JRC3904

I was really considering de-badge the TL.


While driving the TL my Wife was rear ended by a driver without insurance. My Wife is fine; the TL did what it supposed to do, crumple to absorb the impact.

To be replaced:

Rear bumper
Right rear quarter panel
Trunk lid
Right rear tire
Right rear rim is going to be refurbished
Exhaust system
This is only the visual inspection…So who knows what else will need to be replaced.

I have a Sh_t box rental; it reminds me how much I enjoy the Acura. The first estimate is just under $5000! I should have the car back in three weeks. I have considered going with a more aggressive exhaust signature, the insurance company is allowing $575 towards the exhaust. I could go to my pocket and make up the difference, any suggestions?

I did ask the body shop not to put the badges back on the truck lid. So in the area of “Mods” I may have the most expensive de-badge is history, or at least in Memphis….

datboipat

if the dealer charges for debadge, dont pay it, just do it yourself. All it takes is a hot day and some fishing line/dental floss. Just work the line back and forth behind the badge until it pops off and then clean off any residue.

cM3go

I don't think you understood his sarcasm

HEK

..dental floss not fishing line, it's less harsh on the paint.....

WHO NEEDS STINKING BADGES............

mporter410

JRC3904

I was de-badge by 1991 Nissan truck doing 35MHP, I’m not that worried about dental floss –v- fishing line…

Thanks for the advise.

ITL

Memphis...what up. I grew up around the Poplar/Walnut Grove area.

It seems as though Comptech is the only aftermarket exhaust option...or go custom

As far as the badges, this is the perfect opportunity to leave them off...you can always add them later. You might want to have them order the badges and then hold on to them- those suckers are costly.

JRC3904

I know the area will…We live in Mid-town with the rest of the crazies!

Comptech for the TL is about $1200, not sure I want to go to my pocket that deep…

The body shop did order the “ACRUA” and the “TL” letters; I’m just going to hold on to them for now.

Who knows, let my Wife drive the car much more, I may be able to get a full body kit!

TheGregAndTonyShow

No one uses a heat gun to de-badge? Heat the badges off and wash the residue off.

crazymjb

I thought it was illegal to drive without insurance!? You could also try to find some paint the same color as your RRP, and then paint the badges that color. If I had a black TL I would definatly blacken all the rear. I personally dont mind the TL badges.

R. Lee Emrey is the man.

black321

just debaged the "acura" type only. kept the acura logo and the "tl" badge on though... i like the "tl" badge, i think having the "acura" type was unnecessary since the logo is there anyway. like most lux cars, only the model name and brand logo are badged... wanted to do the same.

the dental floss worked great on my tl!

crazymjb

I think it looks unbalanced if you only take 1 off.

black321

nah.... i think taking both off looks too naked... plus the fact, im proud of the "tl" badge...

do u think i looks unbalanced on german cars too then?

Repecat

Yeah, get rid of those "Acura" labels. Then you are left with at least 8 or 9 "Honda" labels on the outside in the event someone doesn't know what kind of car it is.

nYmALu86

hey guys, just wondering what I should do to remove the glue. When I debadged my Infiniti, a lot of the glue remained on the paint. Any ideas?

Greg-ster

Debadging is definately kinda ricey... what next, Type-R stickers?

Ron A

WD-40 or Goo-Gone, clean well after removing glue, then wax.

black321

why is it ricey? what the hell does that mean anyway?
debadging is just something to make ur car a bit different, and even putting on custom badges are a nice way of putting a bit of personality to it to... im not talking bout some stupid type-r stickers for a car that doesnt even have a type-r model

JRC3904

Hey All!

I just got the car back yesterday! (Six weeks without the TL really make you appreciate that car) De-badging made the car look very clear. I made two stops on the way home from work, fielding questions about my TL at both stops. At the wine store, hey I just got my car back and wanted to celebrate, A guy in a Lexus just went nuts! “What kinda car is that? Man that a good looking car….On and on…”

I have always thought less was more. Be-badging fit my way of thinking.

As far as the rice factor, a non issue; had I put a “S” badge on, or gone with a big ass wing that would have been ricy, IMHO. It’s your car do what you want.

I’m going to tent the windows as soon as I find a good shop here in Memphis. Pictures to follow…

JRC3904

Tent -v- tint...Now that would like RICEY!

special-ed

Yeah, that's the best when you have it de-badged and people can't figure out what kind of car it is even with the acura emblems on it.

EThirtySIx

I debadge my car the first hour i got her.

noychris

can somebody tell me what debadge is?

TCBaby

When you take off the make and/or model emblem of your vehicle

snax

Do you need to Re-badge if you trade in your TL?

noychris

thanks

SpecialFX

My de-badge cost $1700. It was done by a white pick up truck. Don't know who was driving since it was a hit and run. I had the body shop not put the "Acura" and "TL" back on. He asked if I wanted the logo off but I had him leave it. Now I wish I had it off. It looks very clean and is easier to wash/wax. Unfortunately the logo has a pin on it and there's a hole in the trunk. No easy way to take it off now.

JRC3904

Hell of a way to do modifications! How long was your TL out of commission?

3rdTL

My TL was out for over four months. In addition to the rear end damage you can see, the front was also smashed a bit. Total cost to the other insurance company for the car was almost $20,000. But Safeco (my insurer) and Hartford (the other insurance company) didn't consider it totaled.

SpecialFX

3rdTL:
Wow, is that a pic of your TL for your avatar?! That must have been some shot. Glad everyone was ok.

Mine was no where near as bad. Only took 3 days to fix.

JRC3904

20K!

I would love to know the magic number for the car to be totaled. I would pay a little extra money in insurance premiums to decrease the amount of damage to total a car. Although my damage was only about $6000, I wonder what kinda trouble I’ll have down the line. Have I lost my warrantee, is the dealer going to give me sh_t when I want to trade in…

Not trying to steal my own thread…But I have to take the car back to the body shop to have the rear glass re-set in the seal, had a little water leak after the first wash.

Modifications through demolishing sounds like a good poll questions, what did you do and how much…

3rdTL

Yeah, that's my car in the avatar image. Rear-ended by a full size van on the freeway. The impact was so severe that the three cars in front of me were also hit in a chain reaction. Good news, like the thread originator pointed out, the car absorbs the impact protecting the driver. The bad news is that the car absorbs the impact.

Totaling comes down to what's cheaper for the insurance company. You see the damage to the car was originally estimated to be only $16,000 or so. At that point it was still cheaper to fix the car. But they don't include the bill for the rental car and rework, which they can't really know for sure ahead of time. So add in the four months of rental car, damage they didn't see at first and rework for the stuff they didn't get right the first time and the bill is close to $20,000. At that price they might have totaled it but it's too late at that point since they've already made the repairs.

My only advice is to stay away from Safeco Insurance.