protecting front end on long trip
 

Folks,

I recently had a brand spanking new paint job and I now plan to go on a long trip in a month or so... soooo i am looking into options on protecting my front end from rock chips etc...

- 3M clear bra - expensive
- ebay precut stuff - anyone tried this?
- wrapping the front end with blue painters tape - I read on e46fanatics that someone did this... Does it harm the paint to peel off?
- using a rental to go...

The blue tape is probably the cheapest. It is tacky but not like masking tape or Ducktape. It's made for paint. Seen quite a few guys use it
Edit: damn iPhone. Keyboard.

yeah, I went on a 5200 mile road trip (to and from) and I used painter's tape (blue 3m stuff). Use the thicker, 3 inch stuff. Also, cover your fenders and just be smart when layering it on (layer it so that the wind won't rip it off). Also, if your car is heavily waxed, then the tape may come off in the rain. I find that the 3 inch version stays on more.

Agreed on blue painters tape.

However, whenever I've needed to drive more than 300 miles or so each direction, I've just rented a car. I don't know how expensive they are where you're located, but here I can get amazing deals and the gas savings further make it worthwhile.

For example... I recently rented an Infiniti G35 for 3 days to go on a road trip. It's a very nice car, leather, bluetooth, sat/nav, XM, etc. I rented it for a total of $86 for three days. I drove ~800 miles total with the car getting about 26mpg. At $2.87 a gallon, gas was about $88. So for roughly $175 all in I rented a car I didn't car about whatsoever. If I would have taken the X5, I'd probably expect 15pmg or so - at the same $2.87 I would have spent $153. I would have "saved" $22 by driving my own car. But, I would have put the extra wear and tear on my car, probably picked up a stone chip or two, had to service it sooner, worry about it, etc. For me, the peace of mind is totally worth renting a nice car for a road trip - and my X doesn't have a new paint job and it's old!

Oh and btw - I also booked with a Southwest Airlines code so I earned 1.5 credits towards a free flight while I saved money and wear and tear on my car and drove something just as nice if not nicer than my own vehicle :D

pretty good idea. But how do you get a G35? Most rental places seem to have Ford Focus or such crapola.

I typically rent from Hertz and rent quite a lot from them. I have a "president's gold" membership or something that I was sort of grandfathered into by my company's corporate account a few years back. One of the perks is an auto upgrade to a class or two above what you're reservation is, so that typically means if you have a midsize reserved they'll let you take an Infiniti or a Nissan Maxima or a decent SUV like a Durango/Tahoe for no upcharge.

I have also rented several times from Alamo/National (same company). I signed up for the Emerald Rewards program for free, and that also includes an automatic upgrade. I've also found that picking up on a Thursday helps them be pretty flexible on what they let you pick since the weekend rush hasn't set in yet. I rented a 2011 Hyundai Sonota from Alamo because it was the nicest they had one time - I was so impressed by that car I would honestly look for one intentionally in the future (leather, XM, bluetooth, moonroof, good power AND 35mpg freeway!).

As always though, these are all dependent on your local conditions, how nice people are to and you to them, seasonal/trending travel flow, etc. YMMV

thanks for the input guys.. I am leaning towards renting... I would need an SUV though... I have a 3 yr old and a 3 month old...

Griots Garaga sells this product that works well and is cheap.

Surface Protection Film Roll - Everyday and Storage - Car Maintenance - Griot's Garage

Good to know since it's not as ugly as blue painter tape.

Maybe you could get a big one of these ;-)

rent a crown vic!!

Ya rent a crown vic and get a couple magnet mount CB antennas to put all over it and everyone in front of you will pull off to the right when you fly up behind them :rofl: You might even get a free pass by highway patrol if they think you're one of them! haha

Road Wrap:

Protective Film : New Car Paint Protection : Paint Protector : Automobile Paint Protection : BuyRoadWrap.com

Wow. Do you guys wrap your tv remote controls and sofas in saran wrap too? This is akin to covering the carpet in your home with plastic runners.

:rofl:

ah ha !.. this looks like what I need..

I am not usually this crazy about rock chips... but since the ride was repainted and i am looking at the bumper, hood, fenders.. and all i see is perfection.. i wanna preserve it for next summer.. :)

This road wrap is temporary and is just what i need for the Canada trip...

hmmm....

thanks AwesomeM3.....

lol..

They will think I am taking 2 kids to jail when they see me fly by with kids in the back.. lol

perfect !... that should should take care of the entire front end.. ha !
funny guy...

NO DO NOT PUT THE WRAP ON IT.
Your paint needs to cure. Regardless of curing or not. there is a possibility even on fully cured paint that if you put film on and them REMOVE IT, you RISK the possibility of LIFTING YOUR PAINT.

I would either just drive it with painters tape..... or just drive it without.
Are you planning to to not drive it when you get back home since the car is all nice and shiney and fresh..

It's just a car...either rent something you would feel comfortable with on the road or just drive it....

ya.. a little part of my mind was thinking about the paint being new and all...

I guess painters tape on the front bumper and the mirrors.. and about 10inches on the hood...

I guess as time goes by and the Canada trip.. it will lose its freshness.. and then it will be back to the usual..

I had this on my E46.....

BMW X5 2000 2001 2002 2003 Clear Bra Hood Cover: eBay Motors (item 140464852156 end time Nov-10-10 13:24:33 PST)

So here's the pros -

CHEAP - $25 for the hood piece which came with the hood protector, 2 front fender pieces, 1 Roundel protector, & 2 side mirror protectors.

Pretty easy to install compared to the 3M protectors which I have on my headlight covers.

Superior protection. I had a small ding in the front fender from a ROCK - not a pebble but a ROCK, not one bit of paint chipped.

Almost completely invisible. You could see it if you were up close but from a distance, you'd never notice.

Once you remove it, it like nothing was ever there. Didn't ruin the paint or cause fading issues from were the uncovered paint started.

Cons -

It's not nearly as good as the 3M. But for $25 as opposed to $375.00 for the 3M bra, what do you expect.

The sticky stuff would squeak it's way to the edges pretty regularly. I'd have to get Goo Gone and clean the edges about once a month. This is the one reason it's not as good as the 3M, I've never had to clean sticky stuff off the edges around my headlight covers.

The fit was about 95% accurate, it wasn't 100% where I figure the 3M would be.

After 2 years, it started to get a ripple in one side of it and the glue seemed like it was always running out.

So I got two years worth of protection, zero paint chips, and two years of easy cleaning on the front of my vehicle for $25 before pulling it off. Will I do it again? Probably not. My heart and mind is set on a 3 Series M and if the front end paint job starts looking rough, I've got another reason to go get it.

I haven't decided if I'll put one on my wife's X5 yet, the X5 sits a mile higher off the road than my car and I just can't see it getting the same amount of chips.

Just my 41 cents for whatever it's worth.

thanks for sharing that man.. I added that to the list.. :) but I am not too sure since the X was painted about a week ago..

I had a paint job 4 weeks prior to the install and I think that was a good minimum.