Vehicle Wrap FAQ: 399 Real Questions, Answered From the Shop Floor

At Chicago Fleet Wraps a full wrap runs from $2,850 for a car to $9,200 for a 26 ft box truck, installed. The common commercial jobs: cargo van $4,200, Sprinter 144 $4,200, Ford Transit high roof $4,900, pickup truck $3,500, step van $6,350. Every price includes design, print, cast vinyl, overlaminate and installation. Pricing follows the wrappable square footage, about $14 per square foot installed, rounded to the nearest $50. See every vehicle price.

A full wrap on a standard cargo van (Ford Transit, Ram ProMaster, Chevy Express or GMC Savana) is $4,200 at Chicago Fleet Wraps, installed. A Ford Transit high roof is $4,900 because of the extra wall height, and a Sprinter 170 high roof is $6,000. A partial wrap is 55 percent of the full price and lettering is 20 percent. The price covers design, print, cast vinyl, lamination and install. Cargo van wraps.

Box truck wraps at Chicago Fleet Wraps are priced by length and body type: a 16 ft smooth body is $5,300, a 16 ft riveted body $6,000, 20 ft $7,100, 24 ft $8,250 and 26 ft $9,200, installed. Riveted and corrugated bodies cost more because every rivet is post-heated and the film is worked into each channel by hand. The price covers design, print, cast vinyl with overlaminate and installation. Box truck wraps.

A full color change at Chicago Fleet Wraps starts at $2,850 for a Tesla Model 3 and $2,950 for most sedans. A Tesla Model Y or Model X is $3,250, a Rivian R1T $3,950, a Rivian R1S $4,100, a Cybertruck $5,200, and Porsche or exotic sized cars $4,050. Color change films from 3M (2080) and Avery Dennison cost more than printed wrap film, which is why a color change runs about 15 percent above a printed wrap on the same vehicle. Color change wraps.

For a work vehicle a wrap is usually the cheaper route, and it does something paint cannot: carry your branding. A full cargo van wrap is $4,200 installed at Chicago Fleet Wraps and takes 2 to 3 business days in the bay. A multi color paint job with graphics takes longer and leaves you with a permanent color. A wrap is reversible, protects the factory paint underneath and can be replaced one panel at a time. Paint wins when you will keep a vehicle well past 7 years in one solid color.

A full wrap covers every painted panel with printed cast vinyl. A partial wrap covers a defined area, usually the rear doors and the back half of each side, and costs 55 percent of the full price. Lettering (also called decals or cut graphics) puts your logo, phone number and DOT numbers on the paint for 20 percent of the full price. Most trades start with a partial or full wrap because the branded area is what people read from 40 feet away. Full vs partial vs spot graphics.

Yes. Fleet discounts apply per contract: 2 to 4 vehicles 3 percent off, 5 to 9 vehicles 7 percent, 10 to 24 vehicles 11 percent, and 25 or more 15 percent. On a $4,200 cargo van that is $4,074, $3,906, $3,738 and $3,570 per van, so five vans total $19,530 and ten vans $37,380. The tiers count mixed fleets too: six vans and four box trucks on one contract is ten vehicles. Larger programs can be staged across billing cycles. Fleet wrap cost.

Vehicle wraps are generally deductible as a business advertising expense under IRS Publication 535 (IRC section 162), the same category as signs and print ads, and are normally expensed in the year you pay rather than depreciated as equipment. The deduction applies to wraps that advertise your business, not to a color change on a personal car. Keep the itemized invoice, which breaks out design, material and installation. Ask your tax professional how it applies to your situation. Wraps and taxes.

Yes. Removal at Chicago Fleet Wraps is priced at 40 percent of the equivalent full wrap price. Quality cast film removes with heat and leaves factory paint clean; the extra hours go into adhesive residue from cheap film or film left years past its life, and that is what drives removal cost up. We remove wraps installed by other shops too, and a new wrap can go on the same visit. Wrap removal.

A cast vinyl wrap installed and cared for properly lasts 5 to 7 years in Chicago. That is a service life, not a warranty: Chicago Fleet Wraps backs the installation with a 2 year workmanship warranty and the premium film with a 5 year material warranty. What shortens the life is sun on horizontal panels (roof and hood), brush car washes, pressure washing at the edges and road salt left on through winter. Economy calendered vinyl shrinks and cracks years sooner, which is why we do not use it on fleet work.

No. A cast vinyl wrap protects factory paint in good condition from UV, light abrasion and road grime, and it removes cleanly when the job is done right. Chicago Fleet Wraps has no verified paint damage claims across 19,400+ vehicles. The exceptions are surfaces that were already failing: repainted panels that have not cured (allow about 90 days), peeling clear coat, rust or body filler. Those can lift with the film at removal, so we inspect and flag them before we wrap. Paint and wraps.

Yes, with two rules: use a touchless or hand wash, and keep pressure washer wands away from seams and edges. Brush washes scratch the overlaminate and can catch an edge. Wait a week after installation before any pressure washing while the adhesive finishes curing. In winter rinse road salt off regularly. Matte and satin finishes need a matte specific cleaner and no wax. Follow that and a wrap holds its look for its full 5 to 7 year service life. Wrap care guide.

Two warranties. Chicago Fleet Wraps gives a 2 year workmanship warranty covering installation defects: lifting, peeling, bubbling, edge failure and adhesion problems under normal use. The premium film carries a 5 year material warranty against qualifying material defects under the manufacturer's terms. Neither covers collision damage, brush washes, pressure washing at the edges, or film left on past its service life. Expected service life is 5 to 7 years, a lifespan estimate and not a warranty. Full warranty terms.

Both, and the choice depends on the job. Our primary commercial film is Avery Dennison MPI 1105 cast vinyl with its matching overlaminate; the alternative is 3M IJ180-CV3. Color changes use 3M 2080 or Avery Dennison color change films. Both brands' cast films conform to rivets and compound curves and carry a 5 to 7 year service life. Chicago Fleet Wraps is an Avery Dennison certified installer and installs 3M films as well. We do not use calendered (economy) vinyl on fleet work. 3M vs Avery Dennison.

Yes. Chicago Fleet Wraps keeps the production files for every wrap, so a damaged door or quarter panel can be reprinted and replaced on its own. The new panel is printed on the same film with the same color profile, so the match is close. On a wrap several years into its life the surrounding panels will have faded slightly, and we tell you how visible the difference will be before you decide between one panel and a full rewrap.

Yes. A cast vinyl wrap is removable and protects the factory paint underneath, which is exactly what a lease return inspection wants to see. Tell your leasing company before you wrap; most allow it in writing. Have the wrap removed professionally before turn in: removal is priced at 40 percent of the full wrap price, and quality film comes off factory paint clean. Photograph the vehicle before install so any pre-existing paint issue is on record. Leased car wraps.

Plan on 3 to 5 business days from the day you approve the design to a finished vehicle. The vehicle itself is in our bay 2 to 3 business days for a van or truck; the rest is printing and laminating, which Chicago Fleet Wraps does in house. Design takes as long as your revisions do, and we proof the artwork on a photo of your exact vehicle before anything prints. Fleets are scheduled in stages so most of your vehicles stay on the road.

Send the year, make and model, the coverage you want (full, partial or lettering), your artwork or logo if you have one, and how many vehicles. Chicago Fleet Wraps responds within 2 business hours and sends an itemized quote within 24 hours of having those details. You do not need to bring the vehicle in for a quote; photos help if the vehicle has racks, ladders or a liftgate. Start a quote or call (312) 597-1286.

Yes. Free pickup and delivery covers Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, Will and McHenry counties, for single vehicles and fleets. Installation happens at our shop at 4711 N Lamon Ave in Chicago, which is climate controlled; we do not install in customer yards because vinyl needs a clean, temperature stable bay to bond correctly. For larger or mixed fleets we will survey your vehicles at your yard before production. Customers outside the six counties can drop off; secure indoor overnight storage is available. Service area.

Yes, staged installs are how most fleet programs run. We take two or three vehicles at a time, keep each one 2 to 3 business days, and return them before the next group comes in, so your crews keep working. Overnight and weekend scheduling can be arranged for vehicles that cannot miss a weekday. Free pickup and delivery across the six county area means your drivers never make the trip. For larger or mixed fleets we survey your vehicles at your yard first so every body style is accounted for before printing. Zero downtime fleet wraps.

Chicago Fleet Wraps wraps fleets from our shop at 4711 N Lamon Ave in Portage Park: 2,800+ fleet accounts, 19,400+ vehicles, wrapping since 2001 with Chicago operations since 2014. A fleet shop differs from a sign shop in three ways: it prints and laminates in house so 20 vans match, it keeps your production files so vehicle 21 matches a year later, and it schedules installs in stages so your trucks keep working. Fleet wrap programs.

No. Chicago Fleet Wraps installs vinyl wraps and graphics only: full and partial wraps, color changes, chrome delete, lettering, fleet graphics, reflective and perforated window film, and removal. We do not install paint protection film, window tint or ceramic coating. If you want a wrap plus PPF or tint, have the wrap installed first and the other work done after, and tell the wrap shop about any ceramic coating already on the paint, because vinyl bonds best to paint that is free of wax and coatings.

It depends on the route, and nobody can give you a universal number. The 30,000 to 70,000 impressions per day figure quoted across the industry traces to preliminary testing in a 2003 ARD Ventures paper whose own worked example totals 15,250 impressions in 24 hours. The better evidence is on recall: Nielsen's 2019 out of home study found 64 percent of people noticed a wrapped vehicle ad in the past month and 44 percent in the past week. A van parked at job sites in dense neighborhoods earns more than one on a rural route. Wrap advertising value.

Chicago Fleet Wraps is at 4711 N Lamon Ave #7, Chicago, IL 60630, in Portage Park on the Northwest Side. Hours are Monday to Friday 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Saturday 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Call (312) 597-1286 or email roy@chicagofleetwraps.com. The shop has about 6,000 square feet of installation space across five bays, and you are welcome to visit and see work in progress before you commit. About the shop.