Door ding protection - side molding
 

I recently got a door ding even with my best efforts to avoid them, so i decided to consider some door side molding in an attempt to protect the sides from dings. granted, the other car's door has to match up at a certain height for the molding to be effective, so it's not a 100% solution.

now, i really hemmed and hawed about adding 'sedan' door molding to my BRZ - i don't see any modern sports cars with molding. but i hate door dings even more. plus, the FR-S/BRZ door panels are so thin that they dent very easily.

when i did my research, i found that sportwing.com offers colour-matched molding for the BRZ http://sportwing.com/Subaru-BRZ-Body...013-FE-FRS-BRZ

and FR-S: http://sportwing.com/Scion-FR-S-Body...013-FE-FRS-BRZ

however, i could not find a single photo of the molding actually mounted onto a car anywhere. even the picture on the sportwing website looks photoshopped. so, i decided to be the guinea pig and take the plunge.

the moldings are made from ABS and are painted to order. took about two weeks from when i ordered the set until i received them. colour match with my DGM BRZ was perfect.

the set came very well protected with pretty good installation instructions. 3M adhesive tape is already applied to the backs of the moldings, of which there are two pieces per side - the long one on the door and the short one right behind it. like any other trim held on by adhesive tape, they're removable down the road if desired.

they're more subtle than i thought they'd be; since they're colour matched and quite low profile. if subaru or scion offered OEM side molding, it'd probably look like this. less garish than the modellista chrome side molding and much, much cheaper:
http://japanese-culture.ocnk.net/product/692

i was initially afraid that they'd spoil the lines of the car, but they follow the lines of the kick panel below, and also compliment the BRZ side vent garnish quite well, IMHO. not too bad and the unique look is growing on me.

of course, the molding is subject to damage, so i might 'protect the protection' with some xpel paint protection film (i've been buying that stuff and applying it myself to protect different areas like the kick panels).

i understand that many owners will never consider putting these on, and might hate the look, and they're not for everyone. but here are some quick snapshots i took right after installation for anyone considering these.

edited to add latest pics.

That looks a lot better than I would have ever thought. I think the dark color helps hide them. Probably won't try it on my WRB.

In my humble opinion, I don't think it looks bad. That said, YMMV on it actually protecting you from door dings. I used to have something similar on another car and my experience was that you can't protect yourself from all the different doors out there that will come in contact with your car at varying heights and angles. Thanks for showing what this could look like though!

Looks better than I thought it would, but I'd be worried about getting dings above it, with the large number of SUVs now.

My old LGT had the door strips, and they helped, but I got a fair number of high dings between the strip and the window, caused by large cars. And the BRZ is a bit lower.

Has a bit of a retro look goin for it now.. Not bad on DGM..

i'm gonna add two more right above the one that's there now to protect against higher dings.

just kidding.

single side molding = door ding protection
multiple side moldings = aero stabilizing fins :D

Thanks for taking the plunge OP. The strips give the car more of a GT or executive look which ain't bad. Subtle.

a couple more 'nice' pics added.

Looks clean. Thanks for the link.

why no sti side skirts

I do believe that's the first body mod that does not look like total ass. As was stated above, "subtle".

Think not most necessary. Cos the car is low, most of the little bums would most likely be at higher level than protective strip.. Just my 2 cents of opinion

STI side skirts are like $672 +/- and that is just way too much for 2 skirts. Eventually they'll come down in price. Unless someone knows where to get them for WAY less.......