sdbrandon

+1. it is plastic film. They are betting you will trade your car in or be in an accident long before any warranty claim.

There is a reason why these products have made little traction in the automotive industry.

Down the road we shall look back and see clear bras likethe paint sealant crap the dealer tries to sell.

People are paying over $600 for $3 worth of plastic. I never seen anything like it.

EmRos

First off, paint sealent ie...permashield is a total rip off. It is no more than an expensive wax job. On the other hand, the clear bra has a purpose. It does help prevent most rock chips. $3 worth of plastic? I'm not sure if you're talking about the crap sold on ebay, but I'm pretty sure it cost a lot more than that. Like most things on the market, you'll have people who are for it and those who are against it. Whatever the reason is for disliking the film, fact remains that it does help protect the paint. If the product is so useless as you claim, why are there such a overwhelming amount of people who swear by it. I for one will never own another car without getting it protected first. But then again, to each his own. I have it on all my cars, and haven't had any issues. At least that's been my experience.

dentpusher

Try $3.50 - $4.00 a square foot. Typical car takes around 25 to 30 square feet and its labor intensive. You do the math. If you spent any time in the automotive industry you would realize that its a huge product and will only get bigger.


Venture Shield has had this problem for quite sometime and the new film is the same way. A little better but still gets marked up pretty easy from bugs and gets water stains. Not real sure what thier hang up with warranty problems are but they dont take care of them well. This is were 3M has them all beat. The Top Coated film does not suffer these problems. If you have a good dealer than you should be able to get somthing done. Might just take a little work.

GS2006

I purchased the 3M product 2 years ago “plastic” only and installed it myself. I would doubt it cost more then 20 bucks to make the stuff, however by time it gets to the consumer it is around 200 bucks. I installed it myself and it is time consuming if it is your first time. It has yellowed slightly, but not that noticeable. As for the stains from bugs, with the 3M product a yellowing sometimes is present after cleaning. However after a day or so it fades away and completely disappears.

I saw a Lexus about 10 years old with a clear bra (not sure what brand), and it was the most hideous thing I have ever seen. Imagine spider web crakes like what you would see in a plastic bumper after it gets hit and magnify it by 10. That is how this clear bra looked. Not sure how you could get this thing off the car as it would be in about 100 thousand pieces. Oh and it was so yellow it made the white paint look like dingy yellow.

As far as warranty, it is only as good as the company backing it.

lkirchner

I was hesitant to reply but one of the more Senior posters on this forum advised that I do so that other members don't get duped the way I did. The company was Premier Mobile Group located in Fremont, CA.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i think it's very bad that they don't even try to look at your cars and provide you with warranty services. our sc430 was done with venture tape (another installer in socal), and had the same issues on water spot and getting dull over time. they looked at the car and said they would replace everything under warranty no questions asked. now that's customer service and backing up their products.

maybe they are way over their head with all the exotics. but imagine when the murc or carrera gt owners with full car wrapped come back with all panels in bad shape....

15951

The problem I have with clear bras is that they're EXPENSIVE -- many times they equal the cost of a front end repaint. Not only that, but they would keep me from caring for the paint on my car they way I like to. I enjoy polishing out imperfections and protecting my car with a good sealant and/or wax from time to time. For me, the parts of the car covered in seran wrap...er, clear bra...would stick out like a sore thumb.

I refuse to preserve my car for a future owner's enjoyment. That about sums it up.

premierpro

One of our customers directed us to this thread, which is why we are posting here. We at Premier believe that there are 2 sides to every story. In this case, it is no different. Here are some of the facts that should be considered, Mr. lkirchner and others looking into this:

1. you contacted us and told us that the dealership had your vehicle in one week's time for service left it sitting outdoors in 100+ degree weather
2. the dealership left your car sitting outdoors in 100+ degree direct sunlight for the entire week
3. it rained during parts of that week and left acid rain to bake in this type of weather
3. you even told us, it took you days to correct the paint from rain / hard water etching on surfaces of the car that was facing the sun
4. we asked you to contact the dealership regarding this as it was their fault for not only the water etching on the film, but also for your paint
5. you adamantly decided the warranty should be covered from such and would not need to contact the dealer for this.
6. you decided that we should be at fault for something that the dealer did.
7. please keep in mind that up to this point, on your previous vehicles, none of this ever took place. If there were any issues (as all of our customers could attest, we would take care of them) with your vehicles, we always took care of it (and I'm sure it was no different in your case for your other vehicles)
8. In this particular vehicle's case, this just could not be covered under the manufacturer's warranty. We asked you to speak with the dealership to have them contact us, but we did not hear from you after this was requested.
9. When we contacted you again, you had already removed the film.
10. If you are this disappointed with our service for something that was no fault on our part, please contact us and speak with me directly (David Lee) we will mail you a full refund for the film on this (parts, labor, and sales tax) particular vehicle.

Our company is 100% focused on quality of service and installations and stand by our work / service. We've built a great relationship with the community throughout the years, and as many of our customers can attest, we never hesitate to satisfy our customers legitimate requests.

lkirchner

Thank You for your response. This is the type of service that I had expected from you in the past over this issue but did not receive it. I will call you sometime today.

erock901

I’ve had both 3M (03 G35) and VS (06 IS350) products on my cars. I found that both products were susceptible to staining if you don’t keep them waxed well. I also found out (unfortunately due to an accident) that it cost about $3k to correctly paint and blend the front end of the IS. So, the cost of the clear bra is well worth it for me. I always hated the rock chips that would accumulate over time. The clear bra has taken care of that. It was never about resale value or the next owner. BTW, my insurance took care of the replacement cost of the clear bra.

I used Premier Mobile for my IS twice, before and after my accident. Both times they did a fantastic job. The first time, I think I had them “touch up” the clear bra twice for miniscule things. They never questioned or hesitated to help. They even came out to my house to do the work. I haven’t had any issues with the second bra. I must say that covering the entire hood was a good decision. No more line across the middle of the hood. In any case, I think Premier does a good job at standing behind their product and installation services. I’ve never heard of anyone having any issues with them. They are a growing business with an expanding customer base. So, as with any business, they’ll experience issues. However, given a fair chance, I believe Premier will take care of any problems they can.

Just my $.02.
Erock

EmRos

Wow. Seems like a cheap shot. As far as I know, Premier has been around longer than most companies (even on this forum), and I have never read anyone with such an issue. If there were, they would't be constantly praised by all of us and the exotic car guys. I can't see how someone can hold a company responsible for something that the dealership did. I personally have recommended over 15 family and friends and not one have ever had any issues. I've known the guys over at Premier for several years now, and I must say the care and service they take goes far and beyond most I've seen.

bchau_gt

I am glad to see that Premier is still willing to take care of Mr. lkirchner despite the clear bra issues being caused by accidental negligence on the dealer's part. It's good for me to know the situation so that I'm careful to clean my car if it's left out in the heat after rain.

I must say that all my dealings with Premier from day 1 have always been positive. I'd like to think that I've developed a good relationship with Premier over the years and 3 clear bras later. They have done the clear bra on my car's custom front bumpers 3 times, and each time the quality was great, though I'll admit the latest clear bra was their best work.

I remember my first meeting and first clear bra with them. I spoke with Sam and he told me that he doesn't want to just have customers and turn-over transaction after transaction. He is interested in building a lasting relationship with his customers, which he has done.

I will admit that I've seen the work of competing vendors in the Bay Area, and there work was outstanding, frankly I was surprised. However, I will still only take my cars back to Premier, because I feel that they will always take care of me in the long-run and I choose to continue to build my relationship with them.

They are touted as among the best, if not the best, in the country because of their quality of work, customer service, and professionalism.

JasonC

holy crap. So let me get this straight.

The dealership put your car outside for a week's time with acid rain running all over it and had it baked in Vegas type heat for 7 days. I would be up their *** for letting them do that to my Lex. You then blame premier for this happening to the car? BMW of SF curbed my X3's wheels and not only did they fix it, they also covered one month's finance payment for me for my hassle! Which dealership are you dealing with!

I dunno why this is even being talked about. It's obvious that the dealer screwed up and you decide to point the finger elsewhere. My hats off to your premiere, you guys have excellent service above and beyond. All of my cars look as good as day 1 of your work and will continue to send peeps your way.

I do have one question tho, you guys should get into selling wheels. If a dealer screws them up, you guys gonna give me a refund for them as well!

lkirchner

Let's get it straight is right. The car was at the dealer for 7 days of which it rained 1 day and the car was not outside the entire time. Las Vegas heat my butt; this was the last week in March and even here in Sacramento it doesn't get into 100 degrees. My real problem was that the water spots, not acid rain, could not be removed from the film with the many recommendations that I was given. By the way it did not take me days to remove the spotting from the paint. I removed the water spotting on the paint using a mild polish, Final Polish from Menzerna and it took about 4 hours to do the entire car. My disappointment was that I had dealt with Premier several times in the past and their service was terrific. Enough of the "he said she said". This never was about the $'s and I am glad that they are stepping up to the plate. My confidence in them has been restored.