One of the fastest and least costly ways to change the look of your car is to cover the exterior and interior surfaces with automotive wrap. Also, this method allows you to protect the glued surfaces from corrosion and minor mechanical damage. Car windows can be tinted with a special tint film.
Necessary
- - auto film;
- - sink;
- - isopropyl alcohol;
- - detergents and water;
- - soft and hard squeegees;
- - a breadboard knife or scalpel;
- - tape measure or centimeter;
- - industrial dryer;
- - soft tissue;
- - assistant
Instructions
Step 1
To prepare the body for pasting the glass, wash it thoroughly. Remove and put away headlights, lights, door handles, locks, antennas and any plastic items that could be accidentally damaged. Wipe clean surfaces with isopropyl alcohol to remove residual grease and degrease the areas to be prepared. After that, dilute the detergent in water, apply the prepared solution to the body in a large amount and let it dry completely. Re-clean the body surfaces with alcohol, carefully going through the edges and grooves.
Step 2
If you want to achieve a high quality pasting, choose a dry method of applying the film. Prepare a clean, dry and warm work area. Keep the purchased film indoors for a while so that its temperature is about 20 degrees. Make sure you have all the tools you need at hand.
Step 3
Open the film by marking and cutting it into pieces of the desired size and shape. Measure the material with a margin. After cutting the film, check on the car to see if everything was done correctly. Then place each piece of film separately on the table face down and separate the backing at an angle of 30 degrees. Do not grab a new sheet of film without finishing pasting the previous one.
Step 4
To adhere a sheet of film to the surface, stretch it slightly and attach it to the car body. First of all, fix the material in the upper corners by pressing on it with your finger. Then use a squeegee to roll the film from top to bottom and from center to edge. In doing so, ensure that air bubbles are expelled over the edge of the sheet of film. Remove excessive bubbles by slightly peeling off the material from the body panel and gluing it back on. Never pierce or cut air bubbles.
Step 5
After gluing the film, be sure to warm it up with a hair dryer to further activate the adhesive layer and extend the life of the film. To do this, keep the hair dryer at a distance of 20 cm from the material and evenly move the stream of hot air throughout the entire area. Warm up hard-to-reach places especially well - edges of body panels, corners, embossings. Normal heating should make the film soft and pliable, but not overheat it.
Step 6
If the conceived design involves printing on film, think over it in advance, taking into account possible stretching of the material and possible changes in the proportions of the applied image. At the joints of various body parts, the reserve of the film along the edges is tucked inside the gap. The size of the margin for the fold should be no more than 5 mm.
Step 7
Do not cut film around body rivets. Just heat it up and gently glue it to the surface of the rivet so that the material perfectly covers the surface of the rivet. Stick the inscriptions cut on a plotter only after the base coat has been completely applied. Avoid applying film to plastic body parts, especially those marked with plastics such as ABS or PP. The film will not last long on these types of plastics.
Step 8
To remove the pasted film, place the car in a warm room in advance for 2-3 hours. When heating the film with an industrial hair dryer to 60-80 degrees, slowly remove it at an angle of 30 degrees, starting from the edges. Make sure that the film to be removed is well warmed up. Otherwise, you risk damaging the paintwork.
