3M Film report (2023, on 2011 Prius) and touch-up paint sources

A 2023 report on 3m film, applied to a 2011 Prius right after purchase (late 2010)... and replacement clear bra on the front bumper cover about 7 years ago. (I'm now replacing the front bumper cover...again... )

• Background: I have NOT had time/energy to be a fanatic. Way too much medical and other stuff. So this car gets washed... occasionally. Even though it has been horribly abused, taking my nature photographer sweetie all over the nation, on dirt backroads, off-road sometimes, up in the mountains of Colorado... from Florida to Washington, Niagara Falls to San Diego, and everywhere in between. 230k miles.
• I've got film on: front bumper cover, 18 inches of hood and a bit of fender to match, headlights, mirrors, rocker panels (had to look that up - below the doors), a curve at the front of front doors and back of back doors, and on door edges.
• 13 years later, the film is still perfectly clear
• I can count 2-3 places where the film has been broken by a rock hit.

What was a waste? Curve on front of front doors.

What has taken a beating (yet ok still, although some edges are dirty)? Front bumper, hood, rocker panels, back of back doors, door edges. ALSO, I wonder if the fact that the second bumper cover was not from the factory, explains why the lower back edges were peeling with the paint... or maybe it was just that it got scuffed too much?

What should I have done but didn't? Front of roof, maybe the front pillars.

• A foot of film would have prevented well over a dozen chips
• There are 2 in the next inch (13" film would cover)
• One at 15", one at 16"
• NOTE: I am concerned about the weld seam from roof to body in the gutter on the front of the roof. About six inches of the seam is rusting on driver side. Looks like inadequate paint covering. I'll take care of it while fixing the edge dings. See photo...
  

Other notes while I'm at it and getting ready to spiff this car up (now that it has a brand new 2015 engine, thanks to Hybrid Pit in Buena Park )

• Sounds too good to be true, but it is real: MBI sells painted-to-match (3 coats paint, 2 clear coat) front bumper covers, $350-360 including shipping. "Lifetime" warranty. Great and responsive customer service: they had a mfg defect on the first one and made me a new one right away! Lots of 5 star reviews.
• Duplicolor does NOT make a paint for my (4T8 Sandy Beach Metallic) car (nor any Subarus!)
• Best source - surprisingly awesome - for exact match paint is any chain that can do the complete PPG color system. ECS (English Color & Supply) covers almost a dozen states in the south/west USA. They handed me five different "4T8" paint chip variants and told me to go match my car. They know of ten more but don't have a formula to mix them. For $50 in five minutes they handed me a spray can that exactly matches.
• Learn about 1k vs 2k clear coat. The latter is much harder, closer to OEM. Only problem: once you push the button to mix it, you have about 16 hours before it's unusable. (Spray Max USC 2k is best I've found.)
• I've learned: some of the solvents today are both dangerous and have no odor. Yikes. I decided not to mess around. Purchased a certified 3M solution: 6502/3QL mask and a pair of 60926 filters. Protects me from everything other than mercury. Need to count time in use since my only indication of a full filter will be if I smell other solvents. $65 of peace of mind.

 

Good to know! I already have a touch-up pen from the dealer. Unfortunately, I needed a spray can for larger areas. For one, I need to paint a replacement tow-eye cover in the front bumper...

One thing to note: the clear coat that comes with paintscratch.com kits is a 1k clear coat. They separately sell "catalyzed" clear coat. That's the 2k stuff. (Interesting: they ask for a VIN for a better match... makes sense to me: the variants are based on which factory made the vehicle!)