What Makes Us the Best Paint Protection Film Installation Shop in Dallas

If you are in the DFW area and plan to protect your car with Paint Protection Film, we highly recommend you to visit our shop and learn more about the films and the installation process. If you are not in the area, we can help you to find the best Paint Protection Film installer in your area.

Step 1

Choose Your Paint Protection Film

If you are considering paint protection film for your car, you should keep in mind that your choice of installer matters more than your choice of paint protection film. However, this doesn't mean that you should first find an installer and let them choose the film for you. The fact is, most paint protection film installers carry only one brand, but not all the brands on the market and not necessarily the most trending or the best brand.

For this reason, before choosing an installer, we recommend that you have at least a beginner's level of information about the paint protection films on the market and their pros and cons. After this, if you find out that say STEK DYNOshield stands out in the competition, you should go to STEK-USA.com and find an installer there.

What Really Matters When Choosing a Paint Protection Film

A paint protection film is comprised of three layers, a topcoat, a polyurethane layer, and an adhesive. In today's market, while the films^† do not differ very much from each other with their adhesives and their polyurethane technology, there are significant differences in their topcoats. Therefore, it is the topcoat that matters the most.

^† Especially that of major manufacturers (including but not limited to 3M, STEK, Eastman SunTek, and XPEL) flagship series.

15-20 μm

Topcoat

100 - 200 μm

Polyurethane

30-40 μm

Adhesive

What Makes Topcoat Important For You

As an outer shell, the topcoat determines some of the most crucial end-use properties of the paint protection film, such as gloss, clarity, hydrophobicity, and self-healing. In today's market, with regards to their topcoats, it is safe to say that there are two types of paint protection films, (1) Films with "laminated" topcoats and (2) Films with "impregnated" topcoats.

The difference between the two is not only the coating formulation but also the manufacturing technology. In terms of gloss, clarity, invisibility, and lack of orange peel texture, films with impregnated topcoats are far superior to those with laminated topcoats, as the topcoat is laid on the polyurethane as a liquid, not as a solid film.

During the impregnation process, the liquid topcoat self-levels and cures when it is in contact with the polyurethane layer. This process allows impregnated topcoats to (1) have super smooth high-gloss surfaces with no orange peel texture and (2) form strong "molecular bonds" with the polyurethane layer instead of relatively weaker "sinter bonds" in laminated topcoats.

Gloss and Clarity

In terms of gloss, clarity, and invisibility, paint protection films with impregnated topcoats, such as STEK DYNOshield or Eastman Suntek Reaction are far superior to those that have laminated topcoats.

Hydrophobicity

At the molecular level, films with impregnated topcoats have smoother surfaces and are more hydrophobic. They don't need a ceramic coating as much as a paint protection film with a laminated topcoat.

Self-Healing

Although self-healing is a feature of the topcoat, films with impregnated and laminated topcoats have the same ability to self-heal the swirls and minor scratches.

Best Paint Protection Films

In today's market, almost all major manufacturers (e.g. 3M, STEK, Suntek, and XPEL) offer an 8-mil thick film with a self-healing topcoat and an anti-yellowing adhesive – it has become an industry standard. What has not yet become an industry standard is a hydrophobic high-gloss topcoat. For this reason, we recommend STEK DYNOshield and Suntek Reaction, as they differentiate from the other films on the market with their topcoat.

Our Choices

STEK DYNOshield

8 mils thickness, hydrophobic high-gloss topcoat

STEK DYNOmight

10 mils thickness, hydrophobic high-gloss topcoat

SunTek Reaction

8 mils thickness, hydrophobic high-gloss topcoat

Alternatives

3M Scotchguard

8 mils thickness, traditional topcoat

STEK PROshield

8 mils thickness, traditional topcoat

SunTek Ultra

8 mils thickness, traditional topcoat

XPEL Ultimate Plus

8 mils thickness, traditional topcoat

XPEL Ultimate Plus 10

10 mils thickness, traditional topcoat

^† Sorted in alphabetical order.

Step 2

Choose Your Paint Protection Film Installer

After you become more familiar with the paint protection films on the market, we recommend that you contact installers using the film manufacturer's list of authorized installers, instead of just googling "best paint protection film installer near me".

There are several reasons for this: First, you want to verify the installer's affiliation with the film manufacturer, and second if the manufacturer has an authorization, certification, or a licensing program, their website is the only source to learn more about that program (if there is any) and reach the authorized, certified or licensed installers. Here you can find the Installers (or Dealers) of major paint protection film manufacturers (or suppliers) in the U.S.

3M

Dealers & Installers

STEK

Dealers & Installers

Our Choice

SunTek

Dealers & Installers

Our Choice

XPEL

Dealers & Installers

^† Sorted in alphabetical order.

What Really Matters Most When Choosing a Paint Protection Film Installer

When choosing a paint protection film installer, we recommend you look at these five criteria.

1

Shop's

Capability

Paint Protection Film installation is a manual process and is prone to human error and omission. Skills and experience reduce the errors and omissions to a degree, but only to a degree. Even with advanced skills and a high level of installation experience, a flawless result is not always a guarantee, especially if the shop does not have "systems" in place that minimize or eliminate human errors and omissions.

2

Shop's

Diversity of Experience

For a high-quality installation, experience is a must, but with experience, a high-quality result is not always a guarantee, especially when the experience is not diverse enough. Why does the diversity of experience matter? It matters because it is an indicator of a shop's capability to deliver perfect results when the conditions are imperfect or the design is unconventional. We all learn from our experiences, but the lessons we learn from one type of car(e.g. Tesla Model 3) are not fully transferable to another (e.g. RAM 1500 TRX).

3

Shop's

Installation Method

First, we want you to know that there is not a single method that delivers the best results in each installation scenario. On a BMW M3, for example, precut kit installation method gives the best results on the front bumper. Bulk installation, on the other hand, is the way to go if the shop's goal is to achieve almost 100% invisibility on a front fender.

Regarding the installation techniques (bulk vs. precut kit), the industry is slightly polarization. While most XPEL dealers rely on precut kit installation (which we believe is a consequence of XPEL's business model and DAP software's sales strategy), the installers of other manufacturers – including STEK, SUNTEK and 3M – have the opportunity to make installations with a perfect combination of both methods, which in turn leads to almost 100% invisible installations.

To maximize film invisibility, an installer should have an installation plan for every make and model and prioritize "quality and invisibility" over "productivity and profit". If not, the shop will be more inclined towards making kit installations, which in turn will lead to more exposed edges on the front fenders, side panels, or fender flares.

4

Shop's