TPU vs PVC; The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

If you’ve been in the car-detailing industry for a while, you should be no stranger to paint protection films. After all, these films, otherwise known as clear bras, have been on the market for over 2 decades. What might surprise you is that vast improvements have been made on these films since the early days, and one of these improvements is that paint protection films are now more commonly produced using a TPU (Thermoplastic polyurethane) material instead of the PVC (Polyvinyl chloride) material that was used in the past. Although they might look similar at first glance, the two types of plastic are actually wildly different in a number of aspects.

Physical strength & elasticity

PVC (Polyvinyl chloride), is the world's third-most widely produced synthetic plastic polymer. It is also the predominant material used in first-generation paint protection films. While PVC films do provide certain protection to the vehicle, its rigid nature makes installation very difficult, especially with wrapped edges and vehicles with more curvatures.