Carbon fiber panels & paint chips/ scratches / dents...

[GT-B Spec R Pilot]

Lately i have seen quite a few advertisements for carbon fiber panels, bonnets, bumpers etc etc (not the wrap but complete panels) and I was wondering how these compare to standard painted steel panels with respect to resistance to stone chips / scratches, shopping trolley dents and the like?

Secondly, to maintain the standard paint finish appearance (i am not a fan of the carbon fiber look personally) I am guessing the carbon fiber needs to be painted in basically the same way as a regular steel panel, in this case for regular cleaning/waxing/polishing are the same products and techniques used or does the carbon fiber require a specific paint formulation and therefore specific cleaning/waxing products to be applied during regular maintenance?

I am keen to hear from those who have fitted full carbon panels to their ride and those with expertise coating / detailing them.

Cheers...

[cruisn]

Not legal.

[GT-B Spec R Pilot]

Not legal.

Do you mean carbon fiber panels are illegal? If so then how is it current model M5 owners can register and insure their vehicles with all the carbon fiber panels fitted standard from the factory? (I saw an M5 T-bone a dump truck almost in front of my office about a month ago. Naturally I went to take a closer look - the M5's wheel arch, bonnet and front bumper were all fractured carbon fiber, truck had a flat tyre otherwise unscathed.)

Or, do you mean it is illegal to replace a factory bumper bar with a carbon fiber one? If this the case then i guess that would explain the popularity of the wrap material.

[Jack_Keaka]

Or, do you mean it is illegal to replace a factory bumper bar with a carbon fiber one?

this.

because the car was crash tested with metal panels

[GT-B Spec R Pilot]

Thanks, that seems logical although a pity if the carbon fiber panels are more resistent to shopping trolleys and stone chips than the stock steel ones are....

[Jack_Keaka]

If you paint them, police will never know unless you get in an accident, in which case if you hit a pedestrian your fucked.
Doesn't really seem worth it on a daily/street driven car. But it's up to you, and from what I have seen it is more resistant to minor dents. However if it gets hit too hard it will break and you will have to replace the whole panel, where as steel/aluminum can be repaired (much cheaper)

[GT-B Spec R Pilot]

Thanks. Does the carbon fiber wrap provide any added protection from shopping trolleys / stone chips then? Assuming it is painted to match the rest of the vehicle how about regular maintenance?

[Jack_Keaka]

Thanks. Does the carbon fiber wrap provide any added protection from shopping trolleys / stone chips then? Assuming it is painted to match the rest of the vehicle how about regular maintenance?

yeah the wrap provides some protection from scratches and stone chips. but are you saying you will put carbon finer wrap on, THEN paint it? I'm a little confused...
if you want protection like that, you can get a clear vinyl wrap that you can barely see. a lot of exotics and euro cars do it to protect the front and quarter panels paint.

[GT-B Spec R Pilot]

I am just researching options at the moment. If a painted carbon fiber wrapped panel looks the same as the original panel (doesn't attract any police attention!) and can resist stone chips and shopping trolleys but still be washed & waxed just the same as the rest of the vehicle then it is certainly worth considering. I was thinking of replacing the front and rear bumpers (which are both damaged on my car - stone chips, shopping trolleys and my wife's parking!) with carbon fiber ones but i did not know this was illegal. Thanks for your advice, much appreciated.

[Kekotic]

There are all different kinds of wraps, matte, gloss etc. Is that where the confusion is coming from when you keep saying painted carbon fibre? I don't know much about wraps but I assume that they are all made of some sort of vinyl? None would be made from actual carbon fibre.

All would provide protection against scratches but no wrap will ever stop a dent from a shopping trolley. medium hail maybe, but unlikely. Anything that was going to cause a dent on a regular painted car, will cause a dent on a wrapped car.

[Jack_Keaka]

carbon fiber wrap is just a vinyl (like Kieran said). its like contact you put on your school books. and the whole carbon part of it is just a print. i.e fake
and it doesn't look any good in large portions (thats my opinion though). you can't polish or anything of that sort. you can only wash with a cloth and wipe down with a chamois.

[cruisn]

Nothing painted on a car will resist stone ships and scratches.

As for dents, be careful where you park.

For the cost of cf panels and painting, it will be immensely cheaper to have your car PDR'd once a year.

[GT-B Spec R Pilot]

Thanks guys. I assumed the carbon fiber wrap was the same as that used in the aviation industry. This stuff is hard as! It's a bit of a pain to work with though, very labour intensive and requires specific paint formulations. The coating chemically bonds to the material in the same way Hydrogen and Oxygen atoms bond to form a water molecule. (No, i am not a chemist but that's just how it was explained to me!)

I am always very careful where i park but none the less fu**wits still seem to smash their doors into the side panels of my vehicle leaving dents. Thanks to the feedback from this thread I have pretty much come to the conclusion that an annual once over by a professional is the most cost effective solution and have PM'd Hamish. I am keen to get some info on the Opti-Coat product he is applying. After the motorbike crash it is difficult for me to spend hours waxing & polishing (I learnt that the hard way!) and from the info on Hamish's website it seems this product would assist by reducing the time and effort required to maintain the coating condition. In a nutshell that is pretty much what i want.