kidcas

sorry the pics are crappy, cheap camera.... but here it is my debadged 8... the "M" symbol on the front and back have posts, as does the "mazda", so at least a few hundred dollars will be spent at a body shop, fixing that.... at first it seems odd, but then when i saw other 8's with emblems still on, i liked mines much better.....

kidcas

the back

kidcas

another one

kidcas

last one, yes the front windshield is tinted, 50%... coming soon pics of my custom stereo... amps, subs, EQ, etc.....

Rupes

How does one go about removing the badges? Can I do it myself?

-Rupes

Strider

You should be able to just take a blow drier to heat up the glue then carefully use a screwdriver to remove the badge. I suggest putting a thin cloth over the tip of the screw driver to prevent scratches. Then wash and wax and you should be good to go.

This will work unless there are pegs put into the side of the car... if there is get some putty, and OEM paint.

-Strider

MEGAREDS

As Kidcas said, there are posts under some of the badges. Proceed with caution. Also, instead of the screwdriver, consensus seems to be to use dental floss, working it gently back and forth while the hair dryer keeps things soft.

Brothervoodoo spent $500 for the body work to fill and paint over the post holes. Unfortunately, most of his photos seem to have disappeared, but the car looked great. I think debadging is the way to go with this car, especially now when everyone is running around wondering what it is (at least in the Midwest -- there seems to be very few of us).

I'd love to see a DIY debadge thread... if someone has the guts, please take the photos and post!

kidcas

the "mazda" on the back and "M" on the front and back have posts.... taking them off is as simple as everyone says, use a heat gun or blow dryer to melt the adhesive, then some dental floss to peel off the emblem.... then use a cleaner/degreaser/bug tar/etc. to remove the glue still on the car...

take it to a body shop to fill in and paint the holes....

brothervoodoo

Yeah, I lost my webspace in a dispute with my provider... long story...

XeRo

MAN....AND YOU DIDN'T TAKE PICS BEFORE THE PAINT WORK!!! UGH...i want to see the holes that are left behind...if you have any pics of the after debadge but before body work can you please post them...

MEGAREDS

Please post what the charge was and whether the work was acceptable. At $200, I'm there.

Xyntax

For me, a debadged RX-8 looks like a sports car that's joining the ranks of econobox racers. Maybe it's how most debadged cars I see here are Civics, Integras, Corollas that don't have anything to go for. And most "badged" cars here are in the levels of Porsches, Vettes, Supras, FD's, etc that have something to go for... you get the picture.

I really don't see the beauty in a debadged sports car. Can anyone enlighten me on this? Maybe I'm just a lil slow on this mod-the-look way.

brothervoodoo

Not much to explain, it's an individual esthetic choice, you either like it or you don't.

MEGAREDS

Adverstising is advertising. The back of the 8, in particular, looks like a billboard. As with any great work of art, the artist's name is not the point. The thing should speak for itself... res ipsa loquitur.

kidcas

it cost me like $230 to get the posts filled and painted... they pretty much have to paint over the whole area..... if you look really hard(and up close) you can kinda see where the holes were...

i debadged my car cause:
1: too many emblems on the back
2: i wanted it to look different from everyone else's
3: i like the way it looks

MEGAREDS

Do you think that is necessarily going to be the case with any body work? Brothervoodoo, does you car show post holes up close?

brothervoodoo

I don't see any holes on mine. Kidcas, when you say they "pretty much painted the whole area", do you mean they painted the entire front bumper and trunk lid, or did they instead do a blend or fade?

kidcas

they didnt paint the entire bumper or lid, but they did a good portion.... it looks seemless, you cant tell where it was blended... i guess they didn't do as good a job on the holes, cause if you look hard enough you can see where they were, but you'd have to be really looking for them to notice...

brothervoodoo

People won't notice then, you know because you look over every square inch of the car (probably like the rest of us... ). I've gotten nicks and such on my rims and they never show up in any of my photos..

Outlaws eXtreme

My reason was some 5" pipe thing flew at my car and scratched some paint next to the front emblem... so I had to repaint it. The guy asked me if I wanted it to be debadged... so I went that route.

mikeb

for 230

thats cheap and thats why you can still see the posts

I think any and every car looks cleaner without the emblems

o0o0o

How hard/more expensive do you think it would be for them to paint a debadged nordic green mica... given the gold flakes and all.

brothervoodoo

not difficult, a good shop can get the paint needed.

MEGAREDS

Found this photo in my RX-8 folder...