lotti
Viper Owner
Having clear bra installed on my 08 coupe in the next couple of day was wondering how far up the hood must people are having them installed.
clear bra coverage area?
- Thread starter lotti
- Start date
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FrgMstr
Guest
Got up to the top of the first cutout at the least. I did not do this and wish I did. The front edge of the hood has taken a lot of chips on road trips in the Hill Country.
lotti
Viper Owner
Has anybody gone over the vents was concerned how the material would lay down looks like it would be very hard to make material lay true with no creases or air bubbles.
Wow, I didn't know that, cool, I'll need to check on that, with black, it's a tough choice as the line would show like crazy where ever you stop. thnx
lotti
Viper Owner
how did film lay down around vents
texas_venom
Enthusiast
Its not hard. The full hood kit for the Viper has seperate pieces for each louver... except for the last one (furthest one back). I have installed many of these and they are not difficult to get to lay down. It will minimize the seem lines on the car and give you complete protection. If you are going that route you will want to do the full fenders as well. What film and installer are you going with?
By the way, the rocker panels are a MUST on this car. They are made of aluminim so the rocks chip the paint off very easily on the side and underneath. I installed my rockers when the car was new and after 20,000 miles not a single chip anywhere on the car. I have seen other Vipers without film and the rocker panels feel like they have been sandblasted. Make sure the rocker panel kit covers from the very front (underneath the Viper logo behind the front tire) all the way back to the strip over the exhaust tip. Also it should wrap nder to the bolt pattern to cover the rocker completely. The kit I use for this also comes up over the door sills because people are terible about scuffing their feet on the door sills while getting in and out.
By the way, the rocker panels are a MUST on this car. They are made of aluminim so the rocks chip the paint off very easily on the side and underneath. I installed my rockers when the car was new and after 20,000 miles not a single chip anywhere on the car. I have seen other Vipers without film and the rocker panels feel like they have been sandblasted. Make sure the rocker panel kit covers from the very front (underneath the Viper logo behind the front tire) all the way back to the strip over the exhaust tip. Also it should wrap nder to the bolt pattern to cover the rocker completely. The kit I use for this also comes up over the door sills because people are terible about scuffing their feet on the door sills while getting in and out.
VIPER GTSR 91
Enthusiast
I recently had my new 09 done and the hood portion goes just past the hood intake area. Do the fender area that extends from the hood line and also a couple of feet back under the side sills. I also added the c/f chip guards for the front of side sills from PartsRack. They look great on certain colors and really protect the side sills too.
lotti
Viper Owner
I plan on doing the complete sills and behind the rear wheels, he has two products he can use one is venture shield, can not recall the other brand he said the venture has a better finish on it but it is a little harder to apply. I live in Richmond, VA. have not found a lot of options for installers went to local Porsche dealer and had their installer meet me at my house to look at my car he has been installing for years feel pretty comfortable with him.
Slithr
Enthusiast
In addition to what the others have done, my installer also partially covered the side mirrors. +1 on the PartsRack CF chip guards 
Mine goes up to the bottom of the center hood intake. Anyone have feedback on how to do the backside of the sideview mirrors? When I purchased my kit, it came with two ovals that were for the mirrors but the installer had a helluva time with it due to the curvature of the sideview mirrors.
lotti
Viper Owner
What prep should I do to other than a good cleaning, is a good coat of wax recommended?
texas_venom
Enthusiast
Mirros can be tricky but I have put on well over 100 sets of Viper mirrors. So not too tough for me. What you have to do is use your tac solution (isopropyl alchohol and water mix) to tac the inside end down... the part of the mirror closest to the car. Once it is on, then apply the slip solution (baby shampoo and water mix) thouroughly to the rest of the mirror piece. You should only have the very insidee inch of mterial squeeged down. Take the outisde end of the mirror piece and stretch it out to the end of the mirror. As you stretch it out it will pull down and conform to the mirror. Once you stretch it to the end start using the squeege to get the residual water out from under the material so it wil begin to stick. Once it holds then work the rest of the film down.... if you pulled it out far enough and tacked the inside piece jsut as it rolls into the car, you should not have much excess on the top of the mirror to press down.
Sounds complicated but it takes about 3 minutes to do. If it doesnt look good then lift the material up, reapply some slip solution, and restretch to the outside again. Having a lint free rag handy to wipe the excess water around he edges is very helpful. Hope this helps... I knw its not easy but you can do it with a little patience.
texas_venom
Enthusiast
Really just clean it well. I always prep the surface as I see fit before the install. Starting on a filthy car or one that is covered in bugs just slows the install process down. So as long as its clean the installer will take care of the rest.
VIPER GTSR 91
Enthusiast
Please have a professional install it as its very tricky to do RIGHT. You dont need to wax before installing and the installer will clean the area well before the install. If you have any chips now make sure to touch them up well before the install.
ACR steve
Enthusiast
3 quarters of my car is covered. Yes you want to touch up ever chip like ViperGTSR91 said..... even if you don’t have touch up use a permanent marker on the spot you can’t tell under the vinyl
All the above answers are good but since you have a coupe, run a leading edge of the material up to the crown of the roof and I also had the leading edge of the rear spoiler wrapped. Initially didn't cover the roof and now have a few chips.
cetro993
Enthusiast
I would recommend doing the whole hood. This way you won't see any lines and you have much better protection. I just had the entire car covered and you can't tell its there.
texas_venom
Enthusiast
I think I saw your car down at Tomball one day while I was installing a clear bra. I take it you are an Aggie fan???
VIPER GTSR 91
Enthusiast
You get that Boss 302 Seca edition car yet? What a hell of a track car........Ebay dealers are getting way over sticker.
texas_venom
Enthusiast
I think I saw your car down at Tomball one day while I was doing an install. The Viper Tech was telling me there were his/her Aggies Vipers. Cant be too many of those couples running around...
V
Venomiss
Guest
You probably already thought of this but consider covering your outside door handle.
Pushing it in can leave scratches sometimes and the clear bra gives some protection for it.
Pushing it in can leave scratches sometimes and the clear bra gives some protection for it.
Laguna Seca is in but have only gotten 800 miles out of 1000 on it. And yes I am looking forward to taking it to the track. Its my daily driver so won't be going all out on the track goodies but have ordered some stainless brake lines. Its interesting having a 7500 rpm limiter on a V8. Really screams.
rw99
Enthusiast
One thing to consider regarding clear bra on dark (especially black) paint: you'll protect the finish, yes, but you'll also lose the ability to correct highly visible scratches and smudges on the area covered. Choose your poison. On my car, the clear is virtually invisible on the bright SSG sections, and any scratches/etc are not seen... but on the black portions that are protected, I have a few defects on the bra plastic that I can't do anything about. Other than replacing that section of clear bra, of course.
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