Anybody with 3M Clear Bra

I'm considering the 3M Clear Bra for our MK5 . How does it hold up and how does it look after being on for a while ? Is it worth the expense?

I have had the 3M clear bra on my car for about 4 years now. It has help up fine and it has done a good job of protecting the spots where it is installed. In retrospect, I think that this is one of those mods that if I could go back in time where I think I would just save the $$ and not do it. My daughter has an 01 Jetta without it, and I really don't notice that big of a difference between the chipping level on her car and mine (you will still get some minor chipping on the places where it isn't installed); and it is a bit of a pain to clean the edges of the stufff when you wax. I had the ultimate kit installed which included a lot of tiny spots (mirrors, door edges) that I definitely would recomend not doing (if there is much contour to the surface it just doesn't fit that great). It did a good job of protecting the leading edge of my hood and my front bumper, but the areas not protected got chips anyway so I'm really just not sure if it was worth the $$ as it was rather expensive.

I highly recommend the stuff! After have my Porsche re-painted last year, I had a local installer come over and give it the 3M front-end treatment. It cost a couple hundred bucks, which is less than the price of paint work at a body shop, so worth it IMO.

What sold me on this product? Seeing other people's cars all covered in rock chips after only a couple years. I then saw a buddy's car who had just as many miles, but it's had 3M clear bra since day 1 when he bought it new (about 4 years ago) and it was pristine! It even comes with some sort of guarantee that they will pay for repairs if a covered area gets a chip.

If you're just going to put a strip on the leading edge of your hood, that's an easy DIY. If you want a complete pre-cut kit, I recommend getting it professionally installed as the larger sections can be a bit unweildy. Check a few different sources for the pre-cut kits as the quality of the cut varies - you want maximum coverage on the front end.

You can just ignore the fact that its there - wash and wax your car as always (yes, you wax right over the clear bra). It doesn't yellow with age, and it peels off cleanly with no residue if you ever decide to remove it. It requires no more maintenance than your paint does.

I have it on my Mercedes, LOVE IT!

It was worth EVERY penny to install, and has saved me from countless rock chips.

I got the full frontal package, hood, lower grill, front side panels, mirrors, bumper and headlight lenses.

Of course my first rock chip occured 1 inch aft of where the 3M bra stops

I also had 20mil thick lense protectors installed on all 6 headlights. These are supposed to prevent lense damage by a golf ball sized rock at 120mph.

Just make sure you keep the bra waxed as you do with the paint.

Most people don't even notice it and even then they have to look closely to see the hard to see line accross the front of the car. The line is only visibilt looking back to front since you can only see the raised edge from this angle.



DB

I have a Beckhart clear bra. Got it on the car only a few miles after I bought it.

Very glad I did and I've been happy with mine.

I've used this stuff on headlights (more specifically Xpel protective film) and it works wonders.

If you do choose to have someone install the 3M film (a good idea for the larger or more curvaceous pieces), make sure they have some experience with the stuff. It can be repositioned a little bit on the install, but you do have to be a little careful not to overstretch it and knowing where to start adhering it makes a huge difference in the final results.

I have installed it for years and have recently switched to armor gaurd much better product and cleaner application. It is a spray on and handles complicated curves with no problems.

I have it on both my golfs. It can't handle the big rocks they just cut right through but it handles the small ones.

It was already on my '04 Jetta when I bought it lasy year, and I was a little hesitant about it at first....but after a year of owning it, I would install it on any vehicle I buy in the future.

I have one, and I would definitely do it again in future. But the earlier poster is right -- some of the precut kits don't cover much of the hood. That's definitely true of the one I got for my Chevy Impala, and the rest of the hood has suffered with chips as a result.

A friend simply got an uncut sheet and put it over the entire hood of his Camry. I haven't seen this in person yet, but I'm thinking I might do that for my next car (and possibly pay a professional installer to do the front bumper cover, fenders, and mirrors).

LOL, I thought about getting the 3M for my PD but after putting 137K miles on it so far, it's book value won't be raised by less chips.
A co-worker has it in his A5 TDI and got a stone thrown by a truck right past the line . Put a nice big dent on his fender.

Find a local installer NOT a stealer and it will be less than $200. Works great, but lights have to be done every 4 years but boy they are like new underneath it. Also do the rear just under the trunk where you pull things out so as not to scratch the upper part of the bumber.

We installed one on my '03 Jetta shortly after purchase. It has held up great after 5+ years and 166K+ miles of daily driving and NE winters. I believe it has greatly reduced the paint chips in the front of the car.

Wax helps a LOT as far as hiding it from the casual observer...

We also have these on our two MINI's as well... and actually the main reason my Jetta has one is so we could practice the install on a car with less complicated curves than the bonnet and bumper of a MINI.

We have vowed that any new car we buy will get one of these immediately. When we bought the 2nd MINI, the car went straight into the garage and the bra was installed.

I saw a couple of estimates in here, $200 to a 'couple of hundred'.

Getting ready to get this for the new JSW plus a custom spot, rear top bumper at the rear tailgate due to dogs jumping in/out. want to get a price guage so I don't get gouged.

thanks

We DIY'ed the install. Not terribly difficult. I think mine was purchased from autoclearguard.com... but I'm not sure... over 5 years ago...

I wish all bras were clear.

I'd like to do the hood and headlights only(not he whole kit) . Couple of questions:

1- Where's the best place to buy the 3M material?

2- Is it a relatively simple DIY for the hood and headlights?

3- Should I attempt myself of hire a pro?

tnx

I really should get this put on my car.

If you want to DIY, google some of the sellers of the pre-cut kits. I bought kits for my TDI and my wife's SLK from: www.invisiblemask.com

They talk about having wider, more protective sections than some other sellers. They supply the tools you need and have videos on their website and printed instructions as well.

So far, I've only installed it on one of the SLK's headlights and it can be pretty tricky on the really curvy sections.

tothemax said:

I'd like to do the hood and headlights only(not he whole kit) . Couple of questions:

1- Where's the best place to buy the 3M material?

2- Is it a relatively simple DIY for the hood and headlights?

3- Should I attempt myself of hire a pro?

tnx

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1) A professional tint shop.

2) No.

3) See # 1.

It took a professional 10 hours to do mine.

It is much harder than tinting and should be left to the pros.

I have it on my XK8. Cant see it on blood red. Awesome stuff!! Looks exactly the same after 5 years.

I put mine on myself. Very similar to tint.

Tnx partner

Just what I needed to hear. Robert posted a good installer here

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=222763&highlight=bra

I will give him a call.

velociT said:

1) A professional tint shop.

2) No.

3) See # 1.

It took a professional 10 hours to do mine.

It is much harder than tinting and should be left to the pros.

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