2002 Roadtrek 190 Versatile - 12/17/22 - Hood Vinyl Wrap

A listing of thoughts, ideas, repairs, projects, and experiences.
Post Reply
kurtfranz
Site Admin
Posts: 48
Joined: Tue May 24, 2022 8:26 pm

2002 Roadtrek 190 Versatile - 12/17/22 - Hood Vinyl Wrap

Post by kurtfranz »

This is actually a continuation of this earlier post viewtopic.php?t=5

The paint on my hood was starting to peel at a rapid pace - to the point where a heavy rain or car wash would cause it to begin peeling off. Actually, what happens is that a "bubble" will form where the paint has not adhered to the primer then the bubble will eventually burst and then the paint begins coming off in sheets. In the picture below you can see where this occurred - I have sanded these areas but you can get a good idea:

Hood Paint Peel Areas 1
Hood Paint Peel Areas 1
hoodpeel1.jpg (183.08 KiB) Viewed 11822 times
Since this problem was going to get worse and I am not a bodywork expert, I decided to purchase some white Vinyl Wrap - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M7 ... =UTF8&th=1 -and cover the hood so that it would be protected until the day comes when I remove it and take it to a shop to be painted. That being said, I knew that this was going to be a tough job and that it would most likely not look very professional when I was finished. I accepted this and put forth my best effort at applying the vinyl - after sanding and cleaning the hood. It took me a while to get the vinyl positioned and I started at the top and worked down. I realized that I would not have too many chances to get this right, so when I got it as close as I could I just went for it and moved forward. Initially it did not seem too bad, but after a few minutes I realized that it was going to look like a third grader performed this job. By the time I was finished it looked bad, there were wrinkles everywhere along with some small bubbles.

Wrinkles in the Hood Vinyl
Wrinkles in the Hood Vinyl
HoodWrinkles1.jpg (200.44 KiB) Viewed 11822 times
I then used a hair dryer to apply a bit of heat to smooth some of this out which did help a bit - now it looked like a sixth grade project. However my goal of having the hood protected from the elements was accomplished no matter how bad it looked.

Hood Wrap Final
Hood Wrap Final
IMG_5255.JPG (2 MiB) Viewed 11822 times

Please take note that someone who actually knew what they were doing and took their time could achieve a very nice and acceptable result using vinyl. Unfortunately I am not that guy and was in a hurry as I was leaving for a trip where I was expecting rain. So, it really is a good viable option for those unlucky folks suffering from the "Peeling Paint Syndrome".
Post Reply