Matte Today, Gloss Tomorrow, Still Don’t Touch The Cars

Sun on the shop floor, cutters snapping, and a Ford GT gleaming under fresh film—this one is for people who love cars and want them to last. We set up at Gulf Coast Auto Shield with owner John Gray to explore how a protection-first mindset turned a corner-bay detailing gig into three thriving Houston locations. The throughline is simple and powerful: do clean work, protect value, and treat every client like the next referral.

John walks us through today’s projects, including a Ferrari F12 getting full stealth paint protection film for a matte finish without the headaches of fragile factory matte paint. We compare vinyl color wraps to newer color PPF options, breaking down heat resistance, UV durability, and why warranties matter in Texas sun. You’ll hear how stealth PPF can transform gloss to satin, stay reversible, and still guard against chips and rash—plus how ceramic coatings, nano-ceramic tint, windshield protection, and discrete radar/laser installs complete a smart, long-term protection plan.

Car culture ties it all together. From the stereo-shop days that sparked an entire client network to cruise-ins where owners trade ideas on wheels and film, relationships keep the scene alive. We also hit the week’s market note: GM easing no-flip rules for most Corvettes while keeping tight reins on the ZR1 to curb speculation. Then we review the 2025 Subaru Forester Wilderness, an off-road-leaning small SUV with copper accents, a big integrated screen, respectable MPG, and room for improvement in power and ground clearance—plus straight talk on pricing and segment rivals.

If you’re deciding between wraps and PPF, wondering how to keep a new finish flawless, or just love a good shop tour with serious hardware, you’ll feel at home. Subscribe, share with a friend who babies their paint, and leave a review telling us: matte or gloss for your next build?

The Lupe' Tortilla Restaurants
Lupe Tortilla in Katy, Texas

Gulf Coast Auto Shield
Paint protection, tint, and more!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

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Transcript

Live From Gulf Coast Auto Shield

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome to another In-Wheel Time podcast. Hello and good morning, and welcome to the In-Wheel Time Car Talk Show. Today coming to you from Gulf Coast Auto Shields Car Social. First up, owner, operator, proprietor, and uh God of cars, God of clean cars, John Gray. Later, Jeff has this week's motor minute, and I review the new Subaru Forester of the In-Wheel Time Car Talk Show. Welcome, Howdy. Along with Mike Out of This World Mars. We always need more Jeff Zeke and Chief Engineer David Ainsley. I'm Don Armstrong, so glad that you could join us on our broadcast today, live from Southwest Houston. John, what's the address here?

SPEAKER_01 0:44

11275 South Sam Houston Parkway West. 77031. We are between West Airport and Belfort.

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 0:53

So come on down. Just south of 59.

SPEAKER_00 0:56

Yeah. Just south. Yep. First exit. First exit. Headed southbound. That's right. Yeah, I got it. How you doing? Doing all right, man. Thanks for coming out. Well, it's a it's a pleasure to be with you. You know, we come out here once, twice a year, and it's fun. Yes, it is. Yeah. Um, you know, you know, I have to tell you that. So when I when I got here this morning, John pulls me aside and says, Have you seen these? Some very interesting AI stuff. And he's got a little smirk on his face right now because I've called him out, I guess, on it. But uh I mean, you know, I said he's got too much time on his hands. He says, No, I I really don't. Uh, but uh I do manage to find a moment or two that I can scroll through the AI stuff, and it's pretty funny.

SPEAKER_01 1:40

You know, for whatever reason, uh people seem to think that I like that sort of stuff. We know you do. And I do. They're exactly right. Yeah. I guess my clients I mess around with my clients and my friends and whatnot, and we trade some text messages back and forth that may or may not be appropriate for the younger audience. Yeah. Uh well, good.

SPEAKER_00 2:03

You know, it's good to know that because now I'll start including you on some of my stuff. Well, and don't do it.

SPEAKER_01 2:08

And will I? Yeah, absolutely. I don't want anything gross or car wrecks or morbid. No, I don't do that. I like funny. Yeah. Well, so do I. And the occasional lady now and then. May, you know, you never know.

SPEAKER_03 2:22

Don kind of gets them where they're both. You get both. What the ladies and the men? That's you, Mars. The ladies and the funny.

John Gray’s Origin Story

SPEAKER_00 2:31

David accidents. David, you you you're you got to bail bail me out on this one. Don't start laughing. He he needs a mic sock, Mr. Mars. Do I? You do? He does. He needs a mic sock. Anyway. I got a sock. Yeah, I I'm sure that you do, and I don't want to really know about it too much, but anyway. Uh let's talk about what you what you've got here in the shop, but first of all, let's talk about what Gulf Coast Auto Shield does. I don't want to turn this into some big commercial because it's really not. Because I just find that it I find that it is uh interesting uh that you know you you kind of tiptoed into this for the uh mutual friend of ours by the name of Steve Kingsley. Yes, over at uh Custom Cario. Custom Carsterio. Yep. And Steve calls me on the phone, says, Hey man, uh I got this guy I want you to meet. Uh he's he's doing detailing back in the back. Okay. And uh that's where it all started.

SPEAKER_01 3:27

That was a great place to start too. Yeah, a lot of a lot of really good clientele come in there. That's obviously how you and I met. And a lot of my a lot of the first customers that I that I had, and uh a lot of the especially with like Momentum Porsche when they were back down here by custom car. And uh yeah, that was a that was a really nice jumping off point. And um now we're you know, we've got three shops now. We have a have a shop in Sugarland, which mostly focuses on our uh our wholesale stuff. We we work with a couple of big dealerships in Sugarland, the new Porsche store and then uh uh Sewell Audi. Uh and then we have this one and then we have a West Houston store. And um there's there's a few more things to come, but most of what we're doing, you know, when I started this thing, I wanted to not focus on so much on detailing and car cleaning and whatnot, even though that is what we do. I wanted to focus on protecting the cars. And um you know, any sort of protection from the standpoint of pain protection film, coatings, window tent, and built-in radar detectors, laser jammers, all that falls into the protection category, whether it's protecting you or your car. Um so yeah, that I the going into it like that I think was different, but it it worked for us.

SPEAKER_00 4:41

You know, it's funny how things evolve and to not dwell on it too much, but you know, my relationship with Steve Kingsley goes way back before he used to work for a company in town called Marco Polo. And it was back in the day in the 70s when people were putting custom car radios and stereos, Ken Woods, Alpines, all the all that stuff. Yeah, all those. And uh so that company went out of business and Steve didn't have anything to do, and he put a little square one-inch box ad in the Saturday Chronicle, and you know, installed custom car stereo for$49.95. And he had no money, so he bought it all on consignment. Yep. He'd sell it all out, install it that day, and then start all over again on Monday. And it's truly amazing because that that's all that he did, and he made himself wealthy ultimately by doing that, because what happened is that one guy tells another guy, and another guy tells another guy. It's typical in our circle that that happens. Uh, I mean, my story is similar in the fact that I worked for a Chevrolet dealership, was all enamored by uh Corvettes, uh, bought a Corvette, had a friend of mine that now is a friend of mine, that was in the Corvette Club that I joined just because I thought, well, that'd be cool, join the Corvette Club. And one thing led to another. We are still we are still very good friends. Uh Bill Sites and he is uh very uh much included in the whole Hemi Hideout thing. It's it's truly amazing that uh that the car culture kind of feeds upon itself. We support each other, we do these sorts of things, and it's uh it's really good. Um and for you, your partnership with Steve Kingsley got our partnership going. Because Steve sold his business, but you started your business.

SPEAKER_01 6:45

So it it just goes to it it goes to prove uh what I've felt all along that relationships are everything. Yes, they are you know I I a guy showed up here this morning from and he actually works for another uh compet a competitor shop. And come on in, how are you doing? Things are everything's going, you know. It's it's be as nice to people as you possibly can. Go over and above every time you do a job for somebody. And you never know. You people start to handle your advertising for you, for the most part. We we know about that. And uh it's uh you know it's really worked out well. We've been very f uh we've been very, very fortunate, I'll tell you that. We have some of the best clients you'll you could possibly meet.

SPEAKER_00 7:25

And I I I've met some great clients of yours. I've never and I met them here. Yep. Uh haven't seen them since, but great guys and great conversations if you want to have car conversations. And the fun thing about coming here, it's a different car setup, it's a different clientele that I'm used to. Yep. And it's not the regular typical cruise in because our cruise in basically our cruise in circle is much older. And they've got more classics. They have some new cars too, but uh it's mainly classics, um customs, uh resto mods, that sort of thing. So it's a different clientele, but we all have the same passion. Yes. And um it it makes a huge difference in all of our lives for all of us to get together and talk. Hey man, I really like that or steal ideas. Man, I sure like the wheels on that Porsche right there. Where'd you get those? Yeah. That kind of thing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:19

So so what do you got in the shop today?

SPEAKER_00 8:22

Well he's got his car.

SPEAKER_01 8:25

It's my car. Yep, our car is here. I I did sell my GT five hundred uh and I miss that car every day. I think about that car. That that what Ford put together in that package was just they don't make that car anymore. They don't. I I you know, every four or five five, six years they'll have a new GT500 come out. But we'll see. It's getting about time um for them to to release something else. And there's been some uh test mules running around uh apparently that uh uh have been spotted in the Detroit area. But uh I can't imagine it being much better than what they had because it was serious. That car it was obviously it was fast, but it would handle and it rode well. It did all of the things. Um but right now we're you know that that GTR right there is interesting. Um that car is uh I believe it's 2023, and it was purchased new off the showroom not too long ago by one of my regular clients. And um as a 23 model? 23 or 24, yes. And uh they they came out with it again for just a couple years, and and um from what I understand those cars are really, really fast. I've never really I drove one one time, but not you know, I don't didn't drive it very hard, but then we have a Ferrari F-12 back there that we're doing uh uh a lot of work on doing a stealth paint protection wrap, so it'll it'll look like it has matte paint. Uh the most interesting thing that's what it's called stealth stealth, expel stealth, yeah. Now over there in the corner, and this car belongs to this gentleman right here, Justin Rounds, who I'm extremely fond of, him and his family, is a 4GT, 2006 4GT, and that is absolutely if you look at that car, it's still relevant today. Look at the design and the performance and whatnot. That car is just I'm over the moon about that that car. We did a a full paint protection film wrap on that thing. And um it the the guy drove it, they had it before Justin. It had about 6,000 miles on it, but it is unbelievably clean. It that's just an absolutely wonderful car if you're not over 6'2, if you're six two, you know. Yeah, a little cramped up. A little cramped up. I I can't remember the the when they came out with that car and they were racing it. One guy that was I can't remember who it was, but they had to kind of put a bubble on the top of the roof. Yeah, yeah. You remember that? So his helmet would fit in there. It wasn't Ken Miles.

SPEAKER_02 10:42

No, it was uh someone I know who you're thinking of, I can't think of it either.

SPEAKER_01 10:45

Yeah. So um, but man, the inside and out, and that's the only car I've ever seen with a stock Macintosh head unit for the stereo. Really? Yes, and it legit has a Macintosh stereo in it. Uh Justin's got several other cars. You got McLaren, uh, not McLaren, but uh uh GT 911 GT3, I believe. He's got a Aston Martin uh nice English guy. He's he's he's pretty cool, dude.

SPEAKER_00 11:11

He's got a lot of cool stuff. You know, Lawrence of Arabia was an English kind of guy.

SPEAKER_02 11:15

Yeah, we know. Hmm.

SPEAKER_03 11:19

He didn't have any cool cars.

SPEAKER_01 11:21

No, he didn't. And we've got a 296, we're our two ninety-six in the back. We're doing a a built-in radar detector on that uh laser jammer setup for a regular client on that one.

SPEAKER_00 11:32

How long is it? Uh let me talk about this car right here. Just only because it's close and I took a look at it. That's a stealth paint that that's a front. You're not done with it yet, are you? It's an Audi right here.

SPEAKER_02 11:42

Did you talk about the Audi?

SPEAKER_00 11:43

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 11:44

It's because you've got a you've got the the rear door is a different thing. Yeah, that's that's that's a satin paint protection film.

Car Culture, Community, And Referrals

SPEAKER_01 11:52

So basically people come in, they want to change the look of their car. Matte paint is very, very expensive. You know, it can it depends on what model you're buying, but it can run$10,000,$12,000. A real paint job. Yeah. And uh from the factory, obviously. So if you want that same look, um you can do we can do it through Xpel Stealth. And the cool thing about that is you're you're protected, you have a 10-year warranty on your film, and you're less likely to get, you know, like raw chips and whatnot. If you buy a mat car, yeah, you've got the look, but you still got to protect it because there are very few guys that can that can fix or repaint or do something to repair that type of paint job. It's it's very, very difficult.

SPEAKER_03 12:39

You know, the the mat's kind of a fad thing that kind of, you know, it was in the hot rods for a while because they were in the primer.

SPEAKER_01 12:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:45

And then it kind of comes in. So, you know, five years from now, you may think, uh, that fad's gone. I'm really tired of that. You don't want to repaint it.

SPEAKER_01 12:52

Take it off. Exactly. Take it off. Yeah, it's a little bit of work to take them off, but uh it's easier to paint.

SPEAKER_00 13:00

Come in here and like it in where Mars lives, they go in and they want to have, you know, um a primer red matte finish, just like you would have in your garage in 1965. And uh can you do that? Do they want to have that or is that just what they have?

SPEAKER_03 13:16

No, well, it's a little bit of both. But some of them, that's what they that's the look they're after.

SPEAKER_01 13:22

I want a primer red. They don't.

SPEAKER_03 13:25

They don't, really? That's a thing? Well, it's in the swamp, it's a whole lot easier to see at night.

SPEAKER_02 13:32

It's for detection.

SPEAKER_01 13:35

I I thought that was maybe just a Port Arthur thing. Where is it? Well, he's close. He's in Neederland. Well, we could call it Neederville. Yeah, yeah. I'm with you. Well, that's that's redneck. Get up in Dewey Bill and Mauriceville and Dennis is up in there. That's that's kind of redneck, but uh, I'm with you, man. I I could uh I could get down with that. You fit it? So yeah, there's all kinds of cool different things. Hey, there's no the something that's evolving now is is is you know, you've got rap. So we do we do we do a little bit of color change. Like a bowl of vinyl, cola, cut a rap. Not really that, although I do. I'm pretty well known around town as being uh I can bust some rhymes if that's what you're looking for. That's exactly right.

SPEAKER_03 14:20

We got room, we can see what kind of moves you got to go with them.

SPEAKER_01 14:23

I don't have I used to wear Buster Browns. I have zero moves. I have zero moves. I'm I'm the most boring rapper in town, but no you're but you're thin. You're thin, I'm too tall to be a rapper. Yeah, I am a skinny white guy.

SPEAKER_03 14:36

That's gonna be his name, his stage name.

SPEAKER_01 14:38

Well that's that is my name. SWG for short. But you know, you got these vinyl wraps that color change that that people traditionally use to cut change colors on a car. You know, it just doesn't last in Houston if you're gonna have your car outside for any length of time. UV damage just kills it. Um it's great for a year and a half, two years, especially if it's on a darker color.

SPEAKER_03 14:59

Yeah, that's that's like the wrap that you put on our truck, you know, with all our logos and stuff on it. You know, over there in Port Arthur in the middle of all those chemical plants. I mean, you can almost go out there and wipe the corrosion off of it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:10

Well, Heli was evacuated when one of the explosions happened over there.

SPEAKER_02 15:14

And and then it turns into the uh rust color primer color.

SPEAKER_01 15:18

Right, that didn't come from somebody trying to do that in the garage, mixing the mixing the meth with the uh red primer. No, no, no.

SPEAKER_03 15:24

They've got we've got warehouses for that. I've got it.

SPEAKER_01 15:27

Or trailer homes.

SPEAKER_02 15:28

Yes. Primer with meth. There you go. And then you get the right color.

SPEAKER_01 15:34

Well, anyway, so now you've got to open the can. The next thing that's kind of starting to become a little bit more popular is color paint protection film. So you've got a long warranty on it. Much better, it's thicker, and you can change the color of a car, but it's got a it's got a warranty on it, and uh it just it just lasts a lot longer now. But it's expensive.

SPEAKER_03 15:56

But it's it is a solid color. It's not like putting a like a pearl sheen on it, like a pearl paint.

SPEAKER_01 16:02

It has everything. Every color you can imagine.

SPEAKER_00 16:05

Can you do a tiger tiger stripes on it?

SPEAKER_01 16:07

I've I don't want to think about that. But you could print it. You could print it on a rack. We could have my guy at Underground Graphics, he could print whatever you wanted to, and we could make a kit for it. What is the most unusual thing that you've put a coating on?

SPEAKER_02 16:23

Not necessarily a car, like a trailer or a motorhome or boat.

SPEAKER_01 16:30

Support piers, steel support, painted support piers down in uh on the coast. We put a industrial coating on to protect it from rusting and and uh other environmental concerns down there on the beach. That was that's the most interesting thing. Um car-wise, I it's hard to say. These these these cyber trucks are I would say that they're interesting, but now there's you see them all over the place. But I mean that as far as coatings go, I think that that probably that GT back there, that 4 GT is the most interesting, unusual car because there's just not any of them left. There's no straight lines on it either. But it's just absolutely stunning.

SPEAKER_03 17:15

We've got one of those cyber trucks down there in our part of the world now, and it's got a purple and white and gray camo thing on it. It's not primer red. No, no, he's moved up to the purple, he's got the purple camo.

SPEAKER_01 17:26

He's got that on his porch. You know what? Now that I think about it, we have a primer red wrap. There you go. We could do this.

Shop Walk: GT-R, Ferrari, Ford GT

SPEAKER_00 17:33

I'm thinking we're gonna take we're gonna take the uh in-wheel time truck, yeah, and that's what we're gonna do to it. And just have some small little maybe some red flames, maybe. No, that would that that that dates us. The old people want flames. Nobody does flames anymore. Put that on put that on Becky's car.

SPEAKER_01 17:54

Do you think we could open a shop down in Neederland, Neederville?

SPEAKER_00 17:58

Yes, absolutely. Gulf Coast Niederville. Yeah, there would be no clientele whatsoever. They're all after this interview.

SPEAKER_03 18:05

It would be very low overhead.

SPEAKER_00 18:08

They're all working shift work over at the refinery. So those old boys got some money. Yeah, they do. They do. Change the name to uh Golf Coast Hoopty. Or either that or you know, uh and running it would be Buddy and Sissy.

SPEAKER_01 18:23

Bud and Sissy, that's exactly right. I I so badly want those stickers for my truck.

SPEAKER_00 18:28

Okay, well, we'll we'll work on that for you. Thank you. Thank you. And we may call on you again during this two-hour time. By the way, speaking of which, I would love everybody to know that we're here for the entire broadcast today. So this guy here is available to take questions and to joke with and to have fun with, but have a serious conversation about coming in here. But uh, I just want everybody to know that if you want to just cruise in and have a good time and sit around. The sun's come out. The sun's come out. It's a beautiful morning. So bring the kids, come on out, uh, don't touch the cars, but um and enjoy the enjoy the ride. Come on out. Thank you, boys. Thank you. Talk to you a little later. Sounds good. John Gray, our guest, right out of the box this morning. Just ahead of review of the Subaru Forester, plus Jeff's Motor Minute, when the in-wheel time car talk show continues right after this break. This is what this is what we this is yeah, this is what we go through here. Mars loses his train of thought. The Tailpipes and Tacos Christmas Edition 2025 happens Saturday, December 13th, from 8 to 11 a.m. and you want to be a part of it. Tailpipes and Tacos is the cruise game everyone wants to attend. And the Christmas edition is extra special. Donate and unwrap new toy and help yourself to a free Luffy Torchilla breakfast taco. They'll be adult beverages available for purchase too. And don't forget you arrive. Just cruise in and you're automatically registered to compete for one of three famous chili pepper trophies best hot rod, best classic, and best modern classic. Tell Pives and Tacos Christmas edition will be. Held Saturday, December 13th, 8 to 11 a.m. at the Lupe Georgia Tex-Mex, located at 703 West Grand Parkway, just south of the Katy Freeway in Katy. Oh, and don't forget to bring the kids. There'll be special trophies and cookie bags for them too. It's the Tailpipes in Taco's Christmas edition 25, Saturday, December 13th, 8 to 11 a.m. at the Lupi Georgia Tex-Mex at 703 West Grand Parkway in Katy. Bring a toy, get a free breakfast taco, and enjoy the camaraderie. In Wheel Time will be there too. Apple or Android InWheel Time Podcast can be found everywhere, on the stream and through downloads. Whether you're on the road or at home and Jones in for a different kind of car talk show, give In Wheel Time a try. Honest new car reviews, fun, informative interviews with real car people, weekly automotive news, features like Jeff's car culture and Mike's driving destinations, all on In Wheel Time. Check us out on Sirius XM Podcasts, iHeartRadio, or while you're shopping on Amazon through Amazon Music. Mm-hmm. InWheeltime.com has a list, and we know you love lists.com. YouTube and Facebook as well. Check us out. It's free. And don't forget 30-minute podcasts from our shows can be had from your favorite podcast store. Next week, Tailpipes and Tacos Cruise In happens at the Loopy Tortilla out in Katy. And for those that are here and you hear all the stuff going on here, it's not going on the air that sounds this way. I hope. Time now for Jeff's Motor Minute.

Stealth PPF And Matte Look Explained

SPEAKER_02 21:40

There you go. So GM ends the Corvette no-flip rule for most of the Corvette models. The Automega removed the six-month retention period for 2025 and 2026. The Corvette E-Ray and the Z06 models, though vehicles delivered by November 5th of 2026, remain subject to that re uh restrictions. The change reflects GM's uh recognition and demand that stabilized most of the variants for the 1,064 horsepower ZR1. It remains a hot commodity. Under the policy, original retailers who sell or transfer ownership within the first 12 months after delivery face two consequences, including ineligibility for future reserve of special models, and they void the warranty on the car as well. Oh my seller. The manufacturer introduced these rules after watching the C A Z06 models flip for massive premiums over a sticker. Some performance Corvettes change hands for fifty to a hundred thousand dollars above the MSRP in the early days, which is a far cry from the current situation. As part of the recent update, customers are now required to acknowledge the retention policy by signing a form and a in it addressing uh where there's no confusion, and some buyers claim they never saw the original paperwork. And that's what I'm saying. Uh-huh. So here you go. The demand is settled enough to let the loyal buyers enjoy some flexibility without feeling speculation. Uh the ZR1 buyers, however, the the strict one-year hold remains firmly in place. GM clearly wants to ensure that these cars and enthusiasts will drive them rather than hunting for a quick profit. So there you go. They've kind of loosened it up a little bit, but then they've kind of kept some of it around. There you go. Thank you, sir. Yep.

SPEAKER_00 23:26

All right, time now for this hour's car review. I had a chance to drive the 2025 Subaru Forester. Now don't turn your nose up, just listen to this. Um it comes in many variations. It's got the base, the premium, the sport, the limited, the wilderness, and the touring. I had the wilderness version. This is a small SUV. Kind of looks like a station wagon, but it's they've changed it. They've jacked it up. It's a little bit taller than uh the regular base model. It has some special features. This is a uh five-seat, two-row uh little SUV, and um it's selling like hotcakes. And it's they're probably one of the hottest manufacturers on the market today. Exterior changes from last model year, none. Some minor tweaks, but it was completely redesigned for the 2025 model year. Exterior features, sporty off-road look on this particular model. Now we're talking about the wilderness. White with uh black trim highlights on it. Um it gives it a much more off-road look. And I will tell you that the white paint job really looks good on this because it contrasts with the black trim. Copper colored wheels. Don't turn your nose up. Wait till you see this thing. White letter tires, uh better than the darker colors. I do I really like the white and the black with the copper wheels. I like the sound of that car too. Also, uh, it has overall conservative styling, it's attractive, it's a straightforward design, and if anything was to use uh any improvement on it, I would say a little bit more on the wow factor. Put some bigger tires and wheels on it. You know, make it pop a little more. Yeah, make it pop a little bit more. Interior, it has a Tesla-like big screen. It's an option, but it comes with this particular uh trim level. Um the built-in dash part of the screen really works for me. I don't like those that are standalone screens.

SPEAKER_03 25:35

Yeah, like pop-ups, like add-ons.

SPEAKER_00 25:37

Yeah, this one's built in and it really works nice. Uh copper uh headlight trim and copper head sorry copper highlights throughout the cabin with uh stitching to match, different off-roadie seat upholstery. And I don't even know how to describe it. It uh is pretty cool looking. A rugged, it's I wouldn't call it rugged. Rugged to me, rugged look not in the typical version of a rugged look upholstery. It's very different. And it works, it's comfortable, but uh it's very different. Matter of fact, one of the pictures that they show online, you can go online and look at it, uh it shows that it's wet. And uh I guess to prove the fact that it is an outdoorsy upholstery. Oh yeah. Man, it it's it's very cool. And you know that the Jeep people are going, hmm, that. Yeah. Um let's see. High quality fit and finish throughout the cabin. Uh cargo room, small, after the second row. Uh roof rack will be needed for extra gear. And um that seems to be kind of like a theme this particular model, the wilderness, because it actually adds to the look. It adds to it to have a roof rack on it. Now, I'm not a big roof rack fan at all, but it works for this one. Uh what I liked about it, the Easter eggs throughout the cabin. Oh boy, they're in the glass, they're on the floor mats, they're in the seats. I'm not gonna tell you all of the locations, but if you go to look at this, look for the Easter eggs.

SPEAKER_02 27:17

Does it tell you how many are in the vehicle?

SPEAKER_00 27:19

It uh to look for? I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 27:21

Jeep does what? Jeep does uh frogs?

Wraps vs Color PPF: Durability And Cost

SPEAKER_00 27:24

What do Jeep do? Well, Jeep's got the grill, uh little thing of the grill throughout the cabin. Yeah, the Jeep grill, yeah, you know, the seven-slot grill. But they're little bitty tiny ones. You have to look for these things, they're fun. Uh overall high marks for comfort and design on this Forrester. 2.5 liter boxer style four-cylinder engine, 180 horsepower, 178 pound feet of torque. Um rating, 3,500 CVT transmission. Um manufacturer's rating as far as uh miles per gallon, 24 city, 28 highway for a combined of 26. I got 25.7 over 356.3 miles. What I liked about it, the mileage. What could use improvement, more power. Ride and handling, comfortable ride quality. What could use improvement there? More ground clearance. I'd like to see it sit up a little bit further than it already does with bigger tires and wheels. That's just my opinion on it. But whatever. There's always that custom uh custom availability that you can do and change it yourself, you know? Base trim price,$39,835. Prices tested,$42,000. Base model price,$29,995. Now, let's compare the actual trim level, the wilderness, to the Bronco Sport, Badlands, for$42,260. The Nissan Rogue Rock Creek for$35,380. That's where they start. And the Honda CRV Trail Sport for$40,250. And that is my review. Next week, we're going to have the Kia EV6. So be looking for that when we're out at uh tailpipes and tacos. Oh, yeah. Okay. You good with that, David? He hums. I think he's in another world.

SPEAKER_02 29:15

He's got the pouting lipgorn.

SPEAKER_00 29:17

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