nabisco

Why do you say things that don't make sense? If you meant that if you get in an accident and then have to repaint and re bra that would be correct but it would be covered by insurance. If you meant a rock is going to cause you to repaint and re bra then your 90% wrong. No one has talked about the dealer giving more money for your car. I respect everyone's opinions but it's obvious that you can't justify spending money on protecting your new $40,000 car. Let's compare paint in a year.

RshaoKh

Don't they already sell clear bra's for the entire car? All they do is get a large piece of the clearbra and custom cut it around the car.... I would've done it but it was a bit expensive... The guy who installed my clearbra said that he charges by sqr feet or something....

SugarRush

^ I second that .
The installer whom i went for installing the clear bra on my IS installed several on veryhigh dollar vehicles such as Cayman S, Aston Martin Vanguish, Maserati and many more. They charge per panel of the vehicle. Cost around $750 per panel give&take depending on complexity. Multiple that with the number of panels of a car, it run easily around $7,500 and up.

That's is how the other part lives :P

oliveryo

Everybody in the family is clear bra'ed except for me. My dad's A.M Vanquish was about 7G's, my bros M6 was about 6G's and my moms 745 was about 5G's. I would do the clear bra, but i think its just too expensive for me.

PMok

I am a big fan of the clear bra, because it really does work. Now if you hit like a garbage can or giant piece of wood on the freeway it's not going to do much for you, but for the everyday freeway driving it's great at protecting your front end from rock chips. I had it put on my IS as soon as I could after buying the car, and haven't regretted it -- no rock chips on the protected areas since. My other car when I bought it new I debated whether to get the clear bra, and after driving it for a few months it was too late -- rock chips all over the front end so forget it. I know a lot of people gripe about the cost to install clearbra, but you know what it's not about the cost of the material, it's about the skill of the guy putting it on and making your car look good and keeping it looking good. And the peace of mind you get when you can drive on the freeway and not be afraid of all the little pebbles and rocks bouncing along from the cars and trucks in front of you.

Would I cover the whole car? probably not, because at that point the cost vs benefit decreases. Like others have noted clear bra on the sides won't necessarily protect you against door dings etc. The cost of a full clearbra starts to outweigh the cost of repainting the whole car. But protecting the front area, where the rock and debris damage is most likely, for me it was worth it.

JasonC

that is the point of the stuff. i've been a long time customer of a local installer and it really is a world of a diff between them and others. Get someone to doing it right is more important than the cost of the bra itself.

ecr527

I have a clear bra on my IS and I'm lovin' it. For me, I don't see the purpose of getting the whole car done, but I have seen pictures of an entire car done somewhere on the internet.

My brother bought a 2000 BMW 5 series and it had a clear bra on it. It was in pretty bad shape, so he took it off. Once off, it revealed a perfect paint job underneath it which would have otherwise been severely pitted with rock chips and such had it not had the clear bra on.

jdoolitt

When I was a kid, a buddy of mine's mom had covered their couch, chairs and lampshades in their living room with plastic covers. It protected the furniture from dust and us kids. Probably still looks good right now... Of course, you had no enjoyment of that furniture... If clear bras were 100% effective, maybe they would be worth the cost and the look (yes . . . they are all noticible at close range). Small chips can be easily repaired (DIY) with just a small amount of knowledge and touch up paint.

Clear bra an entire vehicle? Might as well drape a plastic cover over all your furniture while you're at it.

RshaoKh

Actually everyone that I show the clearbra to always says "Wow I didn't even notice until you mentioned it." How is a clearbra even close to the example of plastic covers on furniture? The car already looks shiny and feels smooth.... does the clearbra make the car look any different or do I actually sit on the clearbra? I actually enjoy my car more with the clearbra. I can actually drive ON the freeway without reaching my destination and finding 2 new chips. I agree that clearbra-ing an entire vehicle is a little bit extreme since most areas of the car won't see rock chips anyway. Clearbras aren't 100% effective but they prevent a LOT of minor chips for about $550. Can you repaint the front part of the car of the car for that price (I'm not talking about some cheap shop that paints whatever and leaves drips and stuff like that)? The only people who notice my clearbra are people who KNOW about clearbras and even then, it's just 1-2 different angles where you can barely see the cutoff. Keyword is cutoff.... every other part of the clearbra can't be seen. Also, my clearbra installer told me that rock chips on the headlight causes dirt/debris to lodge into the headlight and the sun oxidizes it to create the milky look. Not sure if it's true but I have another car without a clearbra and my IS's headlights look like new still. Can't touch up paint the headlights either...

SC3coupe

iTrader: (4)

I would not cover the entire car with clear bra! the cost alone would NOT be $2k only.

In the recent few years, toyota cars' paint does seem to be VERY vulnerable to rock chips. Something to do with going lead free formulation?
I have a starfire pearl color and I believe either the bumper itself or the primer is black so chips will show badly.

It's my first car using a clear bra. It's stopping the chips, but the ultimate test is will it discolor or stain over the years...

3M is supposed to be at the 5th or 6th generation of making the clear bra now, it also have a polyurethane clear coat on top of the plastic so the appearance is similar to the clear coat of your car.

jdoolitt

Sorry - I didn't mean to offend you or anyone else, who might have bought a clearbra. If you think it is worth the money, then it's a good deal. For me -- it is akin to plastic furniture covers.

OutlawsX

If you have the money to repaint after 2-3 years of driving around on the crummy roads of the I-5 freeway... may the force be with you. I average around 20k+ miles a year and it would have wrecked my front.

The paint on the Lexus is very thin... look at your bumper after driving for one year and you'll know whether it was worth 300-400 bucks for the clearbra, or having to pay 700-1000 to repaint your hood, front bumper, fenders.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

but for $500 I could probably repaint it 2-3 times....

15951

If you're into paint care and like to polish/wax your car, then you can really tell a noticeable difference on the part of the car that is saran wrapped. If you're the type that thinks swirls on a paint finish are "normal", then you wouldn't notice a clear bra anyway. It's all a matter of taste.

For those of you driving a lot on crappy roads, I understand your reasoning. I wouldn't do it for the same reason that I wouldn't put clear plastic floor mats in the car, though. You're essentially preserving the vehicle for someone else to enjoy someday. Many of you will trade/turn in your cars way before you would have needed a repaint. I'm using my car...I paid for it.

shiz nik

Just became a part of the Lexus family and sas wondering if any part of your upgrades were from the dealer????


]I would never get a clear bra... Can you imagine never getting to wash and wax your car??? Some of us love the feeling of pride you get when youve just waxed your hot new ride! Id never give that up for a crappy sticker![/QUOTE]