Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 33

FIXED OPS JOURNAL

FILM

continued from Page 32

installed, he adds.
Willis said a Cadillac sedan's film treatment includes half of the hood,
fenders and mirrors, and
costs $799. A Cadillac Escalade SUV or Land Rover A plotter produces exact-fit patterns for
gets protection film on the paint protection film application.
full hood, bumper and
mirror caps; Willis Auto Campus charges $1,595 for that application.
Willis declined to disclose the profit the group makes on these jobs.
Clint Patrick is North American regional business director of performance films for Eastman Chemical Co., which makes the SunTek
brand of paint protection film. He says a dealership that is serious
about film installation needs to outfit a well-lit bay with a plotter to
make patterns for the film.
Also required: adequate storage area, a computer and hand tools.
On average, Patrick says, a film installer can complete as many as four
partial hood, fender, mirror and bumper packages in a workday.
XPEL's Keller says demand for paint protection film has exploded
among owners of trucks such as Ford F-150 Raptors and Super Duty
models.
"The owners know they're going to go off road," he says. "They're
buying larger paint protection packages, the full front, full fenders and
the bumper."
Dealerships price these packages at $5,500 to $6,000 Keller says.
Cost of the software and materials for each truck is about $1,500, and
installation typically requires 24 hours of labor.
Paint protection film can help cars maintain a matte look; the factory matte finish is hard to repaint if it is damaged. The matte film also
can be removed if the trendy appearance goes out of style or proves a
detriment to resale.

Money saver
Paint protection film also can help save customers money when
they turn in leased vehicles. In a horror story cited by an appraiser
who evaluates off-lease vehicles, a small rock chip and curb scratches
on three alloy wheels cost a Porsche lease customer $1,800 when the
911 Carrera was returned.
Similarly, dealers and vendors say that applying film to a dealership's loaner vehicles helps keep them looking new, holds their value
when they are sold and reduces the cost to recondition them.
Dale Haines, sales manager of Barrett Jaguar and Maserati of San
Antonio, says one-fifth of the dealership's new vehicles - 6 to 10 a
month - receive XPEL paint protection film. The dealership always
displays a demonstrator vehicle with paint protection film to help sell
the upgrade, he says.
"It gives us something to show the customer," Haines says. "They're
looking at the car and won't spot the film. Then we tell them: 'Oh, by
the way, I know you didn't notice, but this car actually has XPEL on
the front end.' They're always impressed."
The dealership doesn't apply the film, Haines says. Instead, it takes
its vehicles to XPEL's corporate installation center in San Antonio.
"It's such a good product," Haines says. "For our customers, it offers
good value. It does what it's supposed to do." 

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JUNE 2017

PAGE 33

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017