thmehr

Hi,
I live in Montana and we use sand & gravel on the winter roads. They never do get rid of all the sand & gravel off the road during the year. On my Supra, when I came back to Montana, I got a server case of road rash. So, when I was looking for a corvette to purchase, one listing said it had a clear bra on the car. I looked it and I thought it would be a great fix for the area I live in. I searched this board, but it has been about 3 years since someone had written about this type of product.

What do you guys/gals recommend. Is this the best option for road rash? Is there another product that is better?

Thanks
Ted

DBLTRGR

Hi Ted,
I live in Great Falls and know what you're talking about. I use the GM bra during the winter and on summer road trips. The other thing you need to think about is splash guards. They help keep the lower panels from getting sand blasted.

thmehr

What is the GM bar? What brand of mud flaps are you using? I saw a new type that raps 1/2 around the wheel well and a traditional mud flap.

James2002z06

Lewis 5 Motorsports for the splash guards

Vetteman Jack

I have both the 3M clear bra and a GM bra on my car. Maybe overkill, but the car is very well protected against rock chips, etc. The GM bra is hard to beat for the protection it offers and the price it costs - about $85 from gmpartshouse.com.

JETninja

I bought my '04 Z06 from a Doc in Montana...dead stock with $1K worth of Clear Bra. Nose, Mirrors, behind each wheel, Rockers (including around the brake duct and into the passenger compartment) and under the door handles where finger nails could scratch the paint. Some of it like the Mirrors needs to be replaced due to age, have a tiny bit of lift. But it's amazing stuff.....

Choreo

Had the 3M Clearmask installed for over 5 years - not a nick or scratch yet - and all they do here is throw down tar and gravel instead of resurfacing. Been through 3 windshields, but paint still looks like new.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-g...installed.html

thmehr

For those of you who have the clear bra, did you install it yourself from a kit? If yes, How hard was it?

4 KRUSIN

I had the clear bra on an Acura I owned a few years ago. It went dull with age and really needed to be replaced. It looked worse than the odd stone chip for sure.

thmehr

That was one of my concerns I had. Would the bra get road harsh and quickly look bad.

Patches

The clear bra material will continue to look good if properly cared for. I use the products that are made to clean and seal the material and, after two years of dd abuse, it still looks almost new.

I had the entire hood, bumper, headlights (yes, headlights) and mirror caps of my daily driver '11 MINI Cooper covered in XPEL clear bra material. The car gets peppered with rocks, grit and sand nearly the entire way to and from work on the Ortega highway here in SoCal. The windshield has taken a beating, which I expected but the rest of the car, including the entire front end that is covered with XPEL, still looks practically new. The only chip in the front is one that I got the week before having the XPEL applied - otherwise it's pristine. Without the bra, I'm sure it would look like hell.

The front bumper of my Mini was slammed head-on by a large road gator at 75 mph one day and all I had to do when I got home was clean the black scuff marks off. That's a testament to the toughness of the material - I'm sure the bare paint would have fared much worse.

You have to look very closely to be able to see the clear bra - I think it is the best investment I've made in an aftermarket product for a car. Had I known it was this good, I would have had Mrs. Patches' black C5 front end done in XPEL. Too late for that as it's got it's share of stone chips and will need a repaint in the future. It was expensive but much cheaper than a repaint and makes it very reassuring to follow behind drivers who love to drift off the road and spray gravel all over the front of your car.

XPEL - or any of the other similar products - can be applied anywhere on the car to protect the surface. I actually have some of the original Cleartastic material I never applied to my C5 sitting around. It's basically the same stuff. I would not even attempt to apply the set the installer did on my MINI - takes lots of practice to get that right. I got to watch the product application and it's not for the faint of heart.

Here's my MINI after the XPEL was applied 2 years ago - looks almost the same today.

02z06dave

Go the clear bra route and do what some others have said and get all the hot spots for paint chips covered. The stuff works great to protect your car and doesn't make it look like **** like the regular bras and splash guards do.

James2002z06

I'm pretty sure that my Vette doesn't look like sh.t with splash guards maybe yours does without .. Good god I've never seen more people smash other owners over a car

James2002z06

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James2002z06

Go ahead and let me know how stupid the bra , window decal and splash guards look , the car is almost flawless my invest vest gets taken well care of my friend lol, I'm just giving you a hard time
I have looked into the clear bra as of last week not sure what it cost I other states but here it's running almost $ 400.00

Ron Dittmer

I have clear bra material all over the leading surfaces of my motor home. The rig stays in doors a whole lot, seeing daylight only when using it. The clear bra isn't very good with bug juice. Bug juice likes to stain the film a yellow color. I have yet to try polishing the stains out. Admittedly the staining is very minor, not enough to even bother with for a motor home. But on a white Corvette, that would be unacceptable.

I've had good luck with black vinyl bras, but you have to be good about cleaning behind it. Sand and grit does find it's way in-between the bra and painted surfaces. If left alone for extended periods, you could get abrasion.

I've had extremely good luck with mirror bras. Very nice looking and great protection in parking lots more than on the open road. With all that said, I have no protection on my Corvette of the day.

02z06dave

I didnt "smash" anyones car. Just said that the bras and splash guards look bad. Maybe you think my car does look like **** without them and thats fine. but i think the clear bra is a better choice all around and thats why that is what i put on my car.

02z06dave

I realize thats its a good idea to protect the paint which is why i spent the little extra for the clear bra. To me, the alternative looks worse than paint chips. Imo, it just cheapens the look of the car. But if you like it, thats good for you.

JETninja

My Z is MY...on a long road trip it does take time to get all the bug guts off, but having the option to use gas station squeegees on it takes quick care of it. Good wax and after 8+ years it looks brand new...

James2002z06

So you don't think having rock chips all over the front of a car cheapens it
And reprinting it doesn't?