how many of you guys have this on your car. im thinking about buying it but also afraid that goin to make my rear look ugly. what u think?

 

I bought my Fit used and it was already on the car. You really don't notice it unless you're standing right above it. I kinda like it, knowing that it will absorb any scratches that might occur when moving things in and out of the rear hatch.

 

i have it and like it, but I have a NHBP Fit. I personally feel it looks much better on black, but with other colors it gives a certain "utility" look to the car.

 

I like it on my BOM. The black color adds an accent that goes with the black outline of the hatch window. I like the "utility" look, but that's just me.

 

I just got my Fit last week and I'm picking one up this week for mine. Def a great idea!!!!

 

i've got it but i also have my dog going in and out of the car

 

I've got it on my VBP base for kids and dog protection. Zeta products sells a stainless one that might look better depending on which color you have.

 

I've got it and it adds a nice touch to the rear end and obviously protects the bumper from any unwanted scratches

 

I put one on yesterday on my VBP, looks cool, very
utilitarian.

 

Cool man!!! What did you pay for it if you don't mind me asking?

 

okay im goin to pick one up shoot thanks

 

As a possible alternative to buying a plastic or stainless one I painted the top of my rear bumper with aerosol bed-liner. I looks just as good as the factory cover, can be made as large (or small) as you like and can be had is several colors. My car is a VBP so I went with black to keep it low key, but they make the stuff in dark blue, red, grey and even camo ( ) if you would rather. And WHEN I scratch up the top of my bumper AGAIN, I just mask and respray, looks like new in about twenty minutes.

 

THAT is a good idea. The urethane bed liner material has to be stronger and more damage resistant than tape, and the job would be as good (or bad) as your own masking skills.
Great post!

 

Thanx! Just remember that any good paint job starts with careful surface prep. I degreased/waxed the top of the bumper with mineral spirits, then sanded the surface with 230 grit sandpaper. I tried this on my Jetta Wagon first and skipped the degreasing step, HUGE mistake! Got fish eyes and lifting of the bedliner like crazy! With the 230 grit, I get excellent adhesion (read as good durability) and a nice smooth finish. Oh and let the finished product set up for a couple of hours before you remove the tape or the edges will try to peel up on you, the stuff is pretty thick right out of the can.

 

Good thing you mentioned surface prep.- it is 2nd. nature to me, so I just forgot to add that to my masking comment. Again, your idea is even better than the tape "bumper protection" which does not provide much protection. Your idea not only does the job better, but also cheaper in the long run. It is repairable within minutes.
+ Rep. for you!

 

We have dogs and went with the bumper applique from Bernardi. It's a tape, yes, but a sturdy grippy rubber. The bedliner is an interesting idea. What kind of damage does it do to the paint/finish?

Here's a pic of our bumper guard with a cut-out from the stainless Zeta bumper trim added on top. We bought the stainless originally but it didn't cover enough of the bumper surface.

 

^^Thats cool! I like how it looks with the stainless on top of the black. This gives me all kinds of ideas for stencils and airbrushing on top of the bedliner. To answer your question, the bedliner goes on top of the paint and to get good adhesion you should sand the clearcoat with at least 220 grit sandpaper. The short answer is that the paint gets f@#$ed up! But I had scratched the hell out of the top of my bumper putting a giant tool cabinet in the back so I didn't really care.

 

Be sure to share pics!!

yeah, I think I'd have a stroke if I had to take sandpaper to the bumper. LOL

 

I bought my VBP Fit Sport ten days ago, and at the time, the rear bumper applique was one of the few accessories I knew I wanted. I had planned on getting it installed at the dealer, but since the car came naked, I just ordered it from Bernardi along with all season mats and the cargo tray. My concern was that I could totally see myself peeling off the backing and then dropping the thing right on my dirty driveway.

I installed all 3 accessories yesterday with ease. Screwing in the floor hooks for the all season mats was harder than putting on the applique. So in just under a week and a half of driving my car home from the lot and I have the car that I wanted. Well... for now. I'm sure that'll change the more I hang out at this site. Bernardi's price was $36.00, which is hard to beat, and UPS ground shipping is fast, especially if you're on the east coast. I ordered Tuesday, and it was here Friday.

To prep for installing the applique, you'll want to wash and dry at least the rear bumper. You might as well do this after washing the whole car, which is what I did. As you can see in jetscream's photo above, that area tends to collect a lot of dirt, so make sure you clean it well. To be safe, I went over that area with a clay bar and quick detailer, dried it well with a microfiber towel, and then wiped the area down with rubbing alcohol.

The printed Honda installation instructions tell you to use masking tape and make easily erasable marks on the bumper to line up the applique. I used a dry erase marker to be safe, but I didn't like the idea of marking on my bumper anyway, so I used little 1.5" x 2" Post-It notes to mark the edges of the applique. Once you get the center part stuck on, the rest of the installation is a breeze. Get an extra pair of hands if you're really nervous, but it's a simple procedure.

 

looked at them and personally dont like it