OrigMiniViper

Ok I went out and searched the web and contacted many sites about the mazdaspeed style body kit and found one that I liked for the price and ordered it.

Well all the parts came in on Friday June 25th.
I have to say I was Quite disapointed...
It wasnt exactly what I envisioned.
all four pieces are fiberglass (each light as HELL)
However the rear "bumper" piece is just big enough to cover the exhaust area.

This is where I am confused....What am I supposed to do?
Cut off the bottom portion to the original rear bumper (the black area)?
And once I do that how do I attach it to the (whats left) original bumper piece, I mean the piece that came was Fiberglass and the original bumper is Polypro....???

Any and ALL DETAILS are welcome from anyone who has Run into this problem or has Experience dealing with this.

Outlaws eXtreme

That is part of the problem of buying a fake kit... especially a fiberglass. You will find out that the installation is going to fit awkwardly... but if you want to try and do it yourself, here is a link with the instructions.

http://members.roadfly.org/ryang/Maz...tructions.html

whosyourbaba

yes your suppose to cut off some of the plastic part. There are some threads showing pics of someone doing it, dunno where, but its there!

I would go to the shop and do it.

OrigMiniViper

Does anyone know where this thread is and could you please link it?
Yes I plan on doing it in the shop, with a good friend, but before we cut anything I wanted to research this somebit.

derwankel

The main problem with these kits is the way the molds are created. For smaller, less complicated parts, a direct mold of the original will generally be good quality and highly conform to the original specs. Not much to distort to begin with ...

However, thin walled bumper facias and side skirts do not lend themselves well to direct molds. The reason the part does not fit well is that the mold is made with the part off of the car ... by necessity.

Consequently, the shape of the original part is distorted when not installed on the car. The contours cannot possibly match the intended shape on the car when the original is layed out to be molded. Think about it ... the attachment points directly affect the shape of the part ... without the part being attached, the shape must be distorted. Particularly on flexible facias.

Sometimes the distortion is minimal and not noticeable. However, when the part is attached, new stresses are created by "forcing" a distorted part to conform to the original attachment points. Add on top of this the vendors" choice of production material and you have a strong liklihood of issues like many on this forum have seen.

The only proper way to make such a mold is to mold the part while on the car. Something that is nearly impossible to do. The next best thing is to scan the original part on the car and obtain hundreds of thousands of data points (a cloud) describing the part. Then, translate that data into a mold for reproducing the parts. This is very expensive and time consuming. The only cost justification usually is for the original parts manufacturer. Few, if any other companies could justify the expense of tens of thousands of dollars to create such a mold. Generally, this is how OEMs make these larger parts.

Look at the AeroWorks MS kit (actually they just re-sell it). Sure, it is urethane, but as nice as it may be, the cost is nearly that of the original MS kit when it is all said and done. I'm not so sure that kit can ultimately compete with MAZDA and their original data and molds ... MAZDA has the quality and numbers on their side. Urethane is flexible, sure, and AeroWorks likes to demonstrate that on their site, but if those parts were molded from the original while off the car, there must be shape deformations (subtle as they may be) and therefore stress on the installed part. Maybe it is significant, maybe not, only long term thermal stress analysis and road testing will tell.

Other kits with different styles stand a better chance of having some financial success just because they are unique, but the mold issues remain the same. It would be interesting to learn about what molding and manufacturing procedures used by all of these manufacturers. I know of several fiberglass manufacturers that simply use cheap Central American labor to make cheap parts from copied originals and ship them to the US. The old saying,"You get what you pay for." applies here. That's not to say these manufacturers don't provide a valuable service. All I'm saying is it would be nice to understand how these kits are made, so a more informed buying decision could be made.

For smaller less complicated parts like spoilers, accents, etc. there are viable, high-quality, and less expensive alternatives. For MAZDASPEED Kits, I'd say stick with the original for the reasons I mentioned above.

OrigMiniViper

Ummm.... thanks for the lesson on HOW its made.....

Now will someone please post some useful information?

The Fiberglass Bumper(rear) is what I am concerned with.... All the other parts are fine Infact they All Are Perfect Fit, However I ONLY WANT to really know has anyone run into This yet, and How might I be able to attatch it ...etc....etc....

Outlaws eXtreme

OrigMiniViper... above on my post, I posted the directions on how to install your kit using the REAL MS Kit install. Shows how to cut the rear bumper, drilling for the sideskirts, etc etc.

The Fiberglass kit will require some work to install from a professional body shop... hope you or your friend is one.

whosyourbaba

here found it for you. theres more i think. search for mazdaspeed rear or something.

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...azdaSpeed+rear

enjoy, and good luck

Kel Rx8

1st time me saying this but you the search
derwankel tried to help you and you make fun.good luck with your fiberglass kit
:p :D

p.s aerowerks or original mazdaspeed is the only way to go!!

red_rx8_red_int

Yes, do the damn search yourself! Or post that you searched in vain. But you appeared not to search at all.

leegina

OrigMiniViper
who did you order your kit from? And has anyone seen on ebay the FRP Mazdaspeed kit? Think its any good? Its like 560.00 shipped, I know you get what you pay for but sometimes you can get lucky. Anyone have any experience with Raceon, I think that is the name of the company they got good feedback but not on any kits. Thanks

Outlaws eXtreme

Most of those kits on Ebay are coming from an LA Distributor, same as the AAS FG kit. They are all Fiberglass, and sometimes come in awful shape. You might be lucky and get one that isn't all junked up and needs to be seriously modded.

leegina

Thanks Outlasw eXtreme! That is what I was looking for, if they seem to be coming from the same company then I know for sure to stay away from them. I have read alot of bad things about them showing up at peoples doorsteps in bad condition. Thanks again, Lee

shigginsrx8

best bet....if you cant afford the real deal dont buy some POS knock off. Save your $$.

i know this sounds harsh, but it pisses me off when people buy cheap *****, ala almost all honda owners. If i could count the number of times I have seen a cheap kit on a car that is cracking and the paint peeling, well...I would be able to count real high.

your spent 30,000 on the car, spend a few more if you want to make it unique.

whosyourbaba

also to add, body kits on the car that havent been painted yet (saw a guy with it for 2 months)! or painted themselves. pretty ghetto!

Buy the real thing or the urethane version.

I gave u think link, look above.

leegina

Oh I will definetly wait I was just hoping for that one chance that you could get a good product cheap. But I am going to wait and wait until I have enough dough saved up. Let see about 2250.00 left to save up. I am rolling.

OrigMiniViper

Thanks for the info guys (Outlaws eXtreme and whosyourbaba)

FYI to you others I DID do the search for myself but didnt find anything thats why I asked for the link:-p

As for my kit Its great I dont have any flaws in it other then the 2 Questions this Tread Was all about
1. Why did only the ground affects of the rear bumper come and not an entire bumper?
2. How can it be put on?...

The Fiberglass Looks great
Its about 20lbs lighter in all than the polypro
Gives the car a great look
My bodyshop guy will have it all painted and road ready by next Thursday and thanks for the install info have it all put together.
I personally Wouldnt Order anything from EBay for my car.
I got my Mazdaspeed style kit from autoaccessorystore.com for about 500+S&H.
Now All I need is to get my Borla (looks at the mail box)

Nope no slip yet

adrian-1

Hey Origminiviper, sent you the install instructions.

Also, just fyi, http://www.autoaccessorystore.com does sell their kits on ebay. click here. Same pictures and if you click on terms and conditions it links to their website.
I was considering buying from them at first but decided to get the real deal and pay extra.
Hope it comes out good.

cortc

One of the problems with the after market kits is it will really hurt resale value...

Japan8

What do you mean cortc?? If you put the FEED package (for example) on your car instead of the official MS kit, your car will lose value? The same for plain jane and any aftermarket kit... Or does this also apply to the MS kit as well?

cortc

The only kit that would probably increase value would be the OEM MS; all the others most probably will in general hurt resale... This is also true of Porches and the factory aero packages vs after-market...

If you bring in a car to one of our dealerships with other than OEM body kits this is typically the rule...

flip

All i can say is... good luck w/ yer fiberglass kit...

i've been there... done that... ended up getting to original anyway... and LOVE IT!
But it's your ride.. and that's what matters the most i guess..