Paint protection film

Paint Protection Film (PPF) is a thermoplastic urethane film applied to painted surfaces of a new or used car in order to protect the paint from stone chips, bug splatters, and minor abrasions. This film is also used on airplanes, RVs, cell phones, electronics, screens, motorcycles and many other areas. The racing industry has followed suit by applying the material to daily-driven automobiles. Paint Protection Film is OEM approved by virtually all car manufacturers.

Paint protection film is frequently installed by manufacturers on various pieces of cars at the factory (e.g. the rear arches of Porsches). The film is generally installed by certified trained professionals who receive supplies from outside distributors and dealers. Some tinting and detail shops also offer this service.

Military Origins of Paint Protection Film

As with many other consumer products, paint protection films were first developed and used by the military. During the Vietnam War, helicopter rotor blades and other sensitive parts of military transports were often damaged by flying shrapnel and debris. In order to help protect these moving parts the US military asked 3M to come up with a solution that was both inconspicuous and low-weight.

The advantage of replaceable film over the replacement and repair of damaged rotor blades was immediately clear and its adoption was uncharacteristically quick for the US military. As a result, there are still people in the industry who refer to PPF as "helicopter tape" although this term is becoming less and less common as automotive applications have taken precedence.^[1]

Adoption of PPF by Automotive Sector

Paint protection films use by the military has continued to the present day and 3M now makes a wide variety of aerospace and military films.^[2] With time, however, the automobile industry began to take note of the protective benefits of PPF and it was soon being employed by race car drivers despite the difficulty of working with the original films. According to Kathy Lam, marketing manager for the automotive division of 3M “The first films were thicker and less compliant, [because] their purpose was to help keep helicopter blades from eroding in the harsh, sandy environments to which they were exposed. Because the blades were flatter and less complex than auto-motive surfaces, they didn’t demand a highly flexible, conformable film.” ^[3]

Contemporary Automotive Paint Protection Films

Today's automotive PPF is highly-conformable and optically clear and is available in a variety of thicknesses (measured in mil in the US) and colors. Most of the major manufacturers of PPF in the US such as 3M, Tekra and Xpel require installers to complete training and/or sign exclusivity agreements which makes the cost of installation rather high. Therefore, most installation of paint protection film is performed either at the factory, dealership or in specialized and certified shops.

In addition to installations performed in situ at the factory or by certified shops and dealerships, there are also a select number of vendors who sell pre-cut and vehicle specific paint protection kits, as well as individuals who sell these kits on online auction sites or other markets.

References

1. "History of car clear bra paint protection film". 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
2. "3M Aerospace and Aircraft Maintenance". 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
3. "The Evolution of Paint Protection Film" (PDF). 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.