Garveyb

Ok gang, I got my first chip on the new 40th and with the summer right around the corner and my weekend drives from NY to Maine are right around the corner, I have to put something on this awesome car. I am considering both a clear bra or a speedlingerie bra in GT Silver. Anyone have experience with both products that can sway me either way. Cost is not the issue, looks, protection and durability are the key criteria. Thanks in advance. If I go clear bra type product, can someone recommend a super installer in the NYC area?
Garv

SYMA

I would never use a regular bra again, you must make sure the car is absolutely clean before putting it, remove it when it rains....
I have a full front clear bra and unless you point it out 99% don't notice it.
Maintenance free.

Orient Express

And to counterpoint, I am a complete fan of Speed Lingerie. I have had one on my 02 996 for over 2 years, and have had excellent results with it. Yes, you do need to take it off after it rains to let it dry out, but that seems to be the only shortcoming. It does a superior job of keeping the front of the car and the mirrors from getting chipped and scratched. The bra has not caused any damage whatsoever to the nose of the car in 2 and half years and 31K miles. Speed Lingerie hand makes the bras to order in the color of the car, and from a distance, you cannot tell it is there.

While the clear plastic coverings such as 3Ms Stone Guard do an acceptable job, they will tend to show wear and tear much quicker. Since they are designed to take stone impacts and are exposed to road debris ablation, they will tend to degrade and can tear from rock strikes and the sandblasting from debris ablation. Further I have noticed that dust and road grime will tend to accumulate under the edges of the material, giving them a grey outline over time. I do believe that this material does a great job in protecting the rocker panels of the car, especially if you have the painted rocker flairs. I have this material on the rocker panels of my car, and have had good results with it, despite the fact that I have had to replace parts of the material due to tears from rock strikes.

A good bra will take the same abuse, but since it is thicker, most of the rock strikes are absorbed with no damage, and the major strikes will just mar the outside layer of material. The other nice feature of a Speed Lingerie bra is that it covers the underside of the nose so it takes the abuse of scraping from curbs and high angle driveways.

Itzkirb

I vote for the Clear Bra, but make sure you get a good installer. It's all in the install!!!

I have it on both the 911 and Cayenne. I will get it done on all my new cars in the future.

ubergeek

No Bra is better. :-)
BTW, Porsche Manual says not to use Clear Bra on headlamps for potential heating problems.

Garveyb

Orient Express,

Have you seen a GT Silver car covered with Speed Lingerie? Would love to see it. Still undecided.

Garv

Riad

I have the Autobahn clear bra on my car, it works really well and you can't even notice it.

BTW, I also live in Monroe - where abouts are you??

Garveyb

riad,

I live off Orchard Hill, what about you? Where did you get the Autobahn installed? Did they do a great job? I also want to get PSE installed, any experience in that area?

Garv

oilchanger

Garv,

As to PSE, order it from either Brandywine or Suncoast Porsche. My advice is to forgo hooking up the electronic switch that turns it on and off, and just install the mufflers as is. The default setting is 'on', so you'll get to hear the sweet PSE music all the time. You can have a shop perform the installation, but it's relatively easy to do yourself. The step-by-step instructions are available online. Just do a search.

My .02,
David

Sloth

Big fan of the clearbra here. Not a single rock chip in 5000 miles of driving. Same as window tint... make sure you find an experienced installer as the compound curves of the 996 make it one of the more difficult applications.

Riad

I'm off of Mine Rd. if you take Lakes to Cedar Cliff... have you tried the Velvet Monkey.., nice place for Monroe.

The Autobahn was installed at the dealer (Ira Porsche) but I know that Pepe Porsche in White Plains also does it - I know it's a little far but believe me they have absolute best parts department - Just tell Bill I sent you (no affiliation with them by the way)

I don't have the PSE installed, I was a little concerned that it would be too loud with the top down, although many cab owners love it even more when the top is down. It's been noted that it's best to not have the electronic switch installed if you're not getting it done at the factory because they have to dismantle your interior to run the wires.

Rob

01 C4 Cab NYC

The detailer that I use in NYC does clear bra installs, 3M I think. Technik 1, 212 594 5353, give em call, they do 996's all the time.
As far as bra v clear bra...they both probably have pros and cons, but the cost of either versus a repaint of the front end every few years is probably a wash.

Garveyb

Rob,

Velvet Monkey is really good, especially for Monroe. I just ordered the PSE from Brandywine and they are going to install it on the 15th. Do you have any pictures of your car with the clear bra?

Bob

Riad

There are a few pics of the car here when I first picked it up, you can't even see the clear bra...

http://www.pbase.com/riadanza/porsche

here is a large pic...
http://www.pbase.com/image/26285312/original

WCE

I had a black vinyl bra I used on my 928 occasionally. It was a pain to install, my bumper had plenty of chips anyway from the times I didn't use it, and on my repainted bumper it actually did leave permanent marks when I left it on wet a few times. I also think the look is dated now, since many people used them in the '80s as a styling accessory.

I just recently had a clear bra custom-installed on the front bumper only of my 996. I was very concerned about the appearance, which is why I didn't go with a precut pattern or additional pieces with exposed edges. The bumper design of the 996 seems to catch virtually all of the damage, and chips on other parts are much more random - you would probably have to clear bra the entire hood and fenders to guarantee protection!

The installer I carefully selected did a perfect job. Unfortunately, the material itself is not really perfected yet. It seems you have a choice of products such as 3M stoneguard which have a noticable orange-peel look but are uniform in appearance which disappears to the casual observer. The newer materials are clearer and smoother but exhibit "stretch mark" lines on curved surfaces. This also disappears for the casual observer, but can be a more noticable defect for the perfectionist-owner! The best installers also get top dollar for their work right now.

Despite this, I went ahead with the install because of where I live and how I drive, the bumper would be down to primer in no time. The sooner you have it done the better, because all existing chips will be sealed under plastic and noticable!