New waterbased paint

The white paintwork on my 190E was thick,solid & very resistant to stone chips.I now have a 97 C Class with silver metallic paintwork. The colour coat is thin but really thin! The lacquer coat is thicker but not a lot.It is
very prone to stone chipping & scratches easily.
A firm here in UK specialises in putting on a special plastic sheeting material(Armorfend) to frontal areas of cars for protection.Discussion with them reveals waterbased
paint thickness is only 60% of the old lead based.Removal of lead(A plastomiser) from paint leads to embrittlement,hence reduced resistance to stone chipping.
The problem is applicable to BMW.Porsche etc...not just Mercedes.
I am not amused that I have got to spend a significant sum of money to protect my paintwork to restore it to the standard of my former car.I appreciate the environmental
advantages of using waterbased paint but dont appreciate the lowering of standards.,
How do you people over there find it?
Tigerfox.

Armourfend seems overpriced to me. I'd try xpel.com, they use the good 3M stuff designed for cars, and its reasonably priced. It was US$199 for the front bumper on my C, and I installed it myself. I like it a lot, it is amazingly clear and unnoticeable (I was concerned that it might look tacky, but it does not, in fact, I bet no one will ever even notice it).

I did find that the paint seems to chip very easily on the MB. I had a couple big ones on the bumper by the time I had 1000 miles, so the clear bra was a must for me (I hate paint chips!).

I also oddly have a few on the flat part of the hood, about 8 inches below the windshield. Odd to get chips there, since that surface is almost parallel to the ground! This is on a car that is garaged and babied.

Many thanks Brian,I was unaware of the availability of 3M & will investigate.Was that price for the complete front Bumper i.e. inclusive of lower skirt? Armourfend quote $120 for the bumper itself over here.
I note your comments regarding chips forward of the base of windscreen,I had the same on my 190E & was advised it was a low pressure area(creating downforce in motion) if that makes sense to you!
I have examined a number of C class,most chipping occurs on the leading edge of the Hood & the roof.My car has suffered significant chipping on the hood frontal area & of course the bumper.Unquestionably I must have protection.
Tigerfox.

The price is for coverage of the *entire* front bumper, basically from top to bottom.

Check out their website! http://www.xpel.com for all the details.

(I'm not exactly sure what material Armourfend uses, but I like the 3M material because its been proven in 20 years of use on cars, and is OE material on many cars).

I have researched Excel they do not have kits for my C class.
I have downloaded FAQ from their website.
Contacted 3M here in UK & they provide it in roll 4" wide by
2.5 metres long ($22.) I have purchased a roll for trial purposes.\
Excel refer to wet application-alcohol/watermix but give no further info.
Is there any additional advice given on your kit instruction for application, that would assist me please?
Tigerfox.

Try Stonegard. I have bought it yet but I plan to do so soon. They even make a polymer film that you can put on the headlights to proect them from rocks.

http://www.stongard.com/sgcontent/default.asp

Thanks Shaun(I see youre on line as I post) I tried them but
they are pricier than Armourfend over here.I am happy to use the 3M tape once I can get info on wet application! It would appear that no one else in the USA has problems with modern paintwork.

Tigerfox