Opinions on clear bra

T

THECLEANER

New member
Hey guy I noticed a couple of very small paint chips on the hood of my Acura. Ive been thinking of maybe getting a clear bra for my front end. Does anyone have one on their own car? I really want get one to do something before it happens again. Does anyone know the pros and cons about a clear bra besides protecting the paint ? Can I still wax the car normally?
 
Auto Mask:

Porsche invented the fabric auto mask in the late sixties, when the factory still individually road tested every car, and because they used the local roads around the factory, a temporary fabric mask was put on the car, to protect the new paint.



It was never intended to be permanent, because no matter how careful you are, no matter how clean you keep your car, the fabric bra will eventually cause a tremendous amount of paint damage as they trap dust and road grit and vibrate in the wind. They also cause uneven fading because the paint underneath them is not exposed to sunlight like the rest of the vehicle.



A more viable alternative is a pressed, polished thermoplastic vinyl ( X-Pelâ„¢Amour Glove, 3M) made from an optically clear 12-Mil clear film that has been treated not to â€Ëœyellowâ€â„¢, its virtually indestructible in normal use that adhererâ€â„¢s to the cars paint surface. Available in custom, laser cut templates that are available for virtually all car models, and many parts of the car, clean / maintain with a plastic cleaner / polish (Plexus). Polish / wax as you would for a clear coat paint (if using a machine polisher you should tape the edges of the plastic film)

X-Pel Install

JonM
 
I am neutral on them. On the one hand, if your car is subject to gravelled roads or a lot of road debris, and you have to travel among trucks and any vehicle that kicks up this stuff, then I am all for it.



On the other hand, I would not want that layer on top of a primary panel of my car, simply because of the fact that you will have an etched line in the paint where the edging ends. It also leaves a possibility of discoloration of the paint (even though ex-pel? or any of those companies may guarantee that no damage could occur). Any time you have an object laying on top of the paint for an extended period of time (even some inferior car covers), there will be a risk of marring or etching of the paint.



You could of course wet sand the etching away. Its a tough choice depending on the driving situation. I did use a type of protector like this on the bottom of a door edge on my other car, so as to prevent chipping which was occuring for some reason (new paint in a rock prone area).
 
lbls1 said:
On the other hand, I would not want that layer on top of a primary panel of my car, simply because of the fact that you will have an etched line in the paint where the edging ends. It also leaves a possibility of discoloration of the paint (even though ex-pel? or any of those companies may guarantee that no damage could occur). Any time you have an object laying on top of the paint for an extended period of time (even some inferior car covers), there will be a risk of marring or etching of the paint
Click to expand...



agreed. no matter how careful you are, your going to get scratches, chips, etc... :(
 
THECLEANER said:
Hey guy I noticed a couple of very small paint chips on the hood of my Acura......
Click to expand...

Get use to it....Acura paint isn't the greatest. :mad:



I like the idea of clear bras. Don't have one on my 2003, but will get one on my next car.
 
I have it on several of my cars and love it.



Even at $500 installed, it's cheaper than a repaint to the front end.



All that stuff about the paint fading has never occurred to me. I say go for it.
 
I've got one on my baby. First time I ever invested in one but it won't be the last. Unless you like stone chips all over your hood you have to have something to protect the paint.
 
I have this on my car, which I use as a daily driver. I agree that it's well worth the money. I wash and wax it just like the paint. I do use the claybar on it but no polishing. There is a visible line at the edge of the plastic, where some wax gets in the tiny crack/gap. I think maybe they used a thicker grade of plastic on my car, because I had it done when Minis were newly on the market. I think I must have had the first Mini done in my area. Anyway I don't attempt to clean out that crack with anything but a MF, because I'd rather have a faint line of wax than a gouge in the paint. And I'd MUCH rather have that faintly visible line than a lot of chips in the paint!
 
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