, but I don't. The PPF will save you from some rock chips, but honestly, I don't believe it will amount to $1 more at trade-in.

It is obviously up to you, but for me, it didn't make sense.

[BobsM3Coupe]

Though I have seen some do so, if it's a lease, then certainly not.

[Tejas1836]

Everything that hits my vehicles seems to always hit glass, so my paint is protected

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by Tejas1836

Everything that hits my vehicles seems to always hit glass, so my paint is protected

[swainbmw]

Originally Posted by CarFanatic90

Out of curiosity, how many X5 / X6 owners have done PPF on their vehicles? I have an M50i and I'm seriously evaluating if I can justify the cost of a full front PPF (~$2.5 - $2.7K).

Do you all feel like it's worth it? If you've done it, have you had any regrets? Does it hold up?

Thanks in advance!

I purchased 2022 frozen black metallic in February and did the whole car in stealth Matt ppf to the tune of 8,000 I have done many in the past on just front end and spent 2,500 I think for me it’s peace of mind to no it’s not going to get scratched up from washing and it’s super easy to wash .I think I would do it again on a new one in the future

[Shllshck]

We decided to do a full front, custom PPF plus sills and rear luggage strip and ceramic all over for our 2023 X6. The SUV we replaced had a bunch of rock chips on the front along. My 2016 F36 has a bunch of tiny chips as well. The rock chips never bothered me before but those vehicles didn’t cost anywhere near the X6. We keep our cars on average for 10 years. Just trying to keep the paint protected for as long as possible. In 5 years time, more than likely, we’ll take the PPF off. Ceramic was for easier maintenance.

[GrussGott]

FWIW, for those curious, here's my X5 after 1+ years of West Coast driving; mostly NorCal freeways, but 4 trips top to bottom (LA to Vancouver) and one up to Whistler.

I do my own detailing so I can tell you where every chip is

I ran the numbers on PPF and, for me, not worth it as small chips are ~$25 to fix and I don't tend to get too many FOR THE FRONT. Swirls aren't a problem if you DIY your car washes and use remotely decent technique. Also, just my taste, but I don't like the "saran wrap" look of PPF, but I do the detailing so I probably notice it more.

Here's what my front end looks like, and I highlighted the one chip I've gotten:



BUT: anyone considering PPF for an X5/6 should do the front & rear doors behind the front wheels, rocker up to the 1st bend line. Like just do it. Right now. Close the laptop and make an appointment.

[rundeyvoo]

I've actually just brought my X5 to the custom wrap installer for full gloss PPF. This is the first time I'm doing a full PPF install and don't have any feedback to share, but it'll be there for the next week and will give you my initial impressions as well as post pics once it's done.

I know a lot of it comes down to price, peace of mind, and what you plan to do with your vehicle (short term / long term). I initially wanted to do just do the full front but also know the shop owner who gave me a great deal on doing a full vehicle PPF, so I couldn't pass that up.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by rundeyvoo

I've actually just brought my X5 to the custom wrap installer for full gloss PPF. This is the first time I'm doing a full PPF install and don't have any feedback to share, but it'll be there for the next week and will give you my initial impressions as well as post pics once it's done.

I know a lot of it comes down to price, peace of mind, and what you plan to do with your vehicle (short term / long term). I initially wanted to do just do the full front but also know the shop owner who gave me a great deal on doing a full vehicle PPF, so I couldn't pass that up.

yeah, please get back to us with the costs and your location, plus pics and if you find any oopsies

[skyline408]

Originally Posted by GrussGott

yeah, please get back to us with the costs and your location, plus pics and if you find any oopsies

Dude! Welcome back! I was missing your informative posts in the X5/6M forums!

As for me, I did the PPF on hood, bumper, mirror caps, rockers, and bottom of doors.

1 year and 7k miles later, still perfect. I can wax the car over the ppf and it shines up nicely.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by skyline408

Dude! Welcome back! I was missing your informative posts in the X5/6M forums!

As for me, I did the PPF on hood, bumper, mirror caps, rockers, and bottom of doors.

1 year and 7k miles later, still perfect. I can wax the car over the ppf and it shines up nicely.

hey thanks! Yeah, I'm really regretting not doing the bottom of the doors ... the rest of the car has been fine, but the door bottoms not so much

[rundeyvoo]

Originally Posted by GrussGott

yeah, please get back to us with the costs and your location, plus pics and if you find any oopsies

For sure, I'll definitely post pics. It'll be in the shop for at least a week and projected pick up will be next Friday or Saturday.

[rundeyvoo]

Originally Posted by skyline408

As for me, I did the PPF on hood, bumper, mirror caps, rockers, and bottom of doors.

1 year and 7k miles later, still perfect. I can wax the car over the ppf and it shines up nicely.

Your X5M looks amazing! Which PPF did you end up going with and what type of wax do you use on it?

[skyline408]

Originally Posted by rundeyvoo

Your X5M looks amazing! Which PPF did you end up going with and what type of wax do you use on it?

Thanks! I used stek ppf, and bead maker as a wax.

[rundeyvoo]

Originally Posted by skyline408

Thanks! I used stek ppf, and bead maker as a wax.

Very cool. Yeah mine will be covered with STEK PPF as well (DYNOshield). I assume yours is the same since it looks super glossy. The shop I left the X5 uses STEK, XPEL, and Suntek, but the owner swears by STEK so ended up going that route.

[skyline408]

Originally Posted by rundeyvoo

Very cool. Yeah mine will be covered with STEK PPF as well (DYNOshield). I assume yours is the same since it looks super glossy. The shop I left the X5 uses STEK, XPEL, and Suntek, but the owner swears by STEK so ended up going that route.

I've had xpel on other cars, I think the stek stuff is really good. Beads water, and super glossy. Unless you really examine the car, you won't think it had ppf.

[rundeyvoo]

Originally Posted by skyline408

I've had xpel on other cars, I think the stek stuff is really good. Beads water, and super glossy. Unless you really examine the car, you won't think it had ppf.

Yeah that's what the shop owner and installers said about STEK, which is why they were highly suggesting to use them despite giving me the option to use any of the other two. Apart from it looking like there was no PPF on the car when it was installed, they said the hydrophobic and self healing properties were far better than the XPEL or suntek. I'm excited to see how it'll look once it's done.

[P1]

I sold my F15 with 100K miles and took a look what took the most abuse over all those miles, then applied PPF to those areas on my G05.





But as luck would have it, someone dented my driver side door after 650 miles and a truck kicked up a rock that took paint off the window shadowline trim. Typical!