Jim@Showstoppers

iTrader: (157)

I use a carnuba wax twice a month on my stuff.

umsta

iTrader: (6)

You can easily tell if its wet carbon is most applications. Just look for the corner edges and in between the surface and the actual carbon fiber piece, there are air bubbles or many imperfections across the piece. many of the pieces which use dry carbon are pressed by a very powerful machine that ensures a smooth and even spread of resin without excess as with many hand laid CF applications. Look around the holes and mounting points and you can tell if there is excess resin cause a pressed dry carbon will be smooth, clean, and accurate.

Another good example is the new M3 and M6 cars with the carbon fiber hoods which are pressed by a huge machine weighing A LOT and then vacuum sealed by a automated robotic machine with a monitered oven on standby during the process.

BigZ88

iTrader: (2)

Granted not light weight, but can we get some instruction on how to overlay parts with CF for cosmetic appeal? I have some parts on my bike I'd like to wrap, but dont know what kind of resin, or exactly how to do it without screwin the weave.

andypandy

iTrader: (2)

Here is a very good tutorial/DIY on how to wrap parts with CF.

Don't be intimidated by the link...
http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread/1827179

The gist of it is to scruff the parts, then add resin to bond the fabric onto the part itself. Once the first resin layer is tacky enough to stick without being runny, you can lay on the fabric to not mess appeal of the weave. Then add additional resin and repeat with fabric/resin additions. Sand to level the surface and buff to a shine.

BigZ88

iTrader: (2)

no worries, i'm a member... drove a 97 civic before this!

Version4

I see someone asked already about the weight savings and there has been no answer yet. So I'll re-phrase the question.

I own a 2007 350Z GT and am considering replacing as many body panels as possible with carbon fibre. Given the price of the switch (purchasing, shipping, customs fees, installation, re-balancing of the weight distribution of the car), I
want to make sure it makes sense from a performance point of view (I want my car to look as stock as possible, so considering OEM versions and painting it in original paint color, the only way I'd CF it is if there is a performance advantage). So here is my question:

If I were to change all the body panels (fenders, quarters, hood, hatch, doors, etc) with carbon how much weight (in pounds) will my 350Z be loosing?
Or better yet, can anyone fill in the blanks:

________________________Weight of Stock__________________Weight of CF
Hood
Door (x2)
Hatch
Fenders (x2)
Rear Quarters (x2)

I emailed Seibon for information but they were pretty vague in their response saying the CF parts weigh about 50% less than the stock, but that doesn't tell me how much weight the car will be losing....

And that reminds me, another question I have is regarding street drivability. I read on AIT site that doors et al, are not intended for street use, I assume because it negates the side impact protection built into the car. So my question is, are there doors (and any other CF components) I can get that are safe to insall on a daily driver?

Thanks for the help.

LJ

wolffttu

why dont auto manufacturers use this technology in production cars? less weight = more mpg

andypandy

iTrader: (2)

To answer this question, it's going to take a lot of calculations, so I cannot give you a definite answer. However, carbon fiber is very light for the rigidity it provides. I am thinking carbon fiber parts, including doors, rear quarter panels, hood, roof, hatch, front and rear bumpers, will net you a savings of 100~200+ lbs, depending on the composition of the panels.

As for the doors, I believe there are no crash beams. Keep in mind, although CF composite products have a higher tensile strength than steel, it is really brittle when that threshold has been broken. So a hard impact from a crash will crack the CF door feasibly. A safer thing to do is to fabricate steel x-crash beams and have them directly bolted onto the door hinge inside the door for safety reasons.

...because carbon fiber is brittle and is not cost effective by any means. Auto manufacturers use steel because it's cheap, and also because it absorbs impact upon crashing (crush/impact zones). CF will just crack and obliterate upon impact unlike steel that'll crush and bend, thus absorbing the impact.

Zeebra

iTrader: (12)

I just purchased a painted carbon fiber oem spoiler... What do I need to do to strip the paint off without affecting the carbon fiber weave?

Thanks!

-Chris

wolffttu

WELL MORE THAN LIKELY YOUR GOING TO HAVE TO STRIP THE PAINT OF COURSE. BUT WHEN YOU DO SAND TO HARD B/C YOU WILL GO INTO THE CARBON FIBER. BUT THE THING IS MAN YOUR GOING TO HAVE SOME VERY HARD PARTS TO SAND AROUND THE AREAS WHERE THE FOIL CONNECTS TO THE TOWER BRACE. ANYHOW YOU HAVE SAND IT THATS THE ONLY WAY OR FIND A SOLVENT THAT WILL CORRODE THE PAINT.

Version4

Thanks for the reply andypandy. The above post got me thinking, has anybody weighed their stock parts vs. their carbon fiber parts? Maybe between all the people that have upgraded we can collect enough information as to the total weight savings of replacing all the body panels....

So, if you have a record of the weight of your CF parts vs. stock parts don't forget to include them in the post!!! =)

Another thing that occurred to me, how much work would it take to replace the fire wall for a carbon fiber one? And also, what would the drawbacks be?

LJ

wolffttu

or you could wet sand.

Zeebra

iTrader: (12)

Thanks! So I dont have to worry about messing up the weave? Just take the paint off like I normally would something thats fiberglass?

wolffttu

exactly

ShineAutoProject

iTrader: (25)

Im curious. Are the doors on the new corvettes fiberglass?

jolt3500

great pics!!

Chebosto

iTrader: (43)

C5 Z06 was all fiberglass, even the floor boards.

Rowlett

iTrader: (14)

I have a V1 Carbon Fiber Replica Nismo spoiler that iv been trying to get painted, The whole thing is Carbon fiber, Even the base....Im thinking i want only the base painted...

So i took it around three shops and they all gave me a rough time...

The first guy said that the paint may "Fish Eye" --100$

Second guy said "We can Paint, 150$ And we Take your gas Cap to match color"

Third Said 200$ And well paint it...44$ @ 2 hours...66$ prep time for paint...50$ paint? (may not add up, but you get the point)

Ummm. 200$ that an arm and a leg for me... I should just wait to get a Kit and Paint it all at once..IMO

Another thing, The base is a lil warped... When i go to mount it im going to have to press two oppisite corners down to get it even. when i go to do that, wont the paint be in jepordy to crack, chip, even break?

ZTEALTH

carbon fiber is such a beautiful thing! does anyone know who makes this rear bumper on the yellow car?

nightcrawler_8

iTrader: (5)

Evo-r.net does them

his nick is jdmz33 pm him and he will help u