VIP body kits need your input

I have never really owned a body kit before....
 
whar are most body kits made of ? 
 
what is the best material to stick with when buying a vip kit?
 
 
should I have the kit painted first and then installed/ or fit the whole kit them spray?
are most kits ready and preped for spraying or do they need bondo ect...???
 
 
Thanks

The vast majority are made of FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic).  I am having my kit fitted first and then painted, as my kit is designed to have a seamless installation.  Whatever you buy, it'll probably need some work to fit exactly how you want it to.

I've never owned a body kit myself, but from what I know most kits are made out of FRP. I know that they also make kits out of that hi-flex plastic stuff but never seen them for vip cars. 

From what I know, I think painting the kit then fitting it would be better. It's easier to paint off the car and there's nothing you miss.

And for prepping, most quality kits don't need any work. Just primer and paint. Unless the came crack or a lesser quality kit you might need work on it. But I'm sure whatever you get will be fine. 

hope this helps

ive owned 2 kits that was straight from japan. bolted up perfectly. no mods needed. only time you need one really test fitted is knock offs, for sure they gonna have probs

Thanks for the input so far....this helps...
 
 
Antbo, were those kits fiberglass? so your saying a nice highend japan kit should be ready to just spray?

You should test fit any part you put on the car before committing to paint it.

Even high quality parts may have defects, or your car may have a peculiarity that needs addressing first. It's never wise to paint a part, then see if it fits.

see below

test fit, then paint off the car, then install.  during the test fit you will see where things need to be flushed up.  half of the fixing is done on the car then made perfect off the car, test fit again, then painted.

almost all VIP kits are fiberglass, i think.

but most high end authentic kits should need minimal alterations

Test fit then paint the whole car =)

ooh woops forgot the test fit part haha

yeah listen to the guys upthere ^^

So how much are yall spending on test fitting, making small corrections and painting/installing a kit?
 
 
I also noticed some wavyness going on like in the side skirts.....should I bondo that out?

1k posts.....and you post this?

weird

I can have 10k post and still want members opinions....
 
 
do I smell a Hater?

not so much. but this has been covered before....

I can smell him....he's in this thread....haha...and he stinks too...haha

yeah, because i dont do this shit on a monthly basis.....

side skirts is where you will see most of the waves.  VIP kits tend to be very smooth and flat, so you will see any wave in the paint especially on black.  body shop will just use bondo/filler to smooth it out.

I would do it in this order:

1. Test Fit it.
2. Take it to body shop
3. Tell Bodyshop to align it if you find errors in fitment
4. Tell them to prep it and block it so it isnt wavy.
5.  Paint it


Most kits are Fiberglass.  Fiberglass is good because its cheaper to fix it if it gets cracked or chipped.  Once you crack plastic you better have a good plastic/rubber welder to fix it and its not cheap.

i just bought a plastic welder from snap on to mess around with.  have no idea if its any good but my account was low and i wanted to buy something.  we only use it to fuse plastic pieces together that have broken off older cars.

[QUOTE=vip tint+glass;229369]i just bought a plastic welder from snap on to mess around with.  have no idea if its any good but my account was low and i wanted to buy something.  we only use it to fuse plastic pieces together that have broken off older cars.[/QUOTE]



what does it look like?

Also, do NOT think that if the kit is from japan that means it'll fit. I had sideskirts and door caps that were legit and they didn't fit for shit. Also some kits are meant to fit JDM bumpers and what not. If you bought a Wald lip kit for a GS you'd find the front lip was 2 inches too short on each side. Thats my 2 cents.

^^he's right!dont get caught up in the hype.my Junction Produce kit was not a perfect fit.with the money i spent,id expect it to be perfect.but it wasnt.

[QUOTE=Green Grundel;229386]Also, do NOT think that if the kit is from japan that means it'll fit. I had sideskirts and door caps that were legit and they didn't fit for shit.[/QUOTE]

i've heard the same about wald kits.

what kit are you getting btw.

fuccaJPkit. 

kit fits like @ss. dunno if there's a diff between jdm and usdm ucf30...or i got a bunk mold...but they had to slap on alot of glass where the front bumper meets the headlights...and everything else is wavy.  body shop didn't block the kit.

yeah on my old S13 i had 3 different Vertex kits peices, 1 was genuine FRP, 1 was knock-off FRP, one was knock-off Flexi FRP. the Flexi bit was the worst since it bowed away from the car and was quite thin. The other 2 bits were okay but not great.
 
then i got a genuine Final Konnexion kit and it was a fair way off all round. i actually had to go and help the painter fit it up one day after work cause he said it would "never fit" and was telling me ""its not genuine" and im saying 'its a genuine FK kit, but no it isnt OEM of course not' ffs. Guy was a head fk and the final fit and finish was a bit crap.
 
i'd tend to agree with all the others, they never fit dead right unless you're lucky, and only you know how picky you are, and have "endless" time to fiddle with it. So i would try to fit yourself, mark what needs doing, then go ahead as said with getting a shop to mod and paint

yeah, autocouture is awesome. seriously, even the shop said that the quality is topnotch. 
tougefactory vs typem(msport knockoff) was actually not bad either, but quality was thin.
and for my insurance kit, thumbsdown. as much as i spent on this kit, id expect high standards, nope. 
so not everything jdm is great, and yeah, ive heard of problems with wald as well.
so goodluck, make sure you do your research first.
Charley

fabulous kits are FRP, 9.5/10 fitment, and is very high quality overall.

...and of course you know how good a fab ls430 looks.

wald fit liek dirt
so did my insurance kit

however my Uras kit, and bwave sides fit like a champ
my Liberal stuff does too.  Datasystems isnt toooo bad

the more you pay the better the shop will do ... esp when painting the car

Or do the work yourself.

%90 of the time the kit doesn't fit cause chop (shedded fiberglass) was sprayed over the molds making it slightly bigger then it should be. If that is the case with some sand paper and a sanding block you should be able to do it yourself. If it takes 3 hours to get a front lip to fit you are doing it right. Compare at ~$100 a hour for fabrication at a shop.

%10 of the time it doesn't fit cause the kit is made for a euro or JDM bumper/see above if thats the case you need to cut the kit and make a spacer with fiberglass which is where a shop would come in if you don't know how to do it yourself.

anyone have opinion on how good the kits are from aimgain , kbreak , JP... how do they compare..?? quality  ??  fit?   material??/

Drop the car off to us Gato...we'll take care of it.

+1 esp since your on the boards with a sick kit and no fitment issues

[quote=speedaddict;230918]Drop the car off to us Gato...we'll take care of it.[/quote]

[quote=Bippu PxrLex;230926]+1 esp since your on the boards with a sick kit and no fitment issues[/quote]

you can't argue that logic!:rules: