Full wrap - stealth or color that draws even more attention?

[concept]

What part of SoCal are you from?
Are you worried about crime or worried about general attention?
If it's the latter, I'm gonna be honest, don't buy the Supra (or any of the other cars you listed).

San Diego. Crime can be a problem in certain areas, but I tend to avoid them. It's certainly not a problem where I live. I've rented (in 2019) a black 2019 McLaren 570S Spider for 24 hours and parked it in a strip mall parking lot for an hour. The car tended to draw a small crowd, but I could see them from the tea store I was visiting.
But the Supra is not on the same level as a $250k exotic or even the NSX, so I wouldn't be THAT worried about it, especially if it has a full wrap.

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[Lonestar_Nomad]

Firstly, figure out what you want. You want a unique “look at me” car but also don’t want attention? The jump to NSX and lotus is wild too.

Secondly, wrap ≠ protection. Vinyl wraps are extremely thin and won’t stop anything aside from very minor rubs from marring your paint. PPF however, will protect your vehicle from most rock chips and light road debris, but cost is going to be closer to 8-10k depending on area and level or coverage. It’s available in clear, stealth/matte and black. Something to keep in mind is PPF does not go around the edges of a panel. So if you pick stealth, you will still see about 1-2mm of gloss cleared paint on the edges of every panel. Sure you could pay far more to have the edges wrapped, but PPF is very thick and cannot be stretched like vinyl wrap

 

[concept]

Firstly, figure out what you want. You want a unique “look at me” car but also don’t want attention? The jump to NSX and lotus is wild too.

Secondly, wrap ≠ protection. Vinyl wraps are extremely thin and won’t stop anything aside from very minor rubs from marring your paint. PPF however, will protect your vehicle from most rock chips and light road debris, but cost is going to be closer to 8-10k depending on area and level or coverage. It’s available in clear, stealth/matte and black. Something to keep in mind is PPF does not go around the edges of a panel. So if you pick stealth, you will still see about 1-2mm of gloss cleared paint on the edges of every panel. Sure you could pay far more to have the edges wrapped, but PPF is very thick and cannot be stretched like vinyl wrap

Thanks. I was quoted $2200 for clear PPF on the nose, hood, and possibly, roof.
So you're saying that paint chipping will still occur with a full wrap? Can clear PPF be applied on top of the wrap in the areas mentioned above?

 

[Jmanlevan]

I have a 2023 in black. It gets a ton of attention. Multiple people everyday stare at it, take pics of it, strike up conversations or wave/thumbs up/head nod etc. Its going to get attention whether it is black or neon hilighter yellow or any color. Also, I have a few plastic panel interior rattles. Car is brand new and have had it for 3 months 3,000 miles.

 

[Jmanlevan]

Thanks. I was quoted $2200 for clear PPF on the nose, hood, and possibly, roof.
So you're saying that paint chipping will still occur with a full wrap? Can clear PPF be applied on top of the wrap in the areas mentioned above?

yes, he's saying vinyl wrap film is thinner than paint protection film and vinyl wrap does not really help with rock chips. It can to a certain degree and does for super minor pebbles but big enough rocks can/will tear through the vinyl wrap and chip your clear coat or even your paint down to the bare metal. Vinyl wrap is 3-4 mils thick whereas PPF is around 8 mils thick, I believe. PPF will protect the paint from those bigger rocks and some have self healing properties so scratches and dings in the PPF disappear with heat or hot water.

And yes you can PPF on top of vinyl wrap but it doesn't really make sense to. Vinyl wrap has roughly a 5 year life span before it should be removed. PPF has an 8-10 year life span before needing to be removed. Doesn't make sense to spend $4k to fully vinyl wrap a car, then put $2-10k worth of PPF on top just to have to remove both layers within 5 years.

Respectfully, I think you have A LOT more research to do before you pull the trigger on both the car and what kind of film you're going to go with.

 

[concept]

I have a 2023 in black. It gets a ton of attention. Multiple people everyday stare at it, take pics of it, strike up conversations or wave/thumbs up/head nod etc. Its going to get attention whether it is black or neon hilighter yellow or any color. Also, I have a few plastic panel interior rattles. Car is brand new and have had it for 3 months 3,000 miles.

Thanks. I guess if and when Supras become more common, the wrapped cars will stand out more than the blacks, whites, and reds. In the meantime, any color is rare. If I do get one wrapped, it'll be because I want a color that is not common on all those SUVs and EVs around here. I see quite a few wrapped model 3s for the simple reason that the owner wants the car to stand out.

 

[concept]

yes, he's saying vinyl wrap film is thinner than paint protection film and vinyl wrap does not really help with rock chips. It can to a certain degree and does for super minor pebbles but big enough rocks can/will tear through the vinyl wrap and chip your clear coat or even your paint down to the bare metal. Vinyl wrap is 3-4 mils thick whereas PPF is around 8 mils thick, I believe. PPF will protect the paint from those bigger rocks and some have self healing properties so scratches and dings in the PPF disappear with heat or hot water.

And yes you can PPF on top of vinyl wrap but it doesn't really make sense to. Vinyl wrap has roughly a 5 year life span before it should be removed. PPF has an 8-10 year life span before needing to be removed. Doesn't make sense to spend $4k to fully vinyl wrap a car, then put $2-10k worth of PPF on top just to have to remove both layers within 5 years.

Respectfully, I think you have A LOT more research to do before you pull the trigger on both the car and what kind of film you're going to go with.

Thanks. I did speak to the owner of a wrap shop that has been around for many years. He said he knows of Lmbo owners who have wraps that are more than 8 years old. He mentioned yhat those who park their cars outside all the time, often have the wrap removed after as little as 3-4 years, especially those who live near the ocean and experience lots of sunshine.

 

[Lonestar_Nomad]

Thanks. I did speak to yhe owner of a wrap shop that has been around for many years. He said he knows of Lmbo owners who have wraps that are more than 8 years old. He mentioned yhat those who park their cars outside all the time, often have the wrap removed after as little as 3-4 years, especially those who live near the ocean and experience lots of sunshine.

This is likely accurate but how often are those lambos running down the Highway getting beat to hell. Also, the Supra hood requires XL ppf so Keep that in mind.

Basically what I’m trying to tell you is this…. Do you want to be pristine and 1 of 1? Cool, vinyl wrap it in some crazy color and never drive it again. If you want people to actually see the car and not have a breakdown every time something chips the wrap, buy a color you like or the car you like, wrap it with PPF and enjoy. Or don’t wrap it, buy some dope wheels, and watch all the middle aged men flock to you at the gas station.

Either way just do whatever you will be happy with. The honest truth is every option has its own downsides. If one option was the absolute uncontested king, there wouldn’t be options.

 

[concept]

This is likely accurate but how often are those lambos running down the Highway getting beat to hell. Also, the Supra hood requires XL ppf so Keep that in mind.

Basically what I’m trying to tell you is this…. Do you want to be pristine and 1 of 1? Cool, vinyl wrap it in some crazy color and never drive it again. If you want people to actually see the car and not have a breakdown every time something chips the wrap, buy a color you like or the car you like, wrap it with PPF and enjoy. Or don’t wrap it, buy some dope wheels, and watch all the middle aged men flock to you at the gas station.

Either way just do whatever you will be happy with. The honest truth is every option has its own downsides. If one option was the absolute uncontested king, there wouldn’t be options.

I guess I didn't mention that I am retired, (and have a second car - Miata) so daily driving is not happening. Still, chipped paint bothers me. Thanks again for the tips and perspective.

 

[jtsang25]

You want a unique color but don't want attention? The supra will get attention regardless. There won't be many as production ends in few years. And Toyota cut production in half compared to last year.

 

[concept]

You want a unique color but don't want attention? The supra will get attention regardless. There won't be many as production ends in few years. And Toyota cut production in half compared to last year.

Thanks. Quick question: Does the blue color have metal flake in it?

 

[SoDakMk5]

The 2017 NSX is $120k, but auto loans for vehicles older than 2019 tend to be much higher. The Lotus Emira would run $110k or so, but according to owners in the UK, more than 10% of their cars are having driveability issues - not good if your closest dealership is 80 miles or more away. Obviously, I don't want a plain Jane car that is everywhere you look. C8 Corvettes and Porsches are very common over here.
So yes, a new Supra is a great bang-for-the-buck choice that is uncommon and reliable. I hope the squeaks and rattles I've been reading about have been eraticated for 2024.

I’d run away from the lotus. They have lots of issues and won’t stand behind the warranty. My boss has had plenty of them and he had a transmission issue at 2k miles and they told him to F off. Keep in mind this dealership is tied to a Porsche dealership and they have bought 1-2 Porsches a year from them over the last 10 years and nothing from them. Get the Supra. If u hate it sell it. But u will like it for the money it’s one of the best bang for buck in the market especially once u start turning it up

 

[jtsang25]

Thanks. Quick question: Does the blue color have metal flake in it?

Which blue? The newest one does.

 

[concept]

Which blue? The newest one does.

Yes, the Stratosphere Blue
Thanks.

 

[concept]

I’d run away from the lotus. They have lots of issues and won’t stand behind the warranty. My boss has had plenty of them and he had a transmission issue at 2k miles and they told him to F off. Keep in mind this dealership is tied to a Porsche dealership and they have bought 1-2 Porsches a year from them over the last 10 years and nothing from them. Get the Supra. If u hate it sell it. But u will like it for the money it’s one of the best bang for buck in the market especially once u start turning it up

That's good advice. I've been monitoring the two large forums for 8 months. There are some very angry customers in the UK. I'm going to sell my 2014 Mazda 3 sedan and get my Lotus deposit back.

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