...that is the question.

I will be embarking on a cross-country drive in about a week. It's going to be mostly highways/freeways.

My car had a total exterior restoration and repaint several months ago.

I've got a used LeBra that came with the car when I got it; it's the right fit and everything and looks to be pretty clean and undamaged (it wasn't installed on the car when I bought the car and I never used it in the past because the previous paint job looked like crap all over, so I saw no point in covering the front).

Question is: What's the best way to go with my car? It says on the installation instructions not to install it on a repainted vehicle, but would it offer useful protection for a long drive (after which I'd take it off again)? Or am I better off just going without the bra and hoping I don't run into any serious gravel or stones? I've seen some horror stories about new paint jobs being ruined by LeBras, so I'm looking for opinions.

 

well i would belive there probaly stating more about not to use it on a freshly painted vehicle since the paint needs to breath. i think if you can get it on there secure and latched all the way so it does flap around then i would use it if it isnt 100% secure, its really up to you then but i would belive you would get more damage from rocks and such. also maybe in spots that arent 100% tight maybe use something like a soft towel so if it flaps around it will just hit the towel. Totaly up to you though but i would probaly suggest using it. Good luck.

 

The transparent stick on bra is what I would use.

here is one brand,
http://www.stongard.com/products.aspx

Can StonGard® Paint Protection Film be installed over fresh paint?

StonGard® Paint Protection film should only be applied to fully cured paint. How long it takes paint to fully cure depends on many factors that are not in our control and only the painter will know for certain. It could be hours to weeks. Consult with the painter if your vehicle has been recently painted.

In situations when the information simply is not available, smell your car. Seriously, put your nose right on the surface and see if you can smell the paint. If you can, the paint is still out gassing and it is not fully cured. If you cannot smell the paint you are probably okay to install the film over it.

 

This.

I know people who have used LeBra's on even factory paint. The LeBra, no matter how tight you get it on there can and will trap dirt and stones. I think they are worse for your paint job than going without. Just make sure you don't tailgate anyone and you should be OK. Give 18-wheelers and dump trucks a wide berth and you should be fine. Still if you can afford to do it the 3M clear bra or the one linked above are the way to go.

 

i went out and bought the expensive wolf car bra. and it ruined my stock paint. those things should be outlawed

 

Forget the Front End Bra. If you are so worried about the paint, then fly and leave the car in the garage.

 

The previous owner put one on so my car came with one...... then I found out it was because he rear ended someone and there was a big round spot of yellow plastic showing, but I repainted the front bumper and left the bra off, then about 3 weeks ago a woman in her grand am "didn't see me" and scraped the drivers side corner of my car down the side of hers when she tried to turn right at an intersection while I was the one in the right turn lane to begin with. So I was kinda glad I still had the bra in my garage so I could mostly cover up the damage until it gets a facelift. Moral of the story: it can't hurt to have one, I wasn't fond of the look of it but I was sure as hell glad I had it.

 

I was in the same spot as you last year, I drove my 88 GTA across the country. To be honest its a 50/50 chance of something happening with or without the bra. I put a bra on my GTA for the trip. Well it ended up not staying on very good at constant 80MPH interstate speeds and I got some flapping. When I took the thing off I had scuff marks were it looked like it rubbed off the clear coat on the paint.. Then I had rock chips on my mirrors... I can tell you if my car was painted a month ago there would be no way in hell I would be driving it across the country, its not very nice on the car. If I were you I would stick a bra on it, just MAKE DAMN SURE that its on there the best possible. You don't want it to flap or move at ALL. I would still take little scuffs in the paint over chips any day. You may have better luck, because the font end of a GTA is more curvy and has less spots to mount it to. Your front end is edgy, and has a grill to attach it too. Good luck either way, and stay away from other cars on the hwy!

 

just do like these people did
http://crazytopics.blogspot.com/2006...with-tape.html

 

i would use the clear one i had a le bra on my old z/28 it had scuffed up the paint from when the po had the car i didnt want all the scuffs and scratches showing so i left it on until i got enough money for a new paint job then when i took it off it had puddled up water on the nose of my hood and literally rusted through the hood its was bad so i had to buy a new hood and front bumper cause it was hiding cracks i never noticed...

 

Now if I was the OP that is what I would do. I hope I remember that for next time I drive across the county, because that is what I will do..

 

I just responded on the guys thread about the same thing. He was thinking of using shrink wrap. I posted this link: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=364032

About the same topic on the blue painters tape but that is a BMW forum.

I say if people are willing to put that stuff on BMWs and Audi's, then there should be no worry about doing it on a thirdgen.

Good luck!

 

Most people here are adamantly against bras, so I hope you weren't expecting much support in favor of it lol. However, give people the choice of a simple polishing-out of the minor scuff marks a bra might leave behind, or repairing the possible REAL damage from rock chips or other kinds of debris, but mostly from baked-in bug-splatter/bird-droppings on the bumper cover, hood and mirrors, none of which will come out with buffing/polishing, and see which one they'd choose. I find it hard to believe that anyone would choose the real damage--honestly.

The stuff on the roadways seems to get worse and worse every year. It's getting so you can't even drive a few miles without encountering some kind of debris. So just imagine what you might encounter during 10 hours of sustained traveling for multiple days.

Have you ever had traffic send a truck tire tread("alligator" or "gatorback") flying your way? Or how about something flying off the back of someone's pick-up because he didn't secure it properly? See that rock in the air because that 18-wheeler was missing a mudflap? Or how about that gravel hauler leaving a trail behind him? And watchout for that deer who decided to cross the road as you rounded a curve, forcing you to dive down onto the apron of the road, most likely into loose gravel. Then there's the stuff hitting you that won't even have seen coming, causing the proverbial, "wtf was that?"

Now, true, the big stuff would probably cause damage that even a bra couldn't protect you from, but not necessarily... it all depends how lucky you are with the angle at which the debris hits you and your reaction time to avoid it. So if you score a lucky break, and it doesn't smack your car squarely, then the bra might end-up saving your car from more serious damage.

Seriously, I've made many cross-county trips, many years in excess of 100,000 miles per year, in a variety of vehicles, and I can't think of even one long trip where something didn't cause some kind of damage, from minor to major. But most people aren't on the road for hours-on-end very often, so they don't realize that the longer you're out there, the more likely you'll be to encounter things that you don't normally see when you're just going to the store, the game or to work.

You've heard of "Murphy's Law," and the (paraphrased) bumper sticker, "It Happens," right? People didn't just make this stuff up you know lol. It will...

So you're at the end of your trip, and you're either saying, "ugh, that bra left some scratches in my paint, and it's that dang LAFireboyd's fault for scaring me into using that bra" lol; or maybe you're saying, "phew, I'm sure glad I had that bra on the car," or you could be crying out in anguish, "I wish I'd put that bra on before I left!"

The way I see it, polishing-out some scuffs and scratches left by the bra is far more acceptable than possibly having to repaint the front of your car due to the other kinds of damage possibilities.

 

personally, i kept a lebra on my iroc for many years. (took it off weekly to wash, re-apply was under it, etc). the only drawback: i noticed after about 10 years that the paint protected by the lebra was essentially the same color as the day i bought it, while the rest of the car had faded slightly. and since then the clearcoat started to flake. when i repaint the car, a lebra will go back on it.

see my iroc page for what it used to look like.

 

I like to have on on my car around here. So much crap on the roads and we've got these things called "Shad Flies" which can make a real mess. I'm going to try the blue painters tape thing see if cuts down on the wear underneath the edges that flap. Here it is, haven't got it properly stretched out yet 'cause of the snow etc!

 

I'd definitely worry about it ruining your paint. Especially at highway speeds where if it's even the slightest bit loose it will buffet around a little bit.

I rarely hit rocks or anything going down the road that will scratch my front end. THe worst you'll probably hit is bugs. Even if they manage to scratch the clear you should be able to buff em out.

And you dont want the car ugly while you're driving it across the country do you?

 

Alway give us 18 wheeler drivers a wide berth. We dont want to kill people that drive 4 wheelers. And please dont get in front of us and deside to slam on the brakes. If you all didnt know it takes us up to 300 feet to stop at 45-50 miles per hour.