Hey guys, as some of you know I live in San Diego and I go to college in Oregon. My vehicle is going to be driven up to me in about a week from San Diego to Portland. I just had my entire front bumper repainted, a replacement front lip installed, and pretty much my hood, front fenders and every other chip on my vehicle completely fixed. The car is perfect, and my father is driving it up to me.

Currently the vehicle is sitting outside in the sun, and the paint is curing, however It is being driven up in a week, and I cannot install my clear bra yet. The paint has to cure for around 4 weeks before I can install teh clear bra. It has the A-Spec lip and I cant just put a regular bra on it. If my dad drives it up he will for sure run into some chips and rocks, and I want it protected! What are my options, what do you guys suggest?

I'm a little worried about him driving the vehicle lowered and with 19's and low profile tires, but he will be careful and will pay for any damage he incurs, but we just got all the chips taken care of, and I had to pay the $500 deductible for the vehicle, so I want to make sure nothing bad happens. Thanks for looking and checking it out, and if you know of any company that makes a plain bra that works with the a-spec lip spoiler I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks again guys!!

 

okay...bare with me here...this might seem a little silly, but have you thought about taping garbage bags over the front of ur car? cut the garbage bags into rectangular squares and tape them in there...theres nothing else u can really do....

 

I'd just use the blue painter's/masking tape. It leaves no residue or damage.

Edit: you can even do layers, and cover up any part you want to... i'd recommend doing the side mirrors and around the fenders. It won't look hideous, either, not that it matters.

 

Very Expensive choice: Rent an enclosed trailer and tow the car.
Expensive choice: Rent a moving truck and tow the car. An open trailer could also be used.
Inexpensive choice: Cover all front areas with painters tape. Easy to apply and comes off clean. Works wonders at the track.

Also, ask your father to take it easy, drive slow, and keep a distance of more than 3 cars in front of him at all times. That should keep debree encounters to a minimum.

 

Yeah, painter's tape is probably your best bet. This method is used at the track.

 

lol...so much for garbage bags :'(

 

do they make painters tape large enough to cover the entire front of the car, without much work needed? I want stuff that's like 5 inches from top to bottom in a roll.

 

look it up @ homedepot.com or lowes.com

 

I know they make at least 3 inches... I have used it before..

 

Yup, 3 inches is probably the widest. Just like any regular masking tape. BTW, painters tape is what they use in racing to cover the headlights so rock chips don't shatter the headlight housing if they are going extremely fast, so its your best bet

 

Painters tape should work but do you really want him to pay if something happens? He's your dad and he's doing you a favor. Just sayin'

 

Painters tape sounds easy for a DIY application. Another thought....when I had my classic Mustang restored, the paint shop applied a heat activated shrink wrap over the leading edges of the car for transport. It is the same stuff the new cars are shipped with from the manufacturer (that white plastic your typically see on the hoods, etc on newly shipped cars). It peels off with no adhesives used.

You might make a few phone calls to higher end paint shops or a restoration shop to see if they could arrange to apply before the road trip. This stuff clings very snug and won't come off in the rain.

 

I would second that choice. Best idea and inexpensive.

 

Stupid question, but do you drive the car much when you're in Oregon? Like, what prevents chips and stuff from happening when you're up there?

 

A full clear bra, with hood, fender, bumper and lower a-spec protection

 

Oh yeah, I read that, should have been paying more attention

 

drive it in reverse...

 

I love your car and you do too lokius... but a part of me has to laugh when I read this. It's a very nice car but it is a car.... when you drive, shit happens. Even if you coat the entire car in some sort of polymer differential force field, some punk will back into it one day, or a kid will throw food all over it, or someone will try to break into it and fuck it up. I'm just saying.... your dad driving the car for a while is probably a pretty low risk category. I know it makes sense to get a bra installed before a long trip if you are going to get a bra installed at all, but I guess I just can't see all the fuss Not criticizing you, just offering some perspective. You obviously care a great deal about the car and to you I am sure it is worth it. I guess I just find the lengths some people go to amusing... but it's cool, you love your car!

 

one of the recommendations was to tape the fenders and side-mirrors as well...SHEEESH...more amusing is people that recommend hedious stuff like these...

Lokius your car looks great and understand the fresh paint job but come-on man....I have 16 months, 20K (12K highway up and down I-95/I-85) and no clear-bra and do NOT have a single rock chip till now. not saying will not happen but there is only so much you can do to prevent it...you cant get the clear-bra installed right now then you cant (90% of the cars on the road ride without it) and PLEASE dont drive that beautiful car of yours with mask tape on the hood, fenders and side mirrors on the hwy.

 

Hi Lokius,
Just use the Blue Masking tap and you should be fine. It will take you about 30 minutes or more (depending on how detailed you are) to do the job.

 

Well I think they meant just for that short time during the drive in question. Still, I am, like I said, continually amazed at the dedication to paint people have at this forum... I am learning a lot.

 

Classic!

 

this is for temporary hwy driving, not for everyday use.

you gotta understand, he's in a situation where he can't apply the clear bra just yet. if he gets a chip in the paint, that means he'll have to repaint it, and then wait another month or so for the paint to cure for the clear bra.

and it's not like painting comes cheap these days, especially for pearl-effect.

 

Er...why don't you just wait until the paint has cured and the clear bra has been installed before you get anybody to drive the car up to Oregon? If you're as much of a perfectionist as it appears you are, an extra couple of weeks' wait is surely warranted.

Just my two cents...

 

Some people simply do not care about rock chips or take them as a part of the deal when driving the car. And that is perfectly fine. I did that for quite few years.

So, do not take offense in what I will say.

Please do not tell me that you have 1k or 10k or 15k or whatever miles and you do not have rock chips. It is simply not possible!!! I work on cars with less then few hundred miles on them every day and they already have chips. They may be pretty small, but they are there. With how soft the paint is nowadays (without using lead) you will have rock chips within few hundred miles no matter what. If you think otherwise, take a closer look at your bumper and hood.

My

 

The entire front bumper was painted, the entire hood, and the fenders, it was a $1900 job, I'm being careful because this is the best the car has ever looked, there have always been chips, and there will be chips, but I spent the $500 deductible, and I believe every dollar I spend should be protected. I love my car, and I take care of my things. San Diego to Portland, is a long long trip, and trust me without protection all the money I spent on getting everything repainted and fixed will be worthless.

I have something like 37k miles on my car my friend, and you can imagine how many chips I incur driving on the back roads of Rancho Santa Fe, Encinitas, and Escondido. The entire front of the car was chipped, my bumper was cracked, adn my hood had chips all over it. I got everything repainted, and I need to projtect it. It's a long drive to Portland, and I think having my Dad look like a tool in a blue and white covered vehicle, is worth not having to re-do $1900 worth of paint work by Philip Thearles Autowerks, which was rated one of the best body shops in the USA.

I wish I could, this is the only time my father can take off from work to help me out and drive the car up to me. It's either have the car now, or wait till late January.

Read everything above, and I think you will appreciate why I got full clear bra protection on my vehicle, because like you said getting chips is inevitable, and I feel that in the locations I drive protection is something necessary, when I take into account how much money I have spent on the car in the modifation and detailing areas.

 

Lokius, you were not the target of my comment, if you took it that way.

I am glad you realize the fact that it will get rock chips on the drive to Oregon and try to protect it.

Good luck and enjoy the new paint job.

 

Lokius man...this is off topic but i have to ask...how do you like the Tein S. Techs? i read another thread that said you got them for like 110 shipped???!!? WHHHHAAAA rediculous price...but im wondering how you like them

 

the springs are great, amazing price, and the look and feel is well worth it. I would buy coilovers if money wasnt a concern, but value for performance, s-tech's are amazing, and they have a great drop.

fitz

 

Nose Mask?

 

The car has new paint and the owner a lot of love. He asked for protection options. Post a contribution and let him choose. End of story. Gosh !!! Why is people here so opinionated ??? And who the heck told them it matters ???

 

Saran wrap

 

My suggestion: Put a half mask on the hood. For the rest of the car, put layers of shrink wrap (saran wrap) and tape the edges with masking tape.

When my friend was selling his NSX, I helped him wrapping it before the buyer drove it from SF to LA. The buyer said that he only found 1 new chip on the very bottom of the bumper after the trip, probably because we didn't put enough layer there.

If I were you, I'd trailer the car to OR. Rent a pickup truck at UHaul and a car trailer (whatever you call it). It shouldn't be too expensive but it's safer for your car.

At least, if the car has to be driven there, put the OEM wheels on and save your 19" tires. You might run over something that might damage your wheel or tire and it will be costly.

 

That's a good idea... take the wheels off. Actually just take the bumper off too that way it can't be chipped. Aw hell just pack the car and send it fed ex with fragile stickers.

 

Mr. Worf, shields up!

No seriously. How about some clear contact paper that is used for kitchen drawers and shelves. Seal off the edges with the the painters tape. Not sure what the adhesive on the contact paper will do to your paint job though. Ha, a poor man's clear bra! Just a thougt vs covering your whole bumper and hood with blue painters tape. That would look so tacky.

 

Excuse me, but driving from San Diego to Portland IS high risk for getting chips. You just don't get it. This kid spends buku bucks on a paint job and all he is asking for is advice on how to protect it. Now I consider my wife driving the TL low risk and with less than 500 miles, we got chips already. We have since gotten the clear bra installed and now I/we don't worry about it anymore. It is definitely worth the money if you're going to spend $30K+ on a car.

Anyway, good luck Lokius.

 

this guy went a step further; he bought special high-temp tapes, in case the hood gets too hot from the engine.

 

Damn, that's fugly!

 

How can someone even remotely contemplate that they have 20k miles on a car and dont have a single chip.

I'll put 10k on it I could find at least a handful on that car.

 

put on a conventional vinyl bra.

temporary solution until your car reaches oregon