I have been interested in the Slate EV pickup that they are expecting to release before the end of this year. It will come in one color, the gray of the substance that the body panels are made of, and they are promoting wraps as, among other things, a way to get a virtually uniquely colored vehicle if you want.
So what’s your opinion of wraps in a situation like this? I think they are using this approach in order to keep the cost of the base model (what they call the Blank Slate) down (final base price is not settled yet). Painting a vehicle adds a lot to the cost, I gather, and if you are okay with the plain gray, Slate doesn’t need to spend money on paint and you don’t need to buy a wrap. I’m especially interested in hearing practical experience from people who have had a wrap applied to a vehicle themselves, or who work in an industry (like public transportation) where wraps are frequently used.
I’d like to keep this discussion focused on this question, and not on the various other issues surrounding this vehicle. Thanks in advance.
Previous —slightly related— thread.
I designed a wrap for a RAM pickup about 10 years ago. Looked great, and didn’t show much degradation over 5 years. The design didn’t cover the entire truck — just the doors, exterior bed, rear gate and a line of text on the hood. Did it that way because that was the design I wanted, but it was also cheaper.
Did the measurements myself, and used stock photos and photoshop to create the four art panels (sides, hood, tailgate) which the wrap company printed and applied. Of course the wrap companies offer complete design services. They have templates for most vehicle models.
Note I decided to go with a custom paint job, and am glad I did even if it was twice as expensive. Still have the car 8 years later.
Thanks for the link to a previous thread. I wonder if the comparative costs have changed in the past 8 years. Cheapest wraps are still being quoted at around $1500, I think. I don’t know how much a paint job would cost. At least prep shouldn’t be much of an issue for a new vehicle.
If you’re going to keep the
If you’re going to keep the car wraps won’t look as good as paint over the longer term.
More importantly, wraps are only as good as the installer is competent; especially around the tougher areas like rearview mirrors. I know someone who got a Sprinter wrapped; the timing was such that it was after the side LED bars (up high, scene lighting) were installed. The right way to do it would have been to remove those light bars, install the wrap on a flat surface & then reinstall them. Nope, the installer installed around them so there are seams where there shouldn’t be seams & looks like $#!+ up close.
I was also driving behind a wrapped Ford van yesterday, I knew it was a Ford because I could see where the oval was under the wrap on the rear door. Totally amateur job.
My son wrapped(partially) his truck.
He(we) measured carefully. Which is key.
He did pretty good..it was a job for about 6 hands at times.
It wasn’t hard, just fussy.
Installer should be adept at measurements and knowing his product. With a very clean shop. Little bits of stuff show with the cheaper wraps.
I think they can really look nice, done well.
Maybe it saves the original finish, a bit.(?)
No first-hand but I think they’re neat looking and make some really cool cars possible. A bad wrap is far less consequential than bad paint and probably cheaper.
Taxi cab wraps and repaints are hilarious for this kind of halfassery.