NorthGa

Hello,
I am a new RX owner. My previous vehicle, not a Lexus, was on the road a lot as will this vehicle. My question? Is there such a thing as a 'bra' for this vehicle. It helped my Highlander a lot as far as rocks and stuff not nicking the paint. I don't really want to apply those 'clear' kind or ones that need 'heat' to apply? I am just looking for something to put on and take off whenever I go on the road. I have not seen anything out there so was wondering if I am not looking in the right place?

thanks

BertL

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new ride.

From my quick couple of searches just now, it appears a clear-bra is your only option, but most quality installers that use top-of-the-line product will be able to remove it should you want that to be done one day. I'm sure lots of people are going to chime in you should reconsider your decision not putting a clear bra on. There are other threads here with satisfied RX owners with clear bras.

Colgan originated the car bra and is who I've had excellent results from in the past with removable bras for my convertibles. I use them only on road trips where I know I'm traveling with certain rock chips if I don't have something on. I just bought a Colgan for my new MBZ SLK, but even though the nose on my 2014 has been out for nearly 2 years, the pattern became available only recently. Check with Colgan's customer service and put in a request if you're interested in being notified when a 2013 RX pattern becomes available.

kitlz

That's interesting info about Colgan, BertL. I had a removable car bra on the RX300 from Lexus but haven't seen them offered since. It was two pieces - one for the hood and the other for the bumper. It took a while to unsnap and unhook it. Washing it was tricky. Then some more time to dry out before putting it back on the RX. Not that I did it every time I washed the 300 but I definitely prefer the clear bra now. No need to remove it when washing or waxing.

BertL

Yes, I'm on my 4th car bra now from them. Did a bunch of research years ago, and have found that unlike many of the more generic (and sometimes cheaper) car bras, I've never had issues with it ruining my finish -- even after a couple times of rain/hot sun on the same trip while the bra was installed, nor have I had any issue with it slipping or becoming loose. They do a great job fitting them -- tricky to get on the first time to help stretch the material out, but after that, good to go. Easy to clean the exterior with some QD or general purpose interior cleaner for synthetic/plastic materials once it's off. Even on my SC430 that was 7-8 YO when I sold it, the Colgan bra accessory I gave the new owner fit and was in good shape having been used 2-3 times a year for my trips through the desert and up the coast. I've never put a bra on any of my RX (they are so much higher in comparison to my verts that are inches off the ground), but all 3 of my verts and my SC300 -- they were also 2-piece, but Colgan makes multiple styles these days -- I still opt for the "original", vs the bikini and almost full-hood variety. Anyway, looks like people are presently out of luck if they want one for their RX, but worth a look back to them in the future from my experience.

kitlz

The bra was on my RX300 24/7 for five years. It didn't damage the paint except for the time one of the hooks came loose, causing a few paint chips on the hood. Fortunately they were hidden underneath the bra. Overall I'm sure it saved me from worst damage.

I replaced the bra once because I wanted a newer one. The cost was around $150 IIRC. I let the dealer install it for me. I'll ever make that mistake again The hardest part was stretching it across the front bumper and snapping it inside the wheel well. The rest was held in place by hooks.

I'd say the only downside with this kind of bra was the tendency for dirt to get caught underneath, especially around the edges. A strong stream of water was usually enough to get most of it out..

Here is the bra on my old 300. It blended in well with the black paint.

BertL

Anita, that looks great. I wouldn't be surprised if Lexus didn't OEM out to Colgan back in the day. Look at the Lexus, MBZ, and BMW covers, and they look a lot like some of the ones from Covercraft (now parent company to Colgan), except if you buy from Covercraft or one of their retailers and you get a lot more options on color and finish these days than the single option buying the OEM version.

...and I agree with you. The initial fit is a little challenging, but really important, and honestly I'm in the habit of walking around my car and checking the hooks every time I stop on a trip to check to be sure there is nothing flapping -- fortunately never had a major problem, but it's worth my piece of mind. Also, I'm very particular to only put the bra onto a clean and perfectly dry ride, and when I get home from a trip, off it comes, gets cleaned and dried, and stored away for the next trip. I can think of a couple of times when I had rain torrents occur while I was on the road with the bra installed -- I elected to just leave it in place and not touch it until I got home several days later. My finish was in no worse shape as a result. For me, I think the trick is to not give dirt and such any opportunity to get under the bra once it's installed. A good one fits very tight, and if you leave it that way, you don't get abrasion of your finish with the nice cushiony material against your finish my Colgans have always had, but get dirt under there and travel for a while will force a major correction step with a lot of polish on your next detailing regime. That wouldn't be my view of fun, especially on a dark painted ride.

UCSB

You should reconsider the clear front end masks that are applied directly to the car. They work well and are virtually invisible. My brother and I are do-it-yourself'ers and we have installed several. They are not put on with heat; but rather you wet them down with solution after you remove the backing, then apply them to the car and squeegee the liquid out. Pretty easy, but a large car like the RX requires two people to make the job go quicker and handle large pieces of the clear material. You can also have a professional installer put one on the vehicle.

CanadianRX

I agree the clear bra is great. thumbs up here. Also a car with stone chips still looks better than a car with a bra no offense to owners. Go naked or clear IMHO.

UCSB

Here is a new low cost system from 3M that looks interesting. It is low cost and spray on ... very cool, if it works.