Clear Bras

[Fortunate Few]

I highly recommend getting your FRS clear bra'ed right after you leave the dealership. Thats what im going to do. I'll be getting my front bumper,front fenders,hood, and side skirts clear bra'ed.

[himbo]

Subaru paint is notoriously soft- I have scratches with in 2 weeks of buying my 08 Impreza. I'm going to wrap the whole car as soon as I get it... I think its a worthwhile investment if you plan on keeping the car for a while and like to have it looking good

[Buggy51]

Hmm, but its not that great of an idea to apply a clear bra if you're thinking of the SWP? Or if you are, basically get the bumpers?

[schlomo]

My old car looked like it had a terrible skin condition after just 2 years from lots of rock chips. I got a clear bra on the mazda 2&1/2 years ago and have not a single chip. The clear bra has a slight "give" to it that absorbs the impacts nicely and doesn't even leave a blemish on the bra.

I aways hear people say: Bah! for $300 bucks I can just get the hood resprayed down the line.

But think about how terrible the paint will look while your waiting for enough chips to accumulate to necessitate a respray? Also, the factory paint job is the best paint job the car will ever have (unless you pay top dollar at some high end shop). Blending the color is always a nightmare because most shops never get it right, especially if it is a metallic color.

Use a 100% synthetic wax/sealant on it to protect it from UV rays and pollution that lead to yellowing. Do not use carnauba waxes whatever you do. My uncle has a white 330ci with a (nearly) 6 year old clear bra and it still looks perfect because he waxes the whole car every 6 months.

[Godzilla]

Fyi, the price for wrap the whole car with clear bra is around starting 3k for "decent job" any good reputation shop will charge upward of 5k. Keep that in mind if it fit your budget.

[FT86_Shark]

Victoria Secrets need's to take a page from the automotive industry. Clear bra's for all!

[WolfpackS2k]

When I got my S2000 I had it clear bra'd in the first week of ownership. Front bumper, both headlights, 12" up the hood as well as 12" (roughly) up the front quarter panel areas behind the headlights and both side mirrors cost $575 from a detail shop I used in Charlotte, NC. The shop installed a kit, and the brand is 3M. The bra has been on my car for almost 3 1/2 years and you cannot see it unless you are up close. FYI my car is red. My dad also has a clear bra on his S2000, color being silver metallic. His car is 2 years older and thus the bra is 2 years older. No discoloration whatsoever. We both use Zaino products to maintain our vehicles' paint. Not wax.

Based on our experiences I plan on having a clear bra installed on every car I own from this point forward.

[Buggy51]

Hmm let me get this straight, on lighter colored cars, the yellow might start appearing unless you try to wax/clean the clear bra with specific products? As mentioned from the post above me, the Zaino products?

I'm thinking of getting the SWP, but will that yellow out in a few years? I'm just thinking of getting a clear bra on both bumpers, anything else seem needed?

[schlomo]

Both bumpers? I would do full front bumper and full hood personally. I actually went overboard on my current car and did the leading edge of the roof, A-pillars, mirrors and fenders also.

The areas that take the most rocks are the front bumper and hood (the hood is also the most noticeable when chipped imo)

And its not specific products. There are lots of synthetic waxes available. Zaino is actually a great product for the finish, clear-bra or not.

VentureShield won't yellow for at least 6 years. Maybe longer, but I haven't seen any proof beyond that yet.

[Buggy51]

Hmmm that makes sense, get the hood and the front bumper, I doubt the rear bumper with a clear bra will help if someone decides bump into me from behind.

On average how much would that be? I understand it depends on who you go to (probably something else I have to research) but mmm 1k-1.5k?

And for the waxes, you can wax the clear bra and everything's okay?

[CoryUyede]

Originally Posted by himbo

Subaru paint is notoriously soft- I have scratches with in 2 weeks of buying my 08 Impreza. I'm going to wrap the whole car as soon as I get it... I think its a worthwhile investment if you plan on keeping the car for a while and like to have it looking good

+1 My 06 sti and even my 2011 WRX both had some serious Paint chips, even down the sides

Although i'm not sure I agree on the "soft" terminology, My wrx, the paint almost seems too Brittle.

One thing for sure, Subaru's need MORE coats of paint, and better Clearcoat.

Everyone be warned! BRZ AND FR-S Owners alike.

[Zgrinch]

Originally Posted by CoryUyede

+1 My 06 sti and even my 2011 WRX both had some serious Paint chips, even down the sides

Although i'm not sure I agree on the "soft" terminology, My wrx, the paint almost seems too Brittle.

One thing for sure, Subaru's need MORE coats of paint, and better Clearcoat.

Everyone be warned! BRZ AND FR-S Owners alike.

Yea, I called an installer today and plan to get the entire front bumper/grill area, headlights, entire hood, both front fenders, side mirrors, and the area behind the door handles. This installer uses design patterns from XPEL’s DAP ( design access program) and uses XPEL's ultimate film which offers higher scratch / stain resistance and comes with a 7 year warranty. The challenge will be waiting for XPEL to create the precut templates for the BRZ, but he felt they would have it pretty quickly. I think this is going to run me about 1k which also includes window tinting.

[CoryUyede]

Originally Posted by Zgrinch

Yea, I called an installer today and plan to get the entire front bumper/grill area, headlights, entire hood, both front fenders, side mirrors, and the area behind the door handles. This installer uses design patterns from XPEL’s DAP ( design access program) and uses XPEL's ultimate film which offers higher scratch / stain resistance and comes with a 7 year warranty. The challenge will be waiting for XPEL to create the precut templates for the BRZ, but he felt they would have it pretty quickly. I think this is going to run me about 1k which also includes window tinting.

It wouldn't be a bad idea to do the skirt/rear fender area near the bottom rear corner of the doors. That area will get "sandblasted" pretty bad. On the widebody wrx and sti's those areas would easily have no paint left without the OEM vinyls they install. Subaru sti/wrx owners complain so much that Subaru SLOWLY makes that vinyl larger every year, bit by bit..lol
Installing Wider Stance wheels and higher grip summer tires also makes that situation worse. Something to Consider at least

[RiskyTrousers]

Originally Posted by DMDZK

The how it is installed is pretty important, since no manufactures put it on at the factory and few if any are currently doing it at the port (Gulf States Toyota being the only AFAIK).

So how would you rate the install jobs from the port? I believe the FR-S has the port installed option available.

Its either this for around $399 or an outside reputable shop for around $800.