Paint protection film after new paint?

Ian Mills · March 29, 2021

My truck is currently at the body shop getting some work done and when I get it back it will have all new paint. I want to apply some 3M paint protection film on the rockers because I noticed that there was a lot of wear there (down to primer) from sand and gravel getting thrown up by the tires.

How long do I need to wait? Can I put it on the day I get the truck back? or wait a week? 30 days?

dsr611 · March 29, 2021

Need to ask the body shop folks...think I'd let them put it on while it's in the shop also

Sharpz · March 30, 2021

I agree with the above. If you are spending all this money on body work in alaska where you have so much salt and whatever, why not just have the body shop do the work? I wouldnt go to a dentist for an implant, then go home and file it into shape.

Ian Mills · March 30, 2021

Well I have no intention of covering the whole truck, just a couple high-wear spots. With that in mind, I'm confident I can do it myself and save a good chunk of money compared to paying a shop.

Also, side note: road crews in Alaska don't tend to use very much salt, it's mostly gravel and sand. It's below freezing for so long at a time that the salt solution would get diluted and refreeze which would be worse than the original problem. Because of this, our rust problems are not nearly as bad as one might expect compared to the upper midwest and east coast.

dsr611 · March 30, 2021

Still, I'd check with the body shop on timeframe before you can put it on. Last vehicle I had painted (back in mid 90s), I couldn't wash it for a week, then could only use water for 2 weeks when washing it, then could do a full wash on it after 3 weeks. With today's paint products, you may be able to install it sooner or you may have to wait a while.