1 Jedi

Anyone ever use this clear protective tape about 2 inches wide that you apply with a positioning spray so you don't get those ugly nicks and scratches on the front part of your hood from stones. It is in this catalog from griot's garage and costs 2.95 a foot.

other suggestions ?

EdP

I wanna know too - I want to place it under the door handles

hurricanesteve

I played with it a little and I'm a little confused as to how it will handle compound curves...it does NOT look like it will conform to the shape of door handle area easily.

It's not really the right width to do the front of the hood...I'd go with the clear bra stuff for that area.

steve

4wheeldrift

thanks,
mike

looey

I've got it, and it works very well. And i've got little patches of it in the door handle wells.

RickM

One of my personal beefs with Audi is that they make their wagon/Avant (ours is a '97 A6 wagon) with no protection on the top of the rear bumper. You sell a car with a rear-facing third seat knowing that kids and dogs are gonna be climbing in and out and you don't provide any kind of protection across the top of the bumper?? Look at <i>any</i> other wagon on the market; they all have some kind of protection. So this is stupid design error on Audi's part if you ask me. OK, so much for my rant....

....I used the stuff from Griot's that you're talking about. I bought two widths, because the rear bumper on our wagon has a narrow portion, then a wider portion. I had a lot of difficulty using the squeegee to get the positioning spray out from under the strip, but this was entirely due to the kind of area I was working on; the way the bumper fits to the body, and the way the bumper itself is designed, one whole side of the strip is effectively "blocked" (I know, I'm not describing this very well - you'd have to see it), making it hard to use the squeegee that comes with the strip. I ended up using a couple fingers wrapped in a single layer of thin cotton cloth to do much of the job. It was painstaking. A hood, however, should be much, much easier. The end result was very good; the strip is very durable. It's much more resistant to scratching than the painted bumper. And so far (I did this about 4 months ago) I've had no peeling at the edges or other problems. Eventually I'll want to take it off and do it again once it starts looking funky. Next time I'll have my technique down and it'll go faster.

But having said all this, you don't need to fumble around with a generic strip of material to protect your hood. Many people here have had a Clearbra (that's a brand name -- see clearbra.com) installed, which is custom-fitted to the contours of the hood of your car. The strip from Griot's is a lot cheaper way to go, but the visual results may not be as good and it may not offer the same level of protection.

Greyhound Guy

I would have to invest a lot in the beginning and try to figure out how to package it as it comes on a big roll with no backing.

I do have clear outdoor vinyl that I just got. It has backing on it and is rated for 7 years I think.

Those that have Avants. I also have a matte black for the rails. Haven't tried that yet either. Soo much to do.

WClark

Personally I would (and did) go to a die cut piece of that film for the hood and bumper since it will cover and fit better.

The Griots sold 3m product is excellent for general uses where a 2" wide strip is appropriate.

Ray Calvo

Did a similar installation as Rick M. on my A4 Avant. Took a piece of plastic (like used to cover clothes from the dry cleaners) and made a pattern of the top side of the rear bumper. I used this to cut a piece of the clear bra material from the large scraps the bra installer gave me from the front installation.

You will need to make a spray of aobut 50/50 mixture of alcohol and water. Then spray both the bumper area (where the installation will be) and the back of the plastic. You should now be able to lay it down on the bumper top and squeegee the water/alcohol out from underneath the installation.

I find Griot's products to be nice but overpriced; I don't buy from them. Would worry a bit about using a straight 2" piece of plastic on a shaped/curve front edge of a hood (buckling of the plastic). Would also wonder about how much protection you get from just a 2" wide strip.

Go for the total clear bra installation.

EdP

My understanding is, dark colors are not good to do, as they lines show up, especially after waxing.... Any input?