[BlueLion]

i live in sarasota florida, but dont mind driving to a good shop. ill go to tampa.....i am looking for a good place to get the clear bra put on and a place that can do tints....if im lucky the same place, maybe i could work out a deal on the price.....any recommendations would be appreciated

[Tampa335i]

I had the clear bra put on my 335i. I had Ryan from Auto Paint Guard do mine. He came to my house to do the job. I am not sure if he will go to Sarasota but he also has a place to do it up here. He is a perfectionist and did an excellent job. The installer is the key to the clear bra and I would not let anyone else do mine. I have had another place install one on my C6 and they did an unacceptable job. I also had one on my Lightning that was done OK.

Ryan doesn't do tint but you should be able to find a bunch of good tint places in Sarasota. If you want the best clear bra install and are willing to travel to Tampa get in touch with Ryan at 813-505-3868 or ryan@autopaintguard.com. Tell him Bob sent you.

Some pics of mine: http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=636204


-Bob

[BlueLion]

thanks bob....i dont mind driving to tampa for it.....i didnt really want to take a single trip anywhere without it.....ill give bob a call, not sure if the dealer where i plan to buy the car from does clear bra......but i rather go to a place to get the job done right rather than a place that is convenient. only thing left is a good tint place

[Tampa335i]

Be careful of the dealers doing the bras. They tend to find the installer that will do it the cheapest. They will sell it to you for the same price as a good installer but pay the actual installer less.

The place that did my C6 does tint and clear bras for some Tampa dealers. I would not recommend them for the clear bra.

Good luck. You will love the clear bra.

[BlueLion]

didnt think about it like that.....it just sucks because that would be ideal

[Ninjaneer]

For tint I recommend getting it done at Reeves in Tampa. Check out this thread: Tampa Area Window Tint Recommendations?

I got mine done about 2 weeks ago, very well done. The guy has a mobile service too; he'll come to you if you have a garage to work in.

BTW, there's an upcoming meet on Dec. 9th if you're interested: FL: Clearwater Area Meet!!! - Early Dec.

*edit: pics of my tint: My Freshly Zaino'd Arctic 335i + Tint

[BlueLion]

thanks for the invite....but i dont have my car yet....unless you dont mind a lexus crashing the party.....or i might be able to borrow an e46 for the day

[supernova]

ive heard about clear bra's but what are they? their use? are they visible?

[Ninjaneer]

Originally Posted by BlueLion

thanks for the invite....but i dont have my car yet....unless you dont mind a lexus crashing the party.....or i might be able to borrow an e46 for the day

Up to you, we won't mind

[BlueLion]

Originally Posted by supernova

ive heard about clear bra's but what are they? their use? are they visible?

its a plastic film that goes covers the surface of the car to protect it mainly from rocks chips.....and you can only see it and tell it is on the car when you look closely at it at the edges...but from head on you really can't tell.

[BlueLion]

Originally Posted by Ninjaneer

Up to you, we won't mind

cool....i might show up at the photo stop.....and take some pics

[Tampa335i]

I got my tint done at Reeves as that is where I bought the car. I had them put the Huper Optik tint on. They did an excellent job on the side windows put the back was not done well at all. There were many large bubbles and it did not stick to the dot matrix at the top at all. We brought it back and the lower part is better but the dot matrix has large, really large, bubbles that are obviously visible from the outside.

I know the Huper Optik film is much thicker than the Llumar so therefore much harder to put on. Normally people will just put black vinyl over the dot matrix. I will see what happens when we go back again.

[Ninjaneer]

Originally Posted by Tampa335i

I got my tint done at Reeves as that is where I bought the car. I had them put the Huper Optik tint on. They did an excellent job on the side windows put the back was not done well at all. There were many large bubbles and it did not stick to the dot matrix at the top at all. We brought it back and the lower part is better but the dot matrix has large, really large, bubbles that are obviously visible from the outside.

I know the Huper Optik film is much thicker than the Llumar so therefore much harder to put on. Normally people will just put black vinyl over the dot matrix. I will see what happens when we go back again.

That's odd. The tinter has a post in the thread I referenced where he said he's been using an adhesive that eliminates the dot matrix so it hasn't been a problem for him. Maybe you can PM him and ask, or ask to talk to the guy and inquire about it when you're there...

[BlueLion]

Originally Posted by Tampa335i

I got my tint done at Reeves as that is where I bought the car. I had them put the Huper Optik tint on. They did an excellent job on the side windows put the back was not done well at all. There were many large bubbles and it did not stick to the dot matrix at the top at all. We brought it back and the lower part is better but the dot matrix has large, really large, bubbles that are obviously visible from the outside.

I know the Huper Optik film is much thicker than the Llumar so therefore much harder to put on. Normally people will just put black vinyl over the dot matrix. I will see what happens when we go back again.

this is why i asked....i want to go to place that knows what they are doing....

[Tampa335i]

The guys at Reeves go very good work. If you get the Llumar film they have the glue so they can do a good job with the dot matrix.

Llumar film is much thinner than the Huper Optik film I had put on. I went with 20% HO on the rear window which is even thicker than the sides.

Thay have redone the rear window and I have to wait a few weeks to see how it turns out. HO film will take up to 14 days to totally dry out since it is so thick.

If you want llumar I belive these guys will do a job you will be more than happy with. If you want HO ask them to just put black vinyl over the dot matrix on the back and you will be more than happy.

I have emailed with them and that is what they will do if they have to redo it again.

They do stand behind their work.

[Tampa335i]

bluelion:

Did you ever get the film on your car?

What about the tint?

I was wondering how you made out.

[BlueLion]

Originally Posted by Tampa335i

bluelion:

Did you ever get the film on your car?

What about the tint?

I was wondering how you made out.

sorry bro.....i dont even have the car yet

[Tampa335i]

Originally Posted by BlueLion

sorry bro.....i dont even have the car yet

I thought you already had the car. I guess you are just getting prepared for when it arrives. I don't blame you. I did the same thing. I had the film on when it was 2 weeks old.

Let me know when you get it.

[BlueLion]

its going to be a while....its not getting here till late April