Paint Chips and Clear Bra

Curt, I think that recommendation is odd for a new car. I believe in getting as much of the car covered as you can afford. I know I've taken a couple hits on the hood that would have been chips. Also cover the cups on the doors, the rocker panels, full hood, front fenders and the top of the rear bumper cover.

If you have women opening the doors those cups will get hairline scratches in no time. If you load cargo onto the deck sooner or later it will get dragged across the top of the rear bumper cover. Covering the rocker panel saved the part when I got sideswiped.

If the panel is already chipped or scratched you'll end up with a bubble or white spot under the film. A good installer would recommend not covering that panel.

Some hoods take a real beating while others remain untouched. It all depends on the type of traffic and roads where you drive.

The primer is white so if you have a white car the damage isn't as noticeable.

One thing for sure, no matter where you put the film there will be an impact that misses it.

 

Hood will get chips too just not as many as the lower parts.

 

My 2012 Prius had the stuff installed as an option at the factory. Works great 51 thousand miles later. I highly recommend it now while your car is new.

 

I did almost all of these areas recommended by JimN, with the exception of the rocker panels. The whole hood is covered, and just the front part of the front fenders. I would have done the whole fender, but my guy needed to have the car an extra day due to the time it would take him to pull the wheel well covers to roll and tuck the film under.

After application, I let the film cure for a couple of weeks, then applied some sealant to help protect the film. (Opti-Gloss).

The only downside I can foresee with the clear bra is it will force you to hand wash the car yourself rather than take it to a car wash if you want to avoid eventual scratches caused by the various methods used by the car wash places to wash and dry your car. I only say this as I hand washed my 2005 Tacoma for the first 6 years and the clear bra was fine. As soon as I started to take it to car washes, the film eventually started to get fine scratches in it probably from the brushes and towels used.

The primer is white, but with the plastic front end, the black plastic will probably show through if you get a nick deep enough. I had one on the lower bumper lip that I was able to mask for the most part with Dr. Colorchip. It is now barely noticeable with the clear bra. I am sure if I ever pull the clear bra and replace it, the touchup I used will probably get pulled up with the film.

 

The car wash creates swirlies. It doesn't matter to them whether they are in your film or your paint.