Question for those of you living in areas that experience winter w/ salt/gravel on the roads.

Are you seeing many paint chips on the front bumper with could lead to surface rust?

I had an 02 F150 Sport with a painted bumper and it got destroyed by Canadian winter roads.

 

Though I don't have an '09+ F150, my '04 non-heritage does have painted bumpers and it has gotten chipped up from Colorado driving.

 

The solution is 3m Clear bra. I did my F150 after I hit a deer and got a new bumper. Its holding up very well. Next truck will get it day #1.

 

The other clear protection is a product called Ventureshield. My new F150 goes in to have it placed next week. My wife has this on her Murano and it has saved the front of her vehicle and headlights from a multitude of dings and chips.

 

Paint protection. Check out expel film.

 

Do these clear covers change the appearance minorly? Like can you tell its got a clear cover on it?

 

If you crouch down and look up close. But better a hard to see film then a bunch of rusty stone marks 3 months later!

 

quick answer: yes my painted bumper has a couple small chips, both rusted QUICKLY.

 

if you go places that tint windows they usually also do that film to go over certain parts of your vehicle, the place I go to uses a film made by 3m and its virtually invisible, the guy said they get ferrari's and lambos in there all the time getting the whole car done with this film to protect the paint. they could probably quote you if you call around.

 

My quote for Ventureshield was $600 to do the bumper, headlights, fog lamps, front edge of hood and leading edges of fenders, etc. It has a lifetime warranty also and IMO looks much better than a bug deflector which only protects the hood.

 

Thanks for the info guys, the FX4 will be my next truck since I don't really like the fake wood in the Lariat and Platinum.

Might just wait for 2011 and see what Ford does.

 

My truck has the painted bumpers, now bout a year ago I got into an
Accident where the whole front bumper had to
Be replaced and freshly painted. The new paint held up for a couple of months until winter driving destroyed it. So I brought it back to the body shop and I got him to repaint it under there warranty, now this was back in june. I noticed last week my dam bumper started to chip again. But what I
Notice is that its not stone chips, is almost as if the paint bubbles then falls off as if it was a stone chip. The bumper hasn't even seen snow or salt roads yet . So for now I just touch it up so it don't get worse or rust. Before the accident,the orig paint fromnthe factory held up so much bettr!

 

Same thing happened to me Antz -

With my '03, the front bumper & air dam had the usual couple small rock chips, but I had kept up with them with touch up paint.

Then, after a deer hit, got a new bumper and air dam which was painted at the body shop.
A couple months later, even though it was winter (use salt/anti-skid here), the paint was bubling from behind all over the place.

Took it back to the body shop, and he insisted that it was chips from the anti-skid.....until I showed him one bubble that hadn't popped yet, and popped it right in front of him -

Anyway, I am back to the painted bumper on my '09 - haven't been through a winter yet. I've had 2 rock chips so far which I touched up immediately.

I really wanted to get the clear bra right away when I first got the truck, but just had a hard time with the cost.

So, it's too late now I think - going to keep going bare.

I figure that for the cost of the clear bra (~$500), that will pay for 2 bumper repaints if needed in the future years.

And, besides that - if I hit another deer, the clear bra would have been a waste as I will be getting a new bumper anyway.

 

How much are chrome bumpers?

 

I hear ya. My original was holding up ok. Then I hit a deer, needed a new bumper which boddy shop had to paint. Within 6 months rusted piece of cr@p. Embarassing. Showed body shop guy, he repainted (a better job too), then I put on the 3M clear bra and 2.5 years later all good. Holding up really well.