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Just wanted to share a little before and after. Top photo is how I purchased the car, bottom photo is how it sits now. I recently vinyl wrapped the car in my garage, it turned out pretty good considering I have never touched a piece of vinyl until I decided to wrap an entire car, haha! I enjoy seeing other peoples before and after photos, feel free to share your cars story on the post
Looks way better with the stock wheels and tail lights.
Thanks! You'd be surprised by how many people actually questioned why I removed the aftermarket wheels/tail lights, making a car stock looking again seems frowned upon to most. I was too embarrassed to drive it how it was previously with its HKS knock off ebay exhaust, wheels, tail lights, 20% window tint and "pantie dropper" / "locally hated" stickers. Yes, stickers as in multiple. Being a white female, these items had to be removed before I drove it to my place of employment LOL
Thanks! You'd be surprised by how many people actually questioned why I removed the aftermarket wheels/tail lights, making a car stock looking again seems frowned upon to most. I was too embarrassed to drive it how it was previously with its HKS knock off ebay exhaust, wheels, tail lights, 20% window tint and "pantie dropper" / "locally hated" stickers. Yes, stickers as in multiple. Being a white female, these items had to be removed before I drove it to my place of employment LOL
Massive improvement! Those boobie tail lights...sigh, I will never understand why/how those sell. Excellent color choice. My buddy has a 94 Z32TT that came factory in a very similar deep metallic green (I think it was called Emerald Black). A bit darker than your choice to be sure, but I actually like the color you chose better!
Tip: Try looking for a PDR (Paintless Dent Removal) specialist in your area. That crease line on your driver-side front fender could be removed cheaply/easily by a PDR specialist. Most other dings/dents can be removed or reduced to the point where you don't even notice them. The process is quick and very affordable, I highly recommend! It will greatly improve the look of the car & wrap.
-Icer
Massive improvement! Those boobie tail lights...sigh, I will never understand why/how those sell. Excellent color choice. My buddy has a 94 Z32TT that came factory in a very similar deep metallic green (I think it was called Emerald Black). A bit darker than your choice to be sure, but I actually like the color you chose better!
Tip: Try looking for a PDR (Paintless Dent Removal) specialist in your area. That crease line on your driver-side front fender could be removed cheaply/easily by a PDR specialist. Most other dings/dents can be removed or reduced to the point where you don't even notice them. The process is quick and very affordable, I highly recommend! It will greatly improve the look of the car & wrap.
-Icer
Thank you!
I actually looked into PDR, the hatch on the car is one I picked up at a local junk yard since I wanted a clean wingless look without having to repair massive holes. The hatch had a crease in it and I was quoted $300 to repair it (ouch, central California prices will get you) so, I purchased my own PDR kit and removed the dent ($40 on Amazon)
The crease on the fender was hardly visible during the day until I vinyl wrapped it LOL
Do you have pics from other angles? You did a nice job on the wrap. Mind if I ask what brand and the costs associated with the job? How long did it take? Did you remove any trim?
Sorry for all the questions, but I am facing a clearcoat dilemma and like to have options.
Was cheaper than repainting it, haha! The amount of scuffs/scratches and clear coat fade made the car hard to look at.
Yours looks mint! In the dark photo at least
Hmmm, I’m facing a dilemma now. My car has that “silver fade” going on now. But, it’s only the roof and upper door frames. My body guy wants to paint the whole car but at a cost of something close to half the value of the entire car, uhh, no thanks. I totally trust him but that’s way too costly.
I’ve thought about wrapping (or more likely, having my car wrapped).
So, maybe I’ll just wrap the roof in a silver that’s the closest to factory (unlikely to find something close enough for my taste) OR the ubiquitous gloss black or faux carbon I see around.
Hmmmmm, thanks for triggering my OCD again, Flash!!! Errrrrgh. 😆 But also giving me the thought that maybe I can take a stab at it myself. Roof seems easy enough despite my multiple thumbs. Laff....
Do you have pics from other angles? You did a nice job on the wrap. Mind if I ask what brand and the costs associated with the job? How long did it take? Did you remove any trim?
Sorry for all the questions, but I am facing a clearcoat dilemma and like to have options.
I feel your pain, I had the same clear coat dilemma. My front bumper was faded and cracked (I just replaced it because it was damaged beyond repair), the rear hatch was faded/rusty where wing holes were drilled (also replaced that since I wanted a wingless one) and the rear bumper was peeling. I ended up sanding down the rear bumper and keeping it on the car since besides the horrid paint, it was in good shape. I don't have too many photos yet but I'll post some different angles to show the roof/hood/rear process.
I used 3M1080 series, I ordered the wrap from MetroRestyling's eBay account (I waited until an eBay promo for 10-15% off site wide) and paid $480 for the vinyl. I also had to purchase an exacto knife, squeegees, and magnets. You will need a heat gun if you don't have one already.
The project took me about 3 weeks (I do work full time and put in approximately 45-50 hours a week) I completed a panel a day after work, some days I took a break from it. I removed just about every panel (rear bumper, tail lights, front bumper, head lights, a-pillar covers, window trim, mirrors, side skirts, door handles, marker lights on the bumpers, all emblems, weather stripping under hatch/hood, antenna, rear wiper) granted, you don't NEED to remove all of these things, some shops keep these on and just carefully trim around them but the car was from Bakersfield California and was CAKED in sand/dirt/grease inside and out. I removed most of these panels just to clean them so I could tuck the vinyl behind properly without getting sand everywhere. Paint prep/sanding, removing the bumpers/all trim, cleaning, finding a new hatch/bumper and replacing them, etc. is what took me so long to complete the project. I also completed this alone (which is do-able if you have decently strong magnets) but if you can find someone to help you lay out the vinyl and hold it to position it across larger pieces like the hood and bumpers it will make your life way easier.
The vinyl isn't flawless, but for being my first experience with vinyl (have never touched a sheet of vinyl in my life prior to this) it turned out pretty good. The 3M product was very forgiving for a beginner
12-08-2018, 12:34 PM
Vinyl Wrapped My Z
