Well, now I have even more to talk about since my last review! As some backstory, I looked for the…read moreright used Honda Fit for almost a year before I bought mine in late 2020 because I had very specific criteria: I wanted one that had been treated well by its previous owner, I wanted a specific trim level, I would only buy the car if the deal was right, but most limiting of all I wanted a specific ridiculous uncommon factory color - one called 'Mystic Yellow Pearl', a three-stage yellow with a pearlescent green finish, reminiscent of a perfectly ripe avocado. After a long search I found my baby, named her Dill [Dill Avocardo for long], and quickly got very attached; so attached, in fact, that I had Dennis and his crew do full front paint protection film. Sure, it's overkill for an economy commuter, but one of the things I love about the car is the color and I want to keep driving her for a long long time, so why not keep the paint in good shape?
Late last year my hideous little car suddenly became famous, pictures of her rear splashed in news stories all over the world. Dill was parked at the local stables where I ride horses when someone made, uh, some choices, and they smashed multiple cars.. Including mine. She was punted from behind and sailed over a curb through a hedge, coming to rest partway down an embankment. I was, understandably, concerned about how she'd fared. What if they totaled her? I discussed it with my husband and we quickly decided that should she meet our standards [intact powertrain and frame], even if insurance decided her days were done we would keep and fix her anyway - we could handle the dark mark of a salvage title as we know she'd still be a good car. The idea of going through the car shopping process again - especially with the market as it is - was too exhausting.
Her powertrain and frame were thankfully intact - and to my surprise so was the suspension - but as is probably less surprising the damage was still fairly extensive. She needed a rear hatch and rear bumper including painting and blending, rear lights, belly tray, exhaust, radiator support, front grill, front plate mount, and an alignment. But the good news: she squeaked in under the amount of repairs that would have totaled her. And.. Notice how she didn't need a front bumper or a hood, or even paint work in the front?
If it weren't for the PPF, getting flung fifteen feet through the bushes probably WOULD have resulted in enough damage to the labor-intensive three-stage front-end paint that she would've been totaled. But thanks to the PPF, she lives on with her clean title intact.
Dennis handled the mechanical work and coordinating with the body shop he recommended to get her fixed - I now work in public transit and thus couldn't do the repairs in my own shop, so he's the first one I thought of when I was figuring out who I could trust to take care of her. He kept me updated, gave me the alignment specs before and after so I know her suspension truly is sound, and even coordinated an after-hours lockout pickup to make life easier for me instead of needing to battle traffic to be reunited. She's back home, scooting around the Bay again. And we were so happy with how everything worked out, we even had them PPF the roof too: there's no doubt in my mind she's worth what we paid for a little more protection.
If you're on the fence about getting PPF and you know you want to keep your car long-term, I definitely recommend it even more than I would have a few months ago. You never know: it could make all the difference.
