Over the weekend I decided to finally wrap my roof with 3M 1080 glossy carbon fiber. Thought I'd share my experience and observations with any of you, who are considering doing this MOD yourself. I'm not a pro vinyl wrapper , so I strongly suggest doing additional research if you haven't played with vinyl films before. One thing I learnt from doing this and want all of you to NOT try this alone is: Do NOT attempt to do it by yourself. You need a buddy or someone to help you with application, otherwise it will take much longer, and you will spend extra time trying to heat, stretch and reapply the film yourself. With that said,here my CF process and how it went:
Before the instal:
Depending on where you live, you can perform this DIY in a garage or in your driveway. Make sure you have enough space to move freely around the car and ample room above the head. If you think your garage might not be big enough, find a different spot. I did it under my car port. Also you will need a step ladder or like in my case, I placed my outdoor benches around the car, sort of like a cat walk, to allow me to easily move with the vinyl application.
Check the weather reports. Choose a day with no wind (if possible). Of course warm and sunny day is a plus and will allow vinyl to be more flexible without using of a heat gun or other heat source excessively.
Finally wash the roof/car thoroughly. Remove any wax, tree sap and anything else that may cause uneven installation. Let it completely dry. If you can leave the car in the sun, allowing the roof panel to warm up, this will be helpful if you need to peel the vinyl off to reposition it.
Remove the roof rails and the antenna.
See attached pdf files for instructions.
Tools / solutions you will need:
3M or similar surface preparation system solution to prep the area.
Use rubber gloves with it and lint free cloth. Don’t use paper towels.
Sharp utility knife (don’t be cheap, get a new one if you have to).
Squeegee with felt on one end to smooth out the vinyl and avoid streaks or sharp creases.
Heat gun or a hair dryer, to work on corners, edges, angles wrinkles and bubbles.
Application process:
First rule, DO NOT rush it. You will find yourself pulling the film on and off a few times until it’s properly applied as well as to stretch/heat it up to get wrinkles out.
Plan on 4 + hours for the entire process, that’s when you have the helper, took me 6 alone.
There are two techniques of applying the vinyl. 1. From side to side or 2. From back to front. I chose back to front, simply because it’s easier when you get to work around the sunroof. Make sure your sunroof is open, so when you get to the final step of application, you can just cut out the film.
Peel half of the film and apply it on the back of the roof (let some overhang that will go over your tail gate and sides). Using the squeegee or your hand with steady and smooth back and forth motion smooth the film on the roof. some wrinkles on the corners of the roof will appear, it’s okay, you will use stretching and heating technique to smooth it out. Don’t put too much pressure on the film, you don’t want it to adhere just yet. Just enough to place it on. Now using the squeegee slowly start working your way outwards to the sides/back and corners of the back of the roof, occasionally lifting/peeling the film, applying some head and stretching it to get the wrinkles/creases off. Slowly work your way around the roof in the front, the area over the open sunroof will be out of shape, which is fine, since you will cut most of it out to mold it around the opening. Now work the overhang of the film in the rail gutter, cut the opening for the screws and plastic caps, corners of the roof, use your thumb applying the heat to shrink the film and do the final fit. Using a credit card, work the film in the front under the rubber window seal. When this is all done, all that’s left is your sunroof. Cut the outline of the sunroof, leaving about 1 - 2 inches of extra material that you will mold in and round under using the heat gun. Heat the film real good, until it becomes soft and very stretchy and start working it under the roof opening. when this is done you will be able to close the sunroof without the risk of pealing the film and having a nice clean look.
Do a final check to ensure you didn’t miss any bubbles or are crease free. If you happen to have a bubble, here is a tip I want you to remember to avoid the mistake I made. Don’t try to push the air out by creating one large bubble. It will just build up pressure under the film, puncturing it with a needle will still leave a mark. Instead, using a plastic squeegee, break it into a few smaller bubbles, spread them out, wait about 30 seconds and with your thumb just press on all bubbles. Them just quickly run the heat gun over and smooth it out.
Reinstall all hardware and you’re done. Let it cure over night and the next morning you can apply vinyl cleaner/polish to buff it out and get it all clean.
To help you get the idea about the stretching/heating technique as well as how to work the film in the sunroof opening, here is a video that shows all that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-4q8hTTHZw&feature=related
Roof Rails Removal:
Should be pretty straight forward, end covers come off and should expose 2 nuts at each corner. Remove the nuts and off the rails go.
Here is the PDF
Antenna Removal:
Detach the front of the headliner, unscrew the sun visors and pop the dome light out to gain access to the nut holding the antenna in place.
And a couple before and after shots of my roof.
View attachment 251977
Good Luck!!
Thanks for reading!
Before the instal:
Depending on where you live, you can perform this DIY in a garage or in your driveway. Make sure you have enough space to move freely around the car and ample room above the head. If you think your garage might not be big enough, find a different spot. I did it under my car port. Also you will need a step ladder or like in my case, I placed my outdoor benches around the car, sort of like a cat walk, to allow me to easily move with the vinyl application.
Check the weather reports. Choose a day with no wind (if possible). Of course warm and sunny day is a plus and will allow vinyl to be more flexible without using of a heat gun or other heat source excessively.
Finally wash the roof/car thoroughly. Remove any wax, tree sap and anything else that may cause uneven installation. Let it completely dry. If you can leave the car in the sun, allowing the roof panel to warm up, this will be helpful if you need to peel the vinyl off to reposition it.
Remove the roof rails and the antenna.
See attached pdf files for instructions.
Tools / solutions you will need:
3M or similar surface preparation system solution to prep the area.
Use rubber gloves with it and lint free cloth. Don’t use paper towels.
Sharp utility knife (don’t be cheap, get a new one if you have to).
Squeegee with felt on one end to smooth out the vinyl and avoid streaks or sharp creases.
Heat gun or a hair dryer, to work on corners, edges, angles wrinkles and bubbles.
Application process:
First rule, DO NOT rush it. You will find yourself pulling the film on and off a few times until it’s properly applied as well as to stretch/heat it up to get wrinkles out.
Plan on 4 + hours for the entire process, that’s when you have the helper, took me 6 alone.
There are two techniques of applying the vinyl. 1. From side to side or 2. From back to front. I chose back to front, simply because it’s easier when you get to work around the sunroof. Make sure your sunroof is open, so when you get to the final step of application, you can just cut out the film.
Peel half of the film and apply it on the back of the roof (let some overhang that will go over your tail gate and sides). Using the squeegee or your hand with steady and smooth back and forth motion smooth the film on the roof. some wrinkles on the corners of the roof will appear, it’s okay, you will use stretching and heating technique to smooth it out. Don’t put too much pressure on the film, you don’t want it to adhere just yet. Just enough to place it on. Now using the squeegee slowly start working your way outwards to the sides/back and corners of the back of the roof, occasionally lifting/peeling the film, applying some head and stretching it to get the wrinkles/creases off. Slowly work your way around the roof in the front, the area over the open sunroof will be out of shape, which is fine, since you will cut most of it out to mold it around the opening. Now work the overhang of the film in the rail gutter, cut the opening for the screws and plastic caps, corners of the roof, use your thumb applying the heat to shrink the film and do the final fit. Using a credit card, work the film in the front under the rubber window seal. When this is all done, all that’s left is your sunroof. Cut the outline of the sunroof, leaving about 1 - 2 inches of extra material that you will mold in and round under using the heat gun. Heat the film real good, until it becomes soft and very stretchy and start working it under the roof opening. when this is done you will be able to close the sunroof without the risk of pealing the film and having a nice clean look.
Do a final check to ensure you didn’t miss any bubbles or are crease free. If you happen to have a bubble, here is a tip I want you to remember to avoid the mistake I made. Don’t try to push the air out by creating one large bubble. It will just build up pressure under the film, puncturing it with a needle will still leave a mark. Instead, using a plastic squeegee, break it into a few smaller bubbles, spread them out, wait about 30 seconds and with your thumb just press on all bubbles. Them just quickly run the heat gun over and smooth it out.
Reinstall all hardware and you’re done. Let it cure over night and the next morning you can apply vinyl cleaner/polish to buff it out and get it all clean.
To help you get the idea about the stretching/heating technique as well as how to work the film in the sunroof opening, here is a video that shows all that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-4q8hTTHZw&feature=related
Roof Rails Removal:
Should be pretty straight forward, end covers come off and should expose 2 nuts at each corner. Remove the nuts and off the rails go.
Here is the PDF
Antenna Removal:
Detach the front of the headliner, unscrew the sun visors and pop the dome light out to gain access to the nut holding the antenna in place.
And a couple before and after shots of my roof.
View attachment 251977
Good Luck!!
Thanks for reading!
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