Matte paint colors add a touch of exotic to any car, and elevate the look of already-pricey vehicles from luxury brands like Mercedes and BMW, all the way to Aston Martin and Lamborghini. The temptation is certainly there when shopping for a new car. However, matte paint simply has different care requirements versus your standard glossy paints. Any potential buyer should be aware of the full scope of owning a vehicle with matte paint before taking the plunge.
The Allure of Matte Paint
While it might not be everyone’s taste, you simply won’t find factory matte paint on everyday commuters. Matte or satin paint finishes are synonymous with the sleekest high-end vehicles on the planet. If you spec out a brand new Lamborghini on their website, you may be surprised to see how many of their glossy paint options also have a matte or satin counterpart. While matte black is among the most popular non-glossy paint finishes you’ll see, matte paint finishes from certain manufacturers carry just as many color options as you’ll find with traditional glossy paints.
Automakers and enthusiasts love the look because it’s downright eye-catching. According to Dr. Beasley’s (a leading matte paint care company), over 55% of surveyed owners of matte black cars purchased their vehicle for the look. Since the vast majority of cars on the road are sporting a traditional glossy finish, matte or satin paint finishes immediately make your car stand out. Aesthetically, they sharpen the appearance of every body line, giving any car a more chiseled and stately look. Matte and satin paint finishes also tend to “look” cleaner for longer in between washes, since surface-level dust or dirt tends to be less noticeable. Simply put, there is a lot to love.
The Hidden Challenges of Matte Paint Maintenance
Not all that glitters is gold, however. When you own a car with a matte paint finish, there is no polishing or buffing allowed—any scratches you pick up along the way are permanent. While most light scratches in glossy paint can be removed with a professional paint correction treatment, any attempt to remove a scratch on matte or satin paint will compromise the finish of the affected area, making it appear glossy in that one spot – and still likely fail to remove the scratch. Having that panel professionally repainted would be your only viable option.
Scratches aren’t the only issue. The porosity of the clear-coats of these paints tend to absorb environmental contaminants like a sponge. If you thought removing stains, bird droppings, and water spots from your standard glossy paint was tough, you’re in for a real headache trying to do the same with matte or satin paint. Even fingerprints can soak in and become a permanent fixture in the finish. You’ll need to be meticulous, and use only the mildest soaps and cleaning products to care for your matte paint. While we would never recommend any vehicle’s paint be processed through an automatic-brush wash, it’s considered a death sentence for matte paint.
The Cost of Long-Term Matte Paint Ownership
If you’ve ever been unfortunate enough to come out-of-pocket for repaint work from a body shop, you may still feel queasy when thinking back to how much it set you back. If you have matte or satin paint, go ahead and double or triple that number – assuming you can find a body shop that is willing to take on the job. Matte paint requires a specialized process that not all paint technicians are familiar with. If you actually need repaint work for matte paint, it will have you considering a second mortgage.
For those in the know, you may even run into some resale concerns. A lot of the things I’ve mentioned so far aren’t a secret. The knowledgeable buyer of a matte or satin-painted vehicle will not only scrutinize the external care history of the vehicle, but also seek out things like scratches and fingerprints – knowing that simple repairs are out of the question. It will become a key factor in the negotiation.
The Best Alternative: Matte PPF (Paint Protection Film)
If you’ve read this far, you may be wondering if we are some kind of anti-matte paint activists. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth! We love matte and satin finishes on cars, but we just can’t stand the maintenance issues that follow. Thankfully, there is a definitive solution that truly does offer the best of both worlds: Matte PPF (Paint Protection Film). With specialized matte PPF from brands like XPEL, you can gain all of the benefits of a matte or satin paint job without any of the maintenance woes. PPF fundamentally functions as a clear and colorless (invisible) barrier that seals directly against your paint to keep it safe from damage. If you’ve ever had a screen protector installed on your phone, a lightbulb should be going off in your head right now.
The incredible self-healing properties of matte PPF manage to eliminate minor swirls and scratches when exposed to sunlight, saving you from the paint scratch issue mentioned earlier. Moreover, PPF fundamentally keeps any paint safe from common rock chips and road debris – allowing your new car to actually stay looking new for years on end. Since matte PPF will be fully sealing-in your paint surface, you’ll never have to deal with any of the environmental contamination that would otherwise stain or age your paint. The fingerprint, bug splatter, bird dropping, and tree sap issue no longer exists. Round all of that out with a 10-year manufacturer’s warranty, and you can understand why matte PPF is gaining in popularity.
One of the most significant things to note, however, is the ability to convert a glossy car to a matte look with matte PPF. Often referred to in the industry as a “stealth conversion” or ‘stealth transformation”, it’s the exact same paint that you know and love, but now seen through a “matte filter”. If your paint has metallic flakes in it, those flakes will still shine though brilliantly for a stunning effect in the sunlight. For all of the reasons mentioned above, gaining the appearance of matte paint through the use of matte PPF is by far the most practical approach.
Already Own a Matte Car? Here’s Your Best Move
So you decided to buy a car with matte paint anyways? That’s okay – just be sure not to skip out on getting matte PPF to go with it. Not just frontal coverage, but the whole thing. Matte or satin paint finishes have a range of variation when it comes to the distinctiveness of the finish. If you were to apply matte PPF just to the front-end of a matte-painted car, you would likely see some subtle differences between the panels covered by matte PPF, and those that aren’t. By covering the complete paint finish with matte PPF, you are not only ensuring a completely consistent finish, but protection from all angles as well.
There are a number of matte PPF brands out there, but our best experience has been with the XPEL’s flagship film, called “Stealth”. XPEL Stealth PPF delivers on all aspects that a meticulous car care enthusiast would want. It’s non-yellowing, extremely durable, virtually invisible, and long-lasting. Even better, the software that’s packaged with it provides your installer with highly-accurate templates that fit your car like a glove, raising the ceiling for how precise the final product can appear. All of that being said, there is still much more than film choice that will determine how your project comes out.
Your final results will much more substantially depend on the experience and techniques that your installer is implementing. Much like a home renovation project, you largely get what you pay for, so finding the cheapest installer is almost certain to lead to lackluster results – even with a high-quality PPF. For a high-quality matte PPF installation that will pass the “car show check”, be sure to seek out a professional team that specifically has experience with matte PPF products and a solid reputation to back it up.
Final Thoughts: Why Matte PPF is the Smart Choice
The long-term benefits of choosing matte PPF over factory matte paint are numerous. Not only are you avoiding all of the maintenance headaches with matte or satin paint, but you are also avoiding pricy repair bills when minor damage occurs. Matte PPF is a sacrificial barrier, so it is designed to be easily replaced if it ever sustains any substantial damage. These same-day replacements are not only far more convenient, but come in at only a fraction of the cost of new paintwork from a body shop – and we haven’t even gotten into the resale value factor when your CarFax report shows a history of repaints. If you haven’t managed to draw some conclusions on that already, just ask the largest Porsche forum in the world.
Getting PPF installed on your car rarely translates to immediately higher resale value. However, where you begin to win out financially is when you’re selling your car after several years of enjoyment. If you visit the pre-owned lot of any car dealership, it’s abundantly clear that vehicles in better condition simply sell for more money. They also sell faster. This is magnified several-fold in the luxury car space, where exterior condition can sway the value by as much as 5-figure amounts depending on the make and model. This has become such a substantial factor that luxury brands such a Porsche nearly require it when selling you a brand new 911. They have no interest in reselling a luxury vehicle that’s been peppered up with rock chips over the years, and neither should you.
If you’re serious about both elevating the style and preserving the condition of your brand new car—upgrading to matte PPF should really be at the top of your list.
Choose AP3 to Get the Matte Paint Look without the Matte Paint Headache
If you live in the Atlanta area, AP3 is your go-to shop for matte PPF experts with XPEL Stealth. AP3 specializes in professional paint protection film installation, premium window tinting, and ceramic coating services that tailored for owners of new vehicles with glossy or matte paint. With several locations across the north metro-Atlanta area and thousands of projects completed, our team is among the most trusted in the industry to help you transform and protect your car with matte PPF. Get a free quote today!
