Full Body Clear Bra / Paint Protection Film Installation on our 2019 BMW i8 Roadster
At Harker Heights Ceramic Coatings, we say all the time that we would never recommend something to a client without doing it to our own vehicles. For this reason, we had a full body clear bra (PPF, paint protection film) on our 2014 C7 Corvette Stingray Z51, a nearly full body installation of clear bra on our 2020 Ford Explorer (HHCC company vehicle), and now our 2019 BMW i8 Roadster.
The BMW i8 is a unique supercar, being the first of its kind to offer a hybrid AWD system. Only 6,776 were sold in the United States from 2014-2019, with the Roadster offering considerably less sales. The Roadster was only available during the last two years of production, with less than 4,000 units being sold worldwide. The first i8 Roadster was delivered in May of 2018, and the very last i8 overall was produced just two years later. For this amazing specimen, it is delivered in E-Copper metallic.
Autofilm Mastery - Professional Clear Bra Instruction
We have installed quite a few full body clear bra packages on vehicles by now. However, it’s always fun when it’s your own vehicle. Our mentor, friend, and one of the best clear bra (PPF, paint protection film) installers AND trainers in the country, Mike Norng (owner of Auto Film Mastery and Auto Film Specialists in Houston, Texas) and I installed this together. We filmed this for autofilmmastery.com, which is a library for professional clear bra installers to watch specific vehicle installations to practice, with Mike being the main star (filming the driver side and hood area), and us installing on the passenger side. The day after filming we also did both doors, and a lot of pieces of the rear of the car.
Mike Norng provides a TON of AMAZING tools for paint protection film installers across the world at makemoneyllc.com. His tools are often inventions of his own making, designed to help clear bra installers become better and more efficient, and provide better finished products to our clients.
One of the toughest parts of the i8 is the rear bumper. Not every installation is a completely seamless installation. Sometimes, curves or parts of the car are so severe that they require what are called “relief cuts”, due to the fact that the stress/tension on certain areas are likely to lift the material. The rear bumper requires a triangle-shaped relief cut. We did keep this cut, but eventually we installed STEK high gloss carbon fiber “fashion” clear bra, where we needed to patch it so it looked whole. Sometimes this is required.
The second difficult area was the overhand of the rear quarter panels on the BMW i8. It is a similar overhang to the Ford GT, although there is even less room on the i8. We had to use one of Mike’s specialty tools to finish this job.
Initially, we installed Legend paint protection film on the car from head to toe. Eventually, we replaced all of the gloss black painted areas on the car with the STEK high gloss carbon fiber clear bra.
Just a short bit of time later, we had an issue where a neighborhood kid hit the car with a bicycle (see video below). The paint protection film was damaged, BUT – we pulled it back and NOTHING was damaged underneath. Proof positive that clear bra works!!!
