screaminMS
Member
- :
- 2008 Mazda MazdaSpeed3
i know im going to catch some crap from this. but im not a big fan of the look of carbon fiber. so i would like to know, if it would hurt the carbon fiber any if i painted it?
Painting a Carbon Fiber Hood
- Thread starter screaminMS
- Start date
mr_mazda329
Member
- :
- 97 Mazda Miata; 09 CWP Mazdaspeed 3
Nope...it will actually protect it better. Also...less waxing on your part and you can keep it sleeper because no one will know its carbon fiber. Do it
blake_peanut
Member
- :
- 2008 CWP MS3
x2...I'm not big on the look of carbon fiber either, first thing I'd do is paint it.
- :
- '16 CX-9 GT
i happen to love the contrast the cf gives to some colors on a car. but on some colors it looks bad. so i say do what u like cause ur the one driving it lol. but yeah it wont hurt the cf.
screaminMS
Member
- :
- 2008 Mazda MazdaSpeed3
cool thanks for the info guys.
- :
- MazdaSpeed 6
make sure u go to a good body shop thats knows what their doing.. cf is not easy to paint..
screaminMS
Member
- :
- 2008 Mazda MazdaSpeed3
i would mainly be buying it for the weight reduction. i plan on getting CF hatch as well.
^^Are you building a racecar? A CF hood and trunk will only save you ~30-40 lbs total, which isn't very much IMO. If you get a CF hood, get it for style, not for weight reduction. You won't even notice a difference in the way it drives. Save the money and upgrade your suspension & tires, that will make a much bigger difference on the track than CF parts. Some lightweight wheels will make you quicker than just replacing body parts.
mr_mazda329
Member
- :
- 97 Mazda Miata; 09 CWP Mazdaspeed 3
The CF hood and hatch shave off a lot of weight. I was amazed when I felt the difference on my friends setup. His s*** is way lighter than OEM. His name on here is Silversurfer
What else did your friend have done to his car that you don't?
Thanks, I have a CF hood (and there's no way the MS3 hood is heavier than the stock 6 hood) and I didn't notice any difference when I swapped over. Just trying to help out so these kids aren't throwing money away.
mr_mazda329
Member
- :
- 97 Mazda Miata; 09 CWP Mazdaspeed 3
The MS3 hood is way heavier than the CF version. How could you not notice the difference?
I notice a difference when opening the hood, but driving the car feels no different whatsoever.
Wastegate13
Member
- :
- 08.5 CWP MS3 GT
I always laughed at all the stripped out Hondas at the track. No interior, no AC, no PS and running way slower than my PS having, ice cold AC blasting, full leather interior DSM.
If you are going through all the trouble of buying and painting a carbon hood at least leave some portion unpainted. I think leaving the 2 middle strakes of the hood carbon would look kinda cool.
If you are going through all the trouble of buying and painting a carbon hood at least leave some portion unpainted. I think leaving the 2 middle strakes of the hood carbon would look kinda cool.
mr_mazda329
Member
- :
- 97 Mazda Miata; 09 CWP Mazdaspeed 3
Oh. Yea, I didn't notice anything different while driving it, but I'm sure if you take off 50-75lbs, its gonna help somewhere.
- :
- 2011 Mustang GT
I'm with you. If you're buying a CF part, some of the allure is having it shown. Don't paint the underside, or put a 'Mazdaspeed' decal and have them paint over it, so that the CF sticks through. Do something that doesn't jump out, but subtley changes the appearance of the car.
Or you just buy some serious suspension upgrades and skip the CF altogether.
Yes you're removing weight, but CF isn't weightless, some of that weight comes back, that's why I said he'd only be saving ~30-40lbs max. I still think the OP should invest in suspension & lighter wheels w/ better tires. That will help out his performance way more than just saving a few pounds.
