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Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper

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Old 09-12-2006, 10:58 AM
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Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper

Hi all,

Bare w/ me on such a long post, but I want to give as much detail as possible, so you guys can judge/rate the bumper or body shop.

I was never into the market of aftermarket bodykits, knowing they are mostly made from FRP and tend to crack easily and as some members here may know, Im more of a performance oriented guy, so all my mods had been mostly performance rather than cosmetic.

Then I came along and saw this thread:
https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...ghlight=hybrid

After seeing the flexibility and seeing that my favorite autoexe bumper is being made, I showed my interests to ShineAutoProject. And in return, they asked me if I wanted to go in for a test fit. So I did.

Ken at ShineAutoProject is a great guy. We test fitted the bumper. Most of the bumper fitted well on the car. The side corners didnt fit in straight on, so they sanded down the bumper a bit to make it fit. Everything went on pretty well. There was only one little concern between the headlight and clear corners where the bumper sticks out a bit, which didnt bother me too much.

So I got the bumper and went in search for a bodyshop.
Before I was able to find a bodyshop, I accidently rammed the bumper into one of my posts in my garage and cracked up part of it. ShineAutoProject was nice enough to let me bring it back in and help me fix it. Great guy, great service.

Now, back onto the bodyshop. After a referral from a friend and seeing their car's body work done, I went w/ Holmes body shop in Alhambra. I told them to take their time, cuz I want good quality work done. 2 weeks passed, and I dropped off my car to put on the bumper. Now, the bumper still seemed to fit on well, but prep and paint job does not seem good. The paint was "dripping", cracked up a bit, and you can see uneveness. Holmes knew my unhappyiness and was willing to repaint it. But the paint was not the only concern, it was the wavyness. There was some wavyness on the side of the bumper, somewhere under the clear corners. That was still acceptable since its not that noticable, but at the place where the emblem is, theres lots of waves. I asked Holmes whats this about? And they said its because of the quality of the bumper and they already tried everything they can to patch and fix it. I offered them if they spent more time (more money) can they fix it? But they said they cant, so instead, they offered me some discounts.

So now, I have this badly painted bumper and wavy bumper. Paint, for sure is bodyshops responsibility. As of the wavyness, I wasnt so sure was it bodyshops prep job or the bumper itself. After lots of considerations, I decided to give a different bodyshop one more shot. So I searched around for bodyshops and I only heard good things about Sixteen Customs in Gardena, just that they were on the expensive side (btw, holmes wasnt on the cheap side either). So I went in w/ my bumper and talked to Hiro there. Great guy. He wasnt willing to tell me at first but I asked him, given the state of the bumper, what is the cause of the wavyness? Bumper itself? Or bodyshop? He said mostly bodyshop, but he said, the quality of the bumper seems so-so too. So I asked "How about the ones directly from Japan? The JDM ones?", seeing that he has worked on so many aftermarket bumpers. He told me that, even those are so-so quality. Anyhow, he gave me a quote and I decided to give this bumper one last shot.

More weeks has passed, since I went on vacation and stuff. So I finally drove my car to Sixteen Customs to put on the bumper. First, the clear corners didnt fit in well anymore, due to the paint. Hiro acknowledged me that, if they sand it down too much, part of the bumper will become too thin and will break easily and telling me that, the part holding the clear corner already broke when I brought the bumper in. So carefully sanding it down and tried to keep that part of the bumper as durable as possible, 16customs was able to get the clear corners back in. Now the bumper is finally back on the car. Paint is all good. Very uniform, no dripping, no cracking. As of the wavyness. Its better than before, but its still there. Hiro told me that he did all he could, patching, sanding, fixing, but it still shows up. 16customs defn did a better job. Previously, when you swipe ur hand on the waves, you can actually feel the wavyness, now, you can hardly feel them, but you can still see the waves in some angles. And the waves under the clear corners are all gone.

So whats the conclusion? Apart from the waves, everything else for the bumper is great, but just because of the waves alone, I would rate my bumper as better than average condition and defn not "Show Car" condition.

My feeling/judgement is that, after wenting thru two bodyshops, it seems to be the bumper itself that caused the wavyness. The fitment was not a big issue for this bumper, but the waves...

ShineAutoProject are great guys. They have great reputation on the rx7club.com and provided great customer service, but I question the quality of the bumper. They have mentioned that waves can be fixed by bodyshops, but I think spending tons of money to get the waves fix would become an issue for this bumper too.

Thats all guys, thanx for reading. Oh and as of pics, I will try to take some snapshots tonite. I took some pics of the bumper when it was done after holmes, but you cant really see the waves on picture.

Cliffnotes:
1. Got Autoexe bumper from ShineAutoProject
2. Went to Holmes in Alhambra.
3. Bad paint and waves in the bumper.
4. Went to 16 customs in Gardena
5. Perfect paint, but still some waves in the bumper
6. Bodyshop or Bumper issue?
Old 09-12-2006, 02:08 PM
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how much did 16 customs charge for the paint job and installation?
Old 09-12-2006, 02:35 PM
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Do you have pics of either the before or after images of the bumper?
Old 09-12-2006, 03:03 PM
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I never took before pics as I never knew it would come out w/ waves.

Put it this way, Im not too familiar w/ the body kit mods before. When I got the bumper, all I was concerned was fitment, not wavyness. So I never paid much attention to that, until the final product came out.

Anyways, here are some before pics from shineautoproject. Yes, that is my car there for the test fit.

Thanx
Attached Thumbnails Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-rx801.jpg   Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-rx802.jpg   Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-rx803.jpg  
Old 09-12-2006, 04:36 PM
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Here's a great case that shows that body shops DO differ in skills and their attention to quality.

The first one did a bad job all around and charged alot for it and said it was the best they can do and didnt want to do it again. Of course not, because they couldnt to it the first time around. And who know what kinda prep work they did that might have caused the wavyness as well. It is highly possible that they could add more waves to the part than was originally there with primer and uneven sanding.

It might be a different story if you took it to 16 customs in the first place. Remember I told you I was skeptical about body shops myself? I said, I would rather prep my own parts AND THEN have them paint it. I also recommended 16 kustoms to you because i know that these type of things need careful attention. That's just how it is.

Remember, 16 kustoms is charging you EXTRA because they have to rework what Holmes did. Sand down the uneven clear coat, drips, etc.... and the work from there.

So how is it possible that one shop says that they did all they could and the other shop just simply fixed most of the problems? Because prep work is most important and either you know how to do it right or you dont. Be it JDM quality or our quality.....the attention has to be there.

If you would've came to me and told me, "hey Ken, this part right here is a little wavy, what can be done about it?" I would've showed you and fixed it in 2 min. We prep up parts to make our mold as well. It just so happens the autoexe front bumper we replicated off was brand new and we didn't spot anything "significant." Every flaw is very minor. You have to sit there and stare at the bumper all day long to find them. I can guarantee you not all the aftermarket painted bumpers in the shows are perfect either. It just seems good when you glance at it. I'm sure you will find flaws when you inspect it. I do it all the time when I go to local shows because I'm trying to look for a local body shop who does good work. I heard PJ bonfacio was good and charged alot for their work. I went to toyota fest in long beach not to long ago and inspected their work up close. My response was, "nah, still needs better prep work.... not good enough." I'd still rather prep parts myself even if it was JDM part simply because i know how much attention is involved.

Looks like i will be going to 16 kustoms to have my stuff painted .

Last edited by ShineAutoProject; 09-12-2006 at 05:42 PM.
Old 09-12-2006, 08:30 PM
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Hey Ken,

Just to clarify, Im not like angry/mad w/ u guys, its just that, the whole thing has not been a happy process for me. Im not sure which party made the waves happen, but sorry, at this point, I tend to believe its the bumper more than body shop.

When I searched around body shops, they kept telling me how wavy and how not-so-good quality the bumper was, but I didnt believed them. Until now, I start to question that myself too.

It is highly possible that they could add more waves to the part than was originally there with primer and uneven sanding.
For this, Im not sure. True maybe? But could it be possible that holmes messed it up so bad that 16 couldnt fix?

I said, I would rather prep my own parts AND THEN have them paint it.
You mean you guys could prep bumpers? Dude, if so, I would've just let you guys did it for me, but I didnt seemed to have gotten that message across?

Remember, 16 kustoms is charging you EXTRA because they have to rework what Holmes did. Sand down the uneven clear coat, drips, etc.... and the work from there.
Err... ok, yeah, I knew that, but I dont think I complained about 16c charging me EXTRA?
It was something I was willing to try once more even at more costs...

If you would've came to me and told me, "hey Ken, this part right here is a little wavy, what can be done about it?" I would've showed you and fixed it in 2 min.
We would never know about this... too late now.

It just seems good when you glance at it. I'm sure you will find flaws when you inspect it. I do it all the time when I go to local shows because I'm trying to look for a local body shop who does good work ... and so on and so on
Ok, until now, I never knew that "waves" would be an issue w/ aftermarket bumpers. So when I look at cars w/ aftermarket stuff, I never pay attention to that. And are you are saying that there should be flaws in this bumper?

Now, from ur other thread, lets keep our discussion on this thread.

It's basically a question of how much waviness you can deal with.
Ok, so probably I didnt know what to expect from this bumper and I expected too much? Is that the way aftermarket bumper works?

It's up to the body shop to sand with the right tools. They should sand with a block or a steel sheet to aid in comformity.
I dont work in the body shop nor do I know much about tools and methods they use, but you think that 16c didnt use the correct tools and methods?

That's where wet sanding comes in, but then again, the person sanding has to use some sort of tool to aid in getting an even surface.
Wet sanding was done. Again, I do not know what tools they used, but I did see they used some sort of tools when wet sanding. (I was there when they wet sanded the bumper).

I would say it's alot of factors and it wouldn't be fair to blame the bumper 100%
I actually believed that it was the body shops problem at first. But who knows?. Im just laying out the end results and my own personal feelings towards the issue now.

If you want to know if the bumper is wavy or not, run your hands through it.
Like my first posts, I did not have much knowledge about body kits when I bought the bumper from you guys. The only concerned I had then was fitment. So again, something I would never know.

Anyhow, Ken, I know this thread is a bit on the negative, but Im trying to lay out what has happened in the most neutral way possible and let people judge.

Bodyshop blaming ShineAutoProject, ShineAutoProject blaming Bodyshop, who should I trust?

One things quite sure, Holmes did a bad job. But did they did a job so bad that 16 or other body shops could not fix?

Here are some snapshots of the bumper. You cant really tell on pics, but in person, you can see some waves. Look at the last pic carefully and see can you spot it.

Perhaps I should give a rating too, to let you and other people know how quailty is now.

On a scale 0 - 10, if 10 = no waves at all perfect, 0 = nightmare of waves.

When the bumper was done by holmes, I would give a 4/10
Now that 16s done its job, I would give a 7/10? or even 8/10?
Attached Thumbnails Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-dsc_8463.jpg   Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-dsc_8464.jpg   Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-dsc_8466.jpg   Review of ShineAutoProject AutoExe Front Bumper-dsc_8467.jpg  

Last edited by mazdaexe; 09-12-2006 at 08:36 PM.
Old 09-12-2006, 08:46 PM
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the bumper looks fine to me
Old 09-12-2006, 08:54 PM
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the bumper looks fine to me
haha, I knew some people would say that. Its just hard to tell on picture.

And let me also clarify, on some angles, the bumper looks great, and in some angles, you can see the waves.
Old 09-13-2006, 12:12 AM
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I think you also mistakened me for being negative as well. I was simply explaining to people who might be reading, the reasoning for what has occured.

You mentioned in your thread that 16 kustoms did a good job where you can barely even feel the waves if you run your hand through it.

you said.
"But could it be possible that holmes messed it up so bad that 16 couldnt fix?"

"I dont work in the body shop nor do I know much about tools and methods they use, but you think that 16c didnt use the correct tools and methods"

I thought you said 16 Kustoms DID fix the most of the problems.

"Previously, when you swipe ur hand on the waves, you can actually feel the wavyness, now, you can hardly feel them, but you can still see the waves in some angles. And the waves under the clear corners are all gone."

So from that statement.........I assume 16 Kustoms did do a good job. I didn't say they didn't. Otherwise, I wouldn't be stating that I will take my parts there to paint. Also, I didn't say you complained about the Extra cost. I was just pointing out that the price they quoted had to involve the EXTRA work from redoing where Holmes left off.

When I say that I rather prep my own parts.......I was explaining that I don't trust body shops all that much from what I've experienced in the past. I'm not talking about our own parts but with JDM aero parts and even OEM parts. My OEM hood painted from M1 autobody is wavier than those pictures you posted of the bumper. I can barely even see any waves from the pictures. I believe I told you I was tight with M1 but I still wouldn't go there because I trust my own hands. That's just a personal thing because i want things perfect. I meant that I was gonna prep our own parts wtih my "own" hands. Not necessarily meaning we offer that service.

I understand that this was not a good experience for you. However, we were open to many options. There's nothing we can really do if you don't tell us the problem before hand. Many people have problems with body shops. That is nothing new.

However, yes it could be that particular bumper that you got was flawed since it was the first one. But from my eyes, there was nothing i saw that was significant. We would gladly replace it. Business is about both customer service and product. If one is bad, we can compensate with the other.

I can understand that you can make an arguement for the quality of that bumper being bad. but it wouldn't be fair to say that the quality of our bumpers in general are bad. There are no threads on any forums up to date that complain about the waviness of our bumpers. This is the only case and from looking at the pictures.........it doesnt seem that bad. If you want to replace for another bumper.......we can do that too.
Old 09-13-2006, 12:29 AM
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lookin good bong...i think you need some kind of front grill now to cover up the RB ram air duct...but i think its coming along nicely.
Old 09-13-2006, 10:14 AM
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but it wouldn't be fair to say that the quality of our bumpers in general are bad.
Yes Ken, I didnt intend to say all ur bumpers are bad, Im just saying what happened to this particular bumper.

I appreciate that you would have exchanged a better bumper for me. Like I always said, Im fairly new to the body kit market, and throughtout the whole process, I believed it was body shops issue all the way long, not the bumper. Until the end.

Anyhow, what is done and is done. The bumper is in a condition I can accept and live as it is (and too much money has been spent), its just that it was not what I expected. Maybe Im picky?

The bumper looks great, its just when you walk up to it, you can see the waves once a while. Im planning to slap an emblem there and hope it will distract people from seeing the waves.

Thanx Ken
Old 09-13-2006, 10:15 AM
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you need some kind of front grill now to cover up the RB ram air duct
Yes, Im in search for some good black mesh, anybody know where I can get them?

Thanx
Old 09-13-2006, 02:18 PM
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16 customs is a really good shop. I've seen a couple cars they done and their work is excellent. There are a few shops out there that will do a **** job...everyone, stay away from TPR..hahaha
Old 09-13-2006, 07:53 PM
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^what he said.
Old 09-14-2006, 12:43 PM
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You can get very nice black grilles.........small or big diamond from DTMAutohaus aka m1 autobody. Pricey but worth it. They import them from europe. Ask for kingson
Old 09-22-2006, 01:19 AM
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Hye Mazdaexe, do you go to any local meets? or if you had time, and don't mind I would love to take a look at the way it came out in person. I live in the Monterey Park area. I'm only asking because I myself am very very picky, that being the reason I havent bought any kit for my car. I would only buy the mazdaspeed at this point because the fitment is perfect as well as the color, but I love other kits as well. I just don't want to put up with fitment and paint problems.
Old 09-23-2006, 07:37 PM
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Prepping and wet-sanding a body panel is almost like fine art... some folks can do it and some can't.

General rule of thumb, if you can feel it with your fingertips, it will show. I had a urethane body kit from Kaminari on my last car and both front and rear bumpers had "wavy" spots which needed to be block sanded.

I've seen PJ's work at last year's SEMA show and wasn't impressed. I've also seen no-name shops do fantastic quality... go figure!
Old 10-02-2006, 06:36 PM
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i dont wanna be mean or anything but the picture shineautoproject put up for the group buy of the 8 looks WAY better. maybe cuz that is an original?? not sure but i can sure tell the difference.
Old 10-02-2006, 09:32 PM
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i have the autoexe front and have no waves at all. then again, you have black, so you're probably gonna see more imperfections.

**edit** guess i should of read it a little better. didn't know your bumper wasn't the authentic one.

Last edited by Im_DANomite; 10-02-2006 at 09:35 PM.
Old 10-06-2006, 03:17 PM
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FYI,

I've owned these various brands of authentic Japanese Kits that still require prep and blocking of the kits to make them appear smooth.

GP Sports
RE-amemiya
C-West
Fabulous
Ings

Almost all the JDM kits i've ever received into our company will require prep work to alleviate the "waviness" you will commonly see. I've had many a customers drop their bumpers and stuff jsut to get shot at a paint shop without requesting prep work. they are authentic and they still come out wavy.

Just FYI. I've had too many kits to know that you should specify the level of quality you expect from the bodyshop's craftsmanship.

What people look for in a "JDM" kit is fitment. Even that at times is off. I've seen this with Ings kits before. Who'd have thought. And that was a hybrid kit to boot.

Rishie
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