If you are thinking of getting your car wrapped, you might wonder how well this wrapping will cope when the weather is bad, not least after seeing one curious story from Florida.
Amid all the mayhem and misery caused by Hurricane Milton, some regarded the story of one car owner somewhat amusing, as he wrapped his vehicle in a large plastic sheet as a defence against the approaching powerful storm before parking it in his garage.
A Wrap For A Hurricane
John Santos, who lives in Palm Beach, posted a TikTok of his efforts to protect his prize Corvette, which he bought in January. The images went viral, with a somewhat mixed reception among the millions who viewed it, not least among those who suggested his best way of protecting the car from the hurricane would be to jump in and drive out of Florida.
Mr Santos was insistent that this was not the best idea, as going north could lead him into an area where the storm would be even more severe, so he stuck to the plan, which he said was inspired by a similar example he had seen from a car owner in Tampa Bay.
However, the great irony of it all was that his preparations were unnecessary, as the storm lost strength after making landfall on Florida’s west coast (where Tampa Bay is located) and was considerably weakened by the time it reached Palm Beach on the eastern seaboard.
Even so, this may prompt people thinking of getting their car wrapped to ask a question: how well will an ordinary car wrap handle bad weather here? True, we may not get seasonal hurricanes in Britain, but we do get stormy weather, heavy rain, hailstorms and snow. Equally, however, a car wrap does not use thick industrial plastic, but a thin layer of vinyl.
How Your Wrap Can Handle A British Winter
The answer is that it can handle the winter weather very well indeed, but there are some key things you will need to do to look after it. Many of these are common sense steps.
For instance, when it gets very cold and frosty, you might use a scraper to get the ice off the windows, but don’t do this to the vinyl-wrapped part as this could tear. You should also clean areas that have got salt from gritters on them, as well as anything dirty because of anything from splashed mud to bird poop.
Ideally, you should do this without a pressure wash that can cause peeling around the edges, while any small tears should be seen to and fixed as soon as possible to stop them getting any larger. These may be caused by flying debris in a strong storm, such as twigs and small branches snapping off trees.
These are all basic common sense things and the best way to think about it as winter approaches is that it is all part of the extra maintenance and vigilance you need as you tackle the challenges that running a car in winter weather will bring.
Sometimes that will, for any driver, include making wise decisions about whether it is safe to be on the road at all, although it will not get so bad that you will feel the need to place a thick industrial plastic wrap over your car - unless a weatherman assures us there is no hurricane on its way (older readers who were around in 1987 will understand this).
Making Your Wrap Last
Typically, a vinyl car wrap will last between five and seven years if it is looked after well. Of course, this does depend on a few factors, not least the quality of the wrap and the standard of the installation work.
At the same time, this will also vary due to climate factors. Very cold weather can certainly play its part, so if you live in a colder part of the UK such as Scotland, or an upland area, your wrapped car will benefit from spending less time outside and more in a garage with at least some insulation.
At the same time, a lot of exposure to strong UV radiation can also have an impact, although that is something that, like hurricanes, is far more likely to be a major concern in Florida than in the cloudy UK.
Overall, therefore, there is no reason to fear that a new wrap this autumn will end up disintegrating, shrivelling or peeling under the onslaught of the winter weather, or when the sun shines on it next summer. You certainly won’t need to hide your car away in the garage under a thick sheet of industrial plastic to protect it.
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