F-170: DIY 3M Di-Noc Carbon Fiber Grille+Interior DIY page 4

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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 03:51 PM
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F-170: DIY 3M Di-Noc Carbon Fiber Grille+Interior DIY page 4

First off, I've gotta give jptl04 credit for mentioning this product in this thread- here. Anyway, the product- 3M Di-Noc Carbon Fiber can be found here. I bought an 8 square foot roll for $60 and used pretty much all of it...on the grille, rear license plate trim, and over the OEM fake carbon fiber on the interior along with some other places. It took a couple hours to do but was fairly easy. Cut out a chunk about the size of the area you wanna cover, stick it on, mold it on with a hair dryer, cut with a razor blade. So far, everyone who's been in my car has noticed on their own without me mentioning it to them. God it looks amazing. I'll let the pics do the talking from here. Excuse the quality. The interior shots were taken last night at 1AM in my garage, 40 some degrees down there.


Interior:











I wanted to do the area around the vents and upper display, but the Di-Noc just would not stick and form a good bond with that plastic at all for some reason.



Grille and rear plate trim. Exterior:













That's all guys! Not bad for a 16 year old's work.
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 03:55 PM
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Looks good....

I may have to get some me.
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 04:17 PM
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Very nice. Looks really good.

How about the upper and lower front grilles?
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 04:20 PM
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Looks real good. Good execution.
It seems hard to believe that you've never done this before.
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 04:25 PM
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looks a lot better than OEM
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 04:28 PM
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Originally Posted by ILLustriousUA6
looks a lot better than OEM
cleaner and sharper.
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 04:28 PM
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Outstanding!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 05:06 PM
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putting this on my to do list!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 06:53 PM
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Damn that looks great man!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 07:01 PM
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did you take the parts out to install it or u layed it on and cut it from there?
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 07:22 PM
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bro how awesome is this stuff? clean brother! great work! it does look alot better than the oem trim. i've thought about doing the same exterior parts. but not too sure how good it will hold up to the elements. ill let you be the guinea pig. i did however do a few interior parts.

again everything looks awesome!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 07:50 PM
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If I looked up "clean" in the dictionary, this might be in there!

One of the door trims looks like it has an imperfection on the edge.

Was that hard to do on the center grille cross bar?
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 08:07 PM
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Looks good. I was going to paint the center bar on the front grill, but that looks like a nice alternative.

I had some similar ideas with CF-look tape, like covering a deck lip spoiler in it and if/when I got an a-spec lip, I was thinking of covering the black part.
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 09:16 PM
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Looks amazing...I might do this to my front/rear a-spec matte grey trimming....wonder if it'll stick?
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 09:25 PM
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I wonder how the home depot lip will look if its wrapped with this
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 09:26 PM
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That came out really well. I wonder how something like that would look with parchment interior. I especially like the way exterior parts came out. Great job!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 09:38 PM
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That looks great i may have to order a roll now!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 09:51 PM
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love it! I been wanting to get a roll and go crazy with it...

Once the spring kicks in, we had 2 feet of snow a few days ago
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 09:52 PM
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just spent more money on my car....
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 10:20 PM
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super clean man!
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Old Feb 27, 2010 | 10:50 PM
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nice mod, very clean
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 12:48 AM
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Clean but its still faux-CF.

Are you sure it'll hold up to the elements for your exterior pieces?
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 01:07 AM
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Looks nice!
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 01:41 AM
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Originally Posted by Mem04TL
Looks good....

I may have to get some me.


Originally Posted by enigmaos
Very nice. Looks really good.

How about the upper and lower front grilles?
I thought about it, but I like just the middle bar. Nice and subtle, plus the upper and lower portions match my SSM paint well.

Originally Posted by 2Morrow
Looks real good. Good execution.
It seems hard to believe that you've never done this before.
Originally Posted by ILLustriousUA6
looks a lot better than OEM
Originally Posted by enigmaos
cleaner and sharper.
Originally Posted by Steven Bell
Outstanding!
Originally Posted by spicynoodle116
putting this on my to do list!
Originally Posted by CLtotheTL32
Damn that looks great man!
Thanks guys.

Originally Posted by thait
did you take the parts out to install it or u layed it on and cut it from there?
Laid it right on the pieces, didn't apply pressure until I heated the vinyl with a hair dryer so it'd conform to the piece on its on. Pressed it all the way down, carefully cut with a razor blade.

Originally Posted by jptl04
bro how awesome is this stuff? clean brother! great work! it does look alot better than the oem trim. i've thought about doing the same exterior parts. but not too sure how good it will hold up to the elements. ill let you be the guinea pig. i did however do a few interior parts.

again everything looks awesome!
It's friggin awesome. I was a bit nervous going to town on my car with 8 square feet of carbon fiber vinyl, but it turned out great. We'll see how the grille and rear trim pieces hold up. I'm not too worried honestly as the Di-Noc is very tough and hard once applied. People use this stuff to cover entire sections of their car.

Lexus IS-F Di-Noc roof, anyone? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-UCKTD5tAY

Originally Posted by powerflow
If I looked up "clean" in the dictionary, this might be in there!

One of the door trims looks like it has an imperfection on the edge.

Was that hard to do on the center grille cross bar?
I knew someone would notice that.
Yeah, I slipped a little bit when I cut that. I think I'm going to redo that section then if I'm not the only one who notices it. The center portion of the grille...was a bitch to get right. Every time it looked alright, I'd notice a big bubble or wrinkle somewhere. Took a while to get it on there. Just lots and lots of heat is needed. This stuff is very easy to work with when heated.

Originally Posted by Chessie724
Looks good. I was going to paint the center bar on the front grill, but that looks like a nice alternative.

I had some similar ideas with CF-look tape, like covering a deck lip spoiler in it and if/when I got an a-spec lip, I was thinking of covering the black part.
Yeah I like the grille. From afar, it looks like flat black paint. I also was thinking of covering those areas- the black on my A-Spec and maybe my decklid spoiler. Ran out of the CF though.

Originally Posted by JJaber06
Looks amazing...I might do this to my front/rear a-spec matte grey trimming....wonder if it'll stick?
Yeah it's up the air still on how well it'll hold down. If I have any problems I'll reapply it with 3M Primer 94 adhesive.

Originally Posted by spicynoodle116
I wonder how the home depot lip will look if its wrapped with this
Originally Posted by kazonerx3001x
That came out really well. I wonder how something like that would look with parchment interior. I especially like the way exterior parts came out. Great job!
Originally Posted by LTxArucAx60
That looks great i may have to order a roll now!
Originally Posted by HQTL6SPD
love it! I been wanting to get a roll and go crazy with it...

Once the spring kicks in, we had 2 feet of snow a few days ago
Thanks guys!

Originally Posted by dred87
just spent more money on my car....
Ha. That's always a good and bad feeling. It'll be worth it though!

Originally Posted by diskinnect
super clean man!


Originally Posted by jmkiang
Clean but its still faux-CF.

Are you sure it'll hold up to the elements for your exterior pieces?
It doesn't look faux like the OEM does. I think it'll hold up just as well as all the people on this forum with vinyl roofs on their cars. 3M Primer 94 might be in effect if things start to bubble/peel. It took me what...and hour or so to do the front grille. Not too big of a deal if I have to redo it. Many people use this stuff on the exterior of their cars though.

Originally Posted by princelybug
Looks nice!
Agreed. Worth the money, for sure.
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 07:44 AM
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Looks very good man! I wanna consider doing this after hearing how easy it sounds and how good it looks.
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 10:31 AM
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From the video, it looks like the material is pretty thick. Was it easy to trim out and install? Also, some places suggest you use a spray adhesive in conjunction with the Carbon Fiber. How was installation for you CJ?
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 10:47 AM
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How about the side mirrors?
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 11:09 AM
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its super easy to install and conforms to any shape and size with a heat gun or hair drier. to trim just use a sharp razor blade or exacto knife. once heated up use your finger nail to indent the edge that needs to be trimmed off and cut along it. there you go!

im worried about any piece that is anywhere near heat though. any heay applied to the edge and it will soften up and peel up. the rear is fine the front grill should be good too doesnt get that hot there. but what about summer months will the intense heat of the sun cause it to come loose. we shall see. thats the only issue i have about doing any exterior parts.
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 11:33 AM
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Well if we were to do the rear a-spec trim, I feel like the exhaust would get hot enough to cause some peeling...i'm sure the front would hold up fine (not sure how resistant this stuff is to rock chips though)
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 11:40 AM
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Originally Posted by jptl04
its super easy to install and conforms to any shape and size with a heat gun or hair drier. to trim just use a sharp razor blade or exacto knife. once heated up use your finger nail to indent the edge that needs to be trimmed off and cut along it. there you go!

im worried about any piece that is anywhere near heat though. any heay applied to the edge and it will soften up and peel up. the rear is fine the front grill should be good too doesnt get that hot there. but what about summer months will the intense heat of the sun cause it to come loose. we shall see. thats the only issue i have about doing any exterior parts.


Thanks Jaime-I've always wanted to try doing the carbon fiber on the grill-where it comes to a "V", not necessarily the crossbar.
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 06:33 PM
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Originally Posted by d-townhakuzo
Looks very good man! I wanna consider doing this after hearing how easy it sounds and how good it looks.
Do it. It looks friggin great.

Originally Posted by Steven Bell
From the video, it looks like the material is pretty thick. Was it easy to trim out and install? Also, some places suggest you use a spray adhesive in conjunction with the Carbon Fiber. How was installation for you CJ?
The material is fairly thick for sure, but once it's heated, it's very pliable. Which makes me nervous having it on my grille, but I'll see how it holds up. 3M adhesive can be found pretty much anywhere so it's no biggie if I need to use some. I have a feeling 90+ degree days in the summer will take a toll on the Di-Noc adhesive. So far it's doing great in the 30 degree weather.

Originally Posted by enigmaos
How about the side mirrors?
Thought about it but figured it'd be overkill. That and it'd be a PITA to get them wrapped without bubbles and wrinkles.

Originally Posted by jptl04
its super easy to install and conforms to any shape and size with a heat gun or hair drier. to trim just use a sharp razor blade or exacto knife. once heated up use your finger nail to indent the edge that needs to be trimmed off and cut along it. there you go!

im worried about any piece that is anywhere near heat though. any heay applied to the edge and it will soften up and peel up. the rear is fine the front grill should be good too doesnt get that hot there. but what about summer months will the intense heat of the sun cause it to come loose. we shall see. thats the only issue i have about doing any exterior parts.
The application really is super simple. I also used my fingernail to show the edges of pieces so I knew where to cut.

The summer heat and grille also have me a bit paranoid, but a $5 can of spray adhesive will do the trick if I have issues with it. I wonder how the vinyl holds up during summer when people apply it to their entire roof...

Originally Posted by JJaber06
Well if we were to do the rear a-spec trim, I feel like the exhaust would get hot enough to cause some peeling...i'm sure the front would hold up fine (not sure how resistant this stuff is to rock chips though)
True true. Heat seems to be the only concern with Di-Noc. I'm really not afraid though as how stupidly simple it is to apply. If it starts to look like shyt, I'll redo it and use something to bond it stronger.
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Old Feb 28, 2010 | 10:59 PM
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nice job looks great where did you buy the sheet of cf?
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 12:14 AM
  #33  
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Looks great man. I like it a lot. I was wondering if you can take some better pictures.
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 06:40 PM
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Originally Posted by CHHUM
nice job looks great where did you buy the sheet of cf?
Right here. http://www.carbonfibergear.com/direc...on-fiber-vinyl



Originally Posted by xxbiggie
Looks great man. I like it a lot. I was wondering if you can take some better pictures.
Yessir. Per your request. Interior looks a little bit blue since I've done the blue LED mods.





And I somehow forgot to take a pic of the steering wheel pieces in my original post.

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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 06:45 PM
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Love the steering wheel.

Group buy!
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 07:12 PM
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Wow, great job man, it looks amazing!
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 07:12 PM
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Nice dude, get a 07-08 shift knob. It has a strip down the middle you can apply some of the di-noc on and it would complete the center console.
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 07:18 PM
  #38  
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Originally Posted by jptl04
Nice dude, get a 07-08 shift knob. It has a strip down the middle you can apply some of the di-noc on and it would complete the center console.
Good idea. how about wrapping the whole knob?
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 07:47 PM
  #39  
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Everytime i look at this thread, i want to buy a roll lol. Too bad i spent all my money on a new tv. Steering wheel looks great, thats not a bad idea with the type-s knob. keep up the good work.

May just have to spent the $60 lol
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Old Mar 1, 2010 | 10:13 PM
  #40  
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Dude. Major props to creativity. Maybe I shouldn't have painted my grill and just wrap it...
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