Bye -Bye moldings

[CWPspeed3]

I had a hard time making up my mind because it looks good both ways but they hold dirt and make it a pain to clean and wax so I pulled them off by hand without any effort on a warm day.

 

[onie]

I just took mine off the other day too, I like the clean look but unfortunately on a white car it left a yellowish chemical stain behind, all the tape and glue came off but theres a yellowish line and I've tried a clay bar, rubbing compound, pre wax cleaner, and wax and there is still a faint line left, kind of wishing I left them on.

Mine had the same yellow lines. It's been over a week now since i took them off and it also has disappeared.

 

[punch]

I HATE the moldings, so cheap looking. Took mine off in the first 15 minutes I had the car in my garage.

 

[neox.286]

looks good! I like it!

and I love the little driveway floormat you have for your car haha

 

[CWPspeed3]

The main problem I had with the white moldings is they didnt match the color properly and they were a shade darker than the rest of the car thats one of the main reasons I took them off.

 

[ForceFed]

and I love the little driveway floormat you have for your car haha

I didn't even notice that..I had to go back and look again.

That thing is sweet.

 

[phillyb]

I HATE the moldings, so cheap looking. Took mine off in the first 15 minutes I had the car in my garage.

hahaa, i waited about a day, but srsly, the molding removal was the first thing i did to my car.

I didn't even notice that..I had to go back and look again.

That thing is sweet.

hahaha, i had to go back and look as well

 

[Hyun]

haha just noticed the floor mat. nICE

 

[onie]

The doors does look tall and long without the moldings. I thought about putting it back on but the adhesive that's on the molding is a pita to remove. Has to be removed completely or it will not stick properly. Oh well guess have to like it now without the moldings

 

[skylar2ups]

I think it makes the sedan doors look almost like a BMW 3's thats just me though... I like them on most hatchs but I must say yours does look nice and the silver one with them off looks good too. I have seen one around where I live it has been painted PINK *VOMIT* and the moldings is off and I think it death to the Mazda.

 

[robin2660]

Something many don't consider besides cosmetics is that stuff accumulates underneath the moulding, which might include caustic or other material that could degrade the paint and cause future corrosion issues. At the minimum, it makes washing and waxing alot easier.

 

[strytnyne]

the key to preventing dents and dings is choosing where u park imo.

 

[1speed3]

question

looks good. one question where did you get ur light tint from ?

 

[nbarsotti]

So I just removed my moldings yesterday and I have run into a bit of a problem and wondering on advice. All 4 came off very easily and I got all the sticky residue removed with goo gone. After a quick wash I am left with outlines of where the molding was. In some spots the outline is whiteish and in others its very dark. My MS3 is a 2007 with 6K miles that I just bought used. Do you think this outline can be removed with a clay bar, mild polish and elbow grease or will I need to get an orbital polisher involved?

 

[neox.286]

you should be able to get it off with a clay bar and some elbow grease

 

[brunoxmatoss]

i always thought it looked wierd on pictures... but after i grew the balls to do it, the looks grew on me. it looks WAAAYYYY better in person. =D alot cleaner too.
before...

after..

 

[neox.286]

^^^
looks hawt bro!

 

[iredremix]

u just pulled off the moldings?

 

[neox.286]

well, you have to finess it a bit lol
a heat gun usually works pretty good to soften up the glue so you can pull it off (at least, thats what I did on my old car...dunno if there's any screws in these ones)

 

[brunoxmatoss]

i just pulled mines right off. if you pull them at an angle (dont bend them trying to pull it directly out) it came off and left almost no glue on the car at all.