2003 P5 Bras?

[danhenry]

I jut bought a brandnew P5 and live in an area where there is alot of gravel on the roads and general debris. I want to keep my new car looking that way. More specifically i want to avoid the many rock chips that occur right above the grill. I thought of getting a bra for it, but some people have been telling me that it will scratch the paint too. Does anyone have any info on this matter?

Thanks alot,
Dan

 

[KYREDP5]

My bra ruined the pain on my old '94 Probe....It was shittly paint anyway, but nonetheless....

 

[WaatDaHell]

I jut bought a brandnew P5 and live in an area where there is alot of gravel on the roads and general debris. I want to keep my new car looking that way. More specifically i want to avoid the many rock chips that occur right above the grill. I thought of getting a bra for it, but some people have been telling me that it will scratch the paint too. Does anyone have any info on this matter?

Thanks alot,
Dan

As some of you probably already know, I hate bras. Since you, danhenry, have not heard the reasons why I do, I think now is a good time for you to hear what I have to say. You might not like it, but take it as another point of view.

The reason for a bra is to protect your car's paint from road debris, gravel, and other unexpected objects. You want to keep your paint looking brand new. Intuitively, that's a good idea. Now, think of it this way. Why do you want to protect your paint? I'm just assuming that you want to protect it to keep it looking new for years to come. "...look at that shiny red...." But think of it this way. When you put the bra on, will you see the paint? Will you be able to say, "wow the paint is still brand new" with the bra still on it? Basically, my point is you are protecting something by covering it up. That is just pointless. You won't be seeing what you're protecting anyway.

If that still doesn't convince you, then think of this 5 years later when you do decide to take it off. Sure, the paint that you covered is nicer and newer. But then look at the rest of the car. Does the paint for the rest of the car look the same? Unless you get a car bra that covers the whole car to protect the whole car's paint, it's pointless. That's not possible anyway so I hope you get my point.

Okay, here comes the defending arguments!!!

 

[03blup5]

18 hour support bra ?

I had good luck with a bra on a white Dodge, despite it being messy at times, and I didn't have it on in our Canadian winters, but wouldn't put one on my P5. Instead, I found it a necessity to have the hood deflector installed when I picked it up from the dealer (and sunroof deflector, for different reasons). It does exactly what you want it to do, requires less maintenance than a bra, and doesn't damage the paint.
Does it look as sporty? That's subjective. I don't think so but I'm willing to compromise. It looks good in a different way.

Cheers, Mark

 

[danhenry]

I see your logic watdahell. But im living in south dakota, where they gravel the roads in the winter, and in the summer bugs fly around in storms. My hope was to save the front portion of my car, the greatest impact site, from all that gunk and rock. I guess my question still remains, will the bra dmg my paint, and or, are there bras out there that dont?

Thanks
dan


They make a hood deflector for the P5?

 

[03blup5]

hood deflector

They make a hood deflector for the P5?
[/B][/QUOTE]

Your dealer should have accessories available in his showroom or by catalogue order. The deflector is one of them. I also got a bumper guard, wheel locks, cargo tray, and cargo net when I picked up my car. My dealer even has aftermarket items such as Altezza taillights, sport muffler, euro style mirrors, trailer hitch, electronic rust device, etc.

BTW, the bra will protect more area than a hood deflector but it's not maintenance free. You need to remove it regularly to clean it and under it. Lotsa crap can get between it and the hood, including moisture being held against the metal (ie. can expedite the rusting process over time). And a poor fitting bra will flap around, causing scratching. You need to ensure a snug fit.

Hope that helps, Mark

 

[MP5driva03]

hey man, here's the story...

Hey, I hope what I have to say can help some...

...I have a 2002 Red P5, and I love her paint. Being that i commute 120 miles a day on Interstate 95 to Richmond, Virginia, my dad and I decided that a bra would be a good idea, cuz my baby's front was getting pretty badly cut up. The guy at the dealership, who has been a friend of ours for years, sold me a mazda bra for about $80, which is cheaper than the normal $120, but still damn exspensive. I have had it for about a week, and let me name the ups and downs:

DOWNS:

-it's a b**** to take on and off, at least in Virginia. In Virginia, there is a law requiring front liscence plates, so when i take off the bra, I have to remove the L.P. frame as well.

-it fits very snugly, and I wonder at times whether I might be rubbing at the paint and doing more harm than good.

-before the bra can be put on, the wheel wells have to be removed and fitted with the male end of a snap tab(in two places).

-the car must be thoroughly waxed and cleaned before the bra is put on, or else water will become trapped between the bra and paint, thus causing the paint to fog up. That sucks.

-every time the car is washed(roughly every sunday, weather permitting), the bra must be removed, to prevent the foggy paint as mentioned above.

UPS:

-the bra does a damn good job of protecting the paint, at least in theory. I have noticed a great improvement in the lack of cuts and scratches, and last week i got stuck behind a dump truck dropping gravel, and I thank god I had the bra put on when i did, cuz the car next to mine on the highway got his windshield and headlight cracked. I saw it, and he was pissed.

-The bra fits the car nicely, and to be honest, I have ALWAYS hated bras...I have thought then ugly and tacky-looking. However, the one I got from Mazda looks very nice. It fits the car nicely, doesn't buffet in the wind, and doesn't seem to rub or tear.

-It stays clean pretty easily, but it does trap ollen and dust under the brim sometimes.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I like the bra, but I DO NOT think it is in any way worth the money I paid. Maybe in the long run I will change my opinion, but save a couple of instances, it has just been an extra burden. I am happy that I took the oppurtunity to save my paint, but the hassle, at this point in time, is just too much, and the bra really does take away from that beautiful front end of our MP5's that we all admire so damn much.

Hope this reply helps, and if you have any more questions, don't be afraid to P.M. me and I'll do my best.

-Chandler

 

[NetGuy]

I fully agree with you WaatDaHell. That's like protecting your clothing by never wearing it.

The only reason to put a nose bra on is if you like the look of it...some people do. Can't say I'm one of them.

In any case, there is another option as far as paint protection. 3M makes a product called ScotchCal that is basically a tough very clear "sticker" that they apply to the front of your car. You have to look really close once it's put on to even see it, and it protects your car from pretty much any kind of debris. Most tint shops can install the stuff. Might be worth checking into.

Here's a link to the 3M website
3M Website for ScotchCAL

 

[MP5driva03]

I kinda agree with WaatDaHell and Burnination too, in that it may seem pointless, but to be perfectly honest, I never knew that 3M stuff existed. Sounds kinda cool. I am just happy to have my paint protected by SOMETHING. Haha, well for the most part, do yall agree with what I said?

 

[03blup5]

clear strip protection not the best

Before you commit to the 3M stuff, thoroughly check it out.
My buddy bought a used white car with this stuff on the front edge of the hood. It wasn't totally unnoticeable, and dirt would gather along the edge. It also slightly yellowed with age. In short, I wasn't impressed with it.
Still think the smoked hood deflector is worthwhile. It's not the ugly generic style from the '80's. It deflects the wind and the bugs up and over the windshield, reducing the amount of what hits the windshield as well as protecting the lip of the hood. I bought mine when the car was new, so it carries the standard 3 year Mazda warranty in case it cracks or breaks, and it can stay on in the winter with no negative effect - not recommended for a bra.

Cheers, Mark

 

[NetGuy]

Yeah, I should comment...I haven't ever tried this stuff, I just saw it at a car show recently, and thought it might work. The guy also said that it was good for protecting glass head/fog light lenses. Could be a good idea for us P5 guys with giant glass foglights hanging out of the front of our cars. You can also get it in different colors, for those wanting say....yellow foglights.

 

[digitalpro5]

I have the bra myself, and it has saved my front so many times that it has payed for itself. Now if your a long commuter, and you live in areas where sand, gravel, and even road constuction work (those damn California pot holes and them fixing it by putting tar-gravel in the holes), by all means get a bra. Now if your road conditions are much more tamer, hell don't get the bra.

If it wasn't for me going through a high traffic area, where road constuction occurs every day (different parts of the same long street), I wouldn't have bought the bra. A few weeks ago I had a small 1 in. tear in my bra, I freaked for a bit and looked underneath it and thank god there was nothing chipped or scratched. It won't defend against a huge boulder, but it sure will keep the small stuff from messing up the front.

Unless your showing off your car all the time, by all means leave that bra off. But for the regular Joe, Bob, MaryJane (who don't give a rats ass) out there it'll help and the few minutes to take it off and on is nothing compared to going to get your front repainted because of chips, and other things. Heck I take mines off when I need to show off too minus the long commute through that street/road I have to commute on.

 

[MP5driva03]

Check this out...

...I just added two pics of my car with the bra installed to my cardomain.com site. Click on the "www" button on my profile bar below and see if you want.

Chandler

 

[MadBiker]

I like the Bra. The benefits are that it protects the front end of your car from bug splatter and dump trucks. And it looks cool if it matches your cars color. I have the MidnightBlue. Besides the license plate frame removal, it's easy to put on and take off. You can even move the license plate down to the grill with some wire because it looks ugly the way it's hanging off the front bumper.

Cons are that you do have to take it off and get the detritus out of there before that scratches your paint, but you're gonna wash the car at least 1x a month anyway, right?

Another con that many complain about is paint fade, but I'll worry about it 5 years from now.

That's my 2 cents.

 

[fastdrvr23]

Go for the Bug shield, or "Wind Deflector" as they called it above... It does the trick and still looks pretty cool too.
I've also got the Stongard on my Lights and Foglights, although you can't see it unless your < 1 foot away from either. Here's the bugshield.

 

[MP5driva03]

here's a pic of the facemask on my car, a day before I wrecked her. ~tear~

 

[MP5driva03]

here's another pic I took the other day, before she got hurt. (sniff)

 

[danhenry]

Fastdriver23 where did you get your bug shield and what did it run you?

Thanks!

Dan

 

[low_psi]

i don't believe in bras (boobs)

 

[danhenry]

OK, ok, so magnetic bra, or bug shield? or just get some touch-up paint and try and keep up. And where are bug shields found at? Im searching all over the internet and cant find one for the P5.

thanks!
Dan