Why cover your car with vinyl film?
Vinyl film is a kind of plastic that, when heated, becomes elastic, and when hardened, takes on a given shape. The wrap is several times cheaper than the standard car painting procedure. Car owners receive the following for a relatively small fee:
- the car begins to look beautiful and attractive;
- vinyl plastic protects the base covering from minor damage;
- minor imperfections in the body will be hidden under the coating.
Frequently asked questions about taxi film wrapping
Is it possible to wash a car covered with self-adhesive film with Karcher?
Taxi cars covered with film can be washed without any problems with automatic car washes of the “Karcher” type. However, for a longer service life of the film, it is advisable to inform the washer beforehand so that he does not bring the gun too close to the body, otherwise the film may peel off, and in this case the warranty for this damage will not apply.
The cost of wrapping a taxi with Chinese film is significantly lower than the cost of wrapping it with European and American films. Does it make sense to overpay?
On the Internet you can find many sites and advertisements, the authors of which offer to cover a taxi with film cheaply, literally for 7-10 thousand rubles, or even cheaper. At the same time, these garage businessmen claim that their film is German or English. Well, if so, then given the current euro exchange rate, it turns out that they work for free. Do you believe this? We are not! And if so, it turns out that the film from these wrappers is banal China! What is Chinese film? In simple words, this is just tough! The thickness of such a film rarely exceeds 50 microns, while even the cheapest German film has a thickness of 75 microns! In addition, the adhesive layer on this film is made of unknown material and is applied extremely unevenly, as a result of which in some places this film adheres normally, but in others it comes off after a few days. But where the film is firmly stuck, it will be almost impossible to remove it without damaging the paintwork. Yes, such film costs two to three times less than European film, but our reputation is more valuable to us. Plus, considering that we provide a guarantee for our work from 1 to 5 years, such savings can simply come back to us. It is for all these reasons that we do not work with films from Chinese manufacturers.
Tags: taxi wrapping, taxi wrapping with film, taxi in white, taxi in yellow
03/31/2018okleikataxi
Pros and cons of filming
There are a large number of advantages to gluing film to a car, which is why car enthusiasts prefer to choose this type of coating.
- Vinyl coating can hide not only scratches, but also dents, meaning the car takes on a completely different appearance.
- Provides protection against minor mechanical damage and adverse weather conditions.
- Vinyl coating helps keep your car in its original condition for many years.
- Service life with proper coating and use is up to 7 years.
- Vinyl coating can be used to change the color and design of your car.
- Vinyl is a cheap material.
- Wide range of colors and textures (for example, reflective film).
However, there are some disadvantages to vinyl wrapping.
- When working with low-quality materials, if application instructions are not followed, deformation of the material, bubbles and roughness may occur.
- If it is necessary to cover only part of the car, then a problem such as a mismatch of shades may arise.
- If the color changes, the owner will have to redo the documentation for the car.
How to cover a car with film with your own hands (video)
After completing the work, leave the car for a day in a warm garage. After this, you can drive out by car. Do not use abrasive products to wash the vehicle; they will damage the film coating.
If you doubt that you can do the wrapping yourself, then choose a service station or a specialized car dealership. The center's craftsmen will select the material, focusing on your needs, and perform the pasting.
In specialized centers, car owners will order a body design. The cost of pasting is about 8 thousand rubles.
Almost every car enthusiast has thought about covering their car with film. It protects the car body, changes its appearance, is glued to windows as tinting and protection against chips, and is used to cover headlights, interior, door sills, etc. The film on cars is popular among car owners. Some people do the wrapping themselves, while others take the car to a specialized service center.
In this article we will talk about how to properly wrap a car with film, what types of material there are for covering a car, how they differ, which option is better to choose in a given case and how much it will cost.
What materials are needed to wrap a car with film?
Before wrapping your car with auto vinyl yourself, you should prepare all the materials that will be required.
- The vinyl film itself.
- Car surface cleaner and water in a ratio of 1:10.
- Paper tape.
- Ethanol.
- Paper napkin or soft toilet paper.
- Plastic spatula.
- Squeegee made of felt.
- Knife.
- Scissors.
- High power hair dryer.
- Spray.
There are several ways of wrapping with film - dry and wet. For self-pasting, it is recommended to use the second method, because it is intended more for beginners. If you are confident in your abilities, you can glue it using the dry method.
The amount of film per car and its approximate price
When purchasing vinyl film, it is recommended to take extra material, because if bubbles or creases occur, an additional piece of plastic will help eliminate them.
Also, the amount of material depends on the type of car:
- sedan – 20 m;
- crossover – 25 m;
- station wagon - 25 m;
- SUV – 35 m.
If your car is small, then you can take material 135 cm wide. For other models, it is recommended to purchase larger vinyl film – 150 cm.
The price of the material depends on the texture and manufacturer. On average, 3D film costs from 350 rubles per meter, and its service life is 5 years. Vinyl coating 4D costs about 750 rubles, but it lasts several years longer.
Pasting prices
A question that will certainly interest anyone who is thinking about the question of whether it is worth covering a car with film is the price of the work. This factor can significantly influence the choice of answer to the question: paint or paste over. Most often, covering a car with film is cheaper than painting a car, but not always.
How much does pasting cost in the service?
The cost of wrapping a car or its individual elements depends on many indicators and is usually calculated individually.
Factors influencing the cost of film stickers on cars:
- Car class (the more prestigious and expensive the car, the more careful you need to be with its paintwork; accordingly, the cost of the work will be higher).
- Body shape (the more bends, indentations and other features of the body shape, the more difficult it is to work with).
- Car dimensions.
- The condition of the paintwork (the presence of chips, dents and other damage complicate preparation for gluing).
Covering a car entirely with film will cost from 30,000 rubles. Pasting car parts will cost at least 5,000 rubles per element.
Cost of films
For those who decide to cover a car with film with their own hands, it is important to understand the price category of the material, since this will be the main cost.
Vinyl differs not only in colors, but also in quality. It depends on the manufacturer and production method.
If everything is quite clear with the first indicator: it is better to buy material from well-known manufacturers than from Aliexpress, then you should understand in more detail the methods of film production.
All films for cars are divided into:
- Calendered (the polymer is rolled out between rollers to the desired thickness);
- Cast (the melt is poured onto the surface).
Automotive films of the first type, due to the properties of memory, which were already mentioned above, when rolled out between calenders (rollers), will tend to come back together. When gluing complex parts, this becomes a very big problem: wrinkles appear, the vinyl shrinks, peels off, etc.
There are very cheap films for cars made in China, but they are of very low quality. There are calendered materials of average quality: professionals know how to work with it and can make sure that no negative nuances appear during pasting. But if you cover a car with film yourself (without professional qualifications), this can lead to completely disastrous results.
Cast automotive films do not shrink. Good quality comes with great prices. A good cast film for a car body can be 10 times more expensive than the most budget options on the market. At the same time, it’s unlikely that anyone would want to cover their car with film for 3,000 rubles themselves, so the cost of the work will have to be added to the cost of the material. Sometimes cladding with high-quality film is more expensive than painting.
If we talk about specific prices, then a meter of the cheapest Chinese wrapper will cost from 300 rubles. And the price of cast European film in some cases reaches 3,500 rubles per linear meter. The difference is significant. Of course, there are many intermediate options both in price (you can find a good one for 1000-1500 rubles) and in quality.
Any car film can be ordered on the Internet, where you can also find specific prices on the sellers’ websites.
A separate question is how many meters of film are needed to cover a car. Everything, of course, depends on the dimensions of the vehicle. In general terms, one car needs from 15 to 25 meters.
The factory paintwork of a car body inevitably becomes tired over time. In addition to the option of completely repainting it, there is an alternative - covering it with vinyl film. Each candidate has his own election platform, we will try to determine the most advantageous offer.
When comparing two options for refining the body, we will rely on a group of determining factors: the price of turnkey work in one region; service life of the “coating”; labor intensity of the work (requirements for the overall quality and professionalism of the master in particular); Let's take into account the pitfalls; dividends and possible losses. And as a result, we will determine which option is preferable for the specific goals and expectations of the owner.
Preparing the car for gluing vinyl film
In order for the vinyl to adhere well to the surface of the car, it must be prepared.
- The entire surface of the car, including the hood, must be thoroughly washed using a special detergent.
- If there are stains, insects, or dirt on the surface, they must be removed with alcohol.
- After washing, it is advisable to polish the car. This is necessary for better adhesion between the plastic and the surface of the car.
Only after thoroughly cleaning the car can you mark and cut the vinyl film for its subsequent tinting.
Vinyl film
Vinyl film (PVC) was once invented for advertising on cars. Under no circumstances should it be taken as a protective agent. This is not its purpose, although the thickness of high-quality types of vinyl reaches 90 microns. True, when wrapping a car, it inevitably stretches and in difficult places it can become thinner by about 40%. At best, it will protect the body from sandblasting, road reagents and, for example, light scratches from branches, but no more. On the other hand, such a film has a huge range of colors and textures, giving absolute freedom of action to car styling enthusiasts. In addition, during the life of the vinyl, you can forget about caring for the paintwork of the car, which means considerable expenses - for example, on polishing the body. The average price tag for high-quality vinyl wrapping of an entire body in Moscow is 80–100 thousand rubles.
