OO...exciting.....

[geoff-r]

Very nice I was tempted by the fang cover but having a black 40th seems a little pointless to go for CF, I think it contrasts far better on lighter cars (Quartz included). My money will be going on suspension and wheels

[chippy]

This has not been going well. The front fang is absolutely rock solid, but the rear diffuser keeps lifting in the top corners. The tape just doesn't seem to eb holding it for more than a day and then starts to come away a few mm.

 

I'm pretty sure thatr it's down to the cold weather and the tape isn't warm enough to bond properly.

 

I'll take the diffuser off (for the 3rd time) tonight, pop it in the central heating cupboard for an hour to warm up (30 degrees in there) and re-tape it. I'll leave it till the weekend for it to stick to the diffuser properly, but not sure whether to also warm up the roll of tape and put a layer of the tape onto the bumpers as well? That way, come the weekend, the tape-to-tape should stick it for good?

[Ebized]

Get the wife's hairdryer out (or yours ) and make sure the area on the car is nicely warmed up as well.

 

Maybe some clear silicone and if you can rig up a 'press' against the areas where the lifting occurs and leave that in place overnight that might help to complete the bonding? I used silicone when fitting the mudflaps, although one rear one needs re-doing as I did not keep some pressure on for long enough

[Chris`I]

Such a shame that this doesnt seem to be sticking. Hope it is indeed the weather and not because of the shape. Unfortunatly due to the strength of CF, it might be that the mold isnt quite the same as the bumper, in which case the tape needs to be strong enough to deform the bumper slightly to keep it held to the CF.

 

Ideally you need to keep the CF and bumper warm on application and keep it in place under pressure for as long as possible. Not easily done where it has to fit

[chippy]

Yeah I'm fairly convinced that it's down to the ambient temp. The VHB instructions say not too apply in less than 20 degrees!

 

Given where the thing fits, it's not that easy to keep any kind of pressure on it.

 

It says 72 hours to achieve full strength - I presume I dont have to keep the whole thing at 20 degrees for that long (will have a very tired arm and knackered hair dryer )

 

Will try keeping everything warm and report back. If that doesn;t work - Alraldite Rapid!

[Chris`I]

Alraldite Rapid FTW Better hope the next owner likes the mod too if thats the case!

 

TBH, I would imagine that it does need to be kept at somewhere near room temp while it cures fully, that will give the best bond. It really isnt the best weather for doing this atm, not what you want to hear I'm afraid, but its true

[Ebized]

If you can back the car up towards a wall or something solid, by first finding suitable lengths of wood and a few wedges with cloths that should provide sufficient pressure to help hold the diffuser in place once the car has been fully warmed up and the diffuser then offered up. The longer you can leave it the better but as I have suggested, silicone might help and dare I say can be removed in the future and is unlikley to affect the paintwork, which I don't think you would be so lucky with using araldite

[chippy]

It really isnt the best weather for doing this atm, not what you want to hear I'm afraid, but its true

 

Unfortunately I think your right, so it might very well be coming off until the spring. Well, it will if the next attempt fails

[Chris`I]

See Colins suggestions, worth one more go, leaving it overnight supported by some wood pieces. Maybe go for a rag around also before leaving it to set, get the car nice and warm, it will give of heat for a while

[chippy]

Well I've got it off again easy enough, so no harm done if I decide the leave it off.

 

Once I got the tape off I gave it another test fit. It definately fits really well and curves, left to right, to follow the bumper, so I dont think it's under any kind of tension that might be contributing to it popping off.

 

Weather is due to be even colder over the next few days, so might just leave it for now to be honest. Might just get the tape in the diffuser and leave it a few weeks to properly bond and hope for a warmer weekend.

[chippy]

Might have sorted it.

 

I took it off during the week and peeled off the old tape. Then popped it, along with the roll of tape, into the central heating boiler cupboard for an hour to warm it up nicely. Then taped it up, popped it back into the cupboard for another hour, took it out and left it for a few days.

 

Got up this morning, and wiped the bumper section down and warmed the diffuser up for an hour again, then peeled off the backing and heated again, then fitted it. Really seems to have bonded well, but it did that last time and only started to come away after a few days, so fingers crossed!

 

The 3M website that it gains 50% of it's bond within 20 minutes, so hopefully should be alright. Looks great with the exhaust tips

 

 

[philb1965]

That looks the nuts!

 

I like the colour contrast and it does look good with the tips.

 

Cool mod.

[Chris`I]

Very nice

[clarkie34]

Looking really nice.

[Beavis]

Looks superb

[realneal370z]

Looks awesome. Been thinking about the Akrapovic myself but was wondering if from a financial point of view if the 'slip-on' exhaust rather than the full Evo would be good.

[chippy]

Looks awesome. Been thinking about the Akrapovic myself but was wondering if from a financial point of view if the 'slip-on' exhaust rather than the full Evo would be good.

 

I had thought about just getting the backbox myself and then getting the pipework at a later date, but figured if I was going to fit it myself I might as well get it all done in one hit. I think the price difference was about £700ish. Not cheap!

[Ebized]

You only live once - don't put off getting the s

 

Best decision I ever made was sourcing a cats-back exhaust from the start and the Stillen has transformed the 370, even more than most of the aftermarket ones do on a 350 and that includes the Nismo system I had fitted on my last 350

[realneal370z]

I know I should get an exhaust. Oh but which one though?!

 

I don't want to spend a fortune and it's hard to make a comparison of looks (I still want it to look stock) and sound. Akrapovic is supposed to be top-end, like Stillen and HKS but I have no idea. A tuning company near me recommended Scorpion as a good cheaper option and Akra, but they would buy in any I wanted. What about this??

 

http://www.agencypower.co.uk/product_in ... s-catbacks

 

It sounds great and isn't going to break the bank. I noticed this looks like a dual system or am I wrong?

 

Sorry I realise I'm in danger of hijacking a thread about CF bumpers here! Its just the first time I've seen an akrapovic exhaust on a Z other than on their actual website.

[Ebized]

I haven't come across the Agency Power system myself.

 

From the clip:

, it sounds OK externally but I would be a bit concerned about the noise level internally if what we are hearing on that clip is true. Fine for short periods, but on long journeys that might be just too much.

 

Personally, I feel the (non-rolled) tips are letting the system down lookwise - similar to a K1 without the bungs.

 

But at the end of the day it is a personal thing and if you like it and it fits your budget........

[chippy]

The Berk CBE is quite nice and was actually the one I had settled on before I saw the Akra. Sounds great and and I like the OEM style back-cut outlets as opposed to the straighter Stillens. Worth a look anyway.

[choptop]

Looks good