Clear Bra worth my $700 ?

You're better off leaving it alone. I contemplated the same thing, then realized the same thing that you did, it's an Outback.

Get a Magnet Bra for $50 and call it a day, you can even paint it if you want.

Enjoy the new car.

Also, if you have a white car, the clear bra turns yellow over time, not a good look.

Since I got it on mine, I think it is worth it !!!
It will cost more to have the front end repaint or to replace a headlight.

I would recommend it, I have the front, entire hood, side mirrors, and portion of the roof. FORTINV is right, it is a small expense now that will save you from a larger one later if you recieve some type of paint damage and want to get it fixed.

But opinions vary, some here want that wear and tear on their car, others want to keep it looking good.

It's worth it. Had it done to my 2013OB after having had one on our 2005 CRV. Well worth it.

Depends on where you live the roads you drive on etc. By the way $700 should get you real 3M film developed for Army helicopter blades - which is bought by the roll and cut by the install shop on a computer run plotter. They should be covering your front bumper - your hood - your mirrors and in some cases they will cut a template for the pillars driver and passenger side. $700 seems a tad high know my high end custom car shop in CA charges from $600 and up pending how much you want them to cover the $600 fee is bumper - hood and mirrors on most cars.

Just out of curiosity. Does anyone know how much a new painted hood costs?

It might be best to just buy a spare hood at those prices. Or, wait and buy one off a parts car if needed and get it repainted when the time comes.

Otherwise, definitely get a hood protector protector for your hood protector. I hate it when I get dings in my hood protector.

Clear bra is the way to go! An average cost for an average film is around $ 100 just for the hood. You can get a pre-cut bra on ebay and install it yourself - that's what I have done 3 cars in a row! By the way, you can remove it anytime without damaging the paint!

statueim said:

Just out of curiosity. Does anyone know how much a new painted hood costs?

It might be best to just buy a spare hood at those prices. Or, wait and buy one off a parts car if needed and get it repainted when the time comes.

Otherwise, definitely get a hood protector protector for your hood protector. I hate it when I get dings in my hood protector.

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Hood is not cheap - the paint matching effort is even more costly. Heck just the flimsy plastic rear bumper cover will run you $1000 for the cover and another $1000 for paint match

subiesailor said:

Depends on where you live the roads you drive on etc. By the way $700 should get you real 3M film developed for Army helicopter blades - which is bought by the roll and cut by the install shop on a computer run plotter. They should be covering your front bumper - your hood - your mirrors and in some cases they will cut a template for the pillars driver and passenger side. $700 seems a tad high know my high end custom car shop in CA charges from $600 and up pending how much you want them to cover the $600 fee is bumper - hood and mirrors on most cars.

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I guess it depends where you are. I am presently in LA and had to drive over an hour to a certified 3M installer of which there are TWO listed on their website within 100 miles of New Orleans. So at first he was trying to get me for over a thousand dollars... NO WAY!

But in California for example there is a ton more competition there so the prices should be lower.

That is why I cannot wait to leave this dump and get back to California so I can have other parts of my car done.

JCBERB said:

I guess it depends where you are. I am presently in LA and had to drive over an hour to a certified 3M installer of which there are TWO listed on their website within 100 miles of New Orleans. So at first he was trying to get me for over a thousand dollars... NO WAY!

But in California for example there is a ton more competition there so the prices should be lower.

That is why I cannot wait to leave this dump and get back to California so I can have other parts of my car done.

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LOL - Even in CA the number of custom car shops that actually have plotters and do the real deal are rare today. Though still probably easier to find in CA vs LA

I may have to look into the ebay option. $700 sounds pretty steep to me. What I'd also like is film for the plastic headlights/fog lights. All of my cars with plastic lights had slight to moderate haze in a few years. I think 3M film would prevent this.

The cheap non brand films you can buy pre cut - might work for a while but don't expect them to be the same level of protection as the real 3M product. For the right price the cheaper stuff might be OK for headlights but you might be disapointed if your hood gets mucked up because it didn't really protect it.

Buy once, cry once. I get it.

Whats funny is all my cars I've purchased used have had additional 3M clear bra type stuff put on them. But I never pay to have it put on my new cars. I keep cars a long time for the most part my primary cars anyway.

I've found that people who spend all that money on added protections like this in many cases never own their cars long enough to even really enjoy the results of having done this sort of thing LOL. For the record my Ob at 40K does not have it. I sadly know a bunch about it due to a good friend who runs a high end shop has a plotter and a roll of it. He has cut some of it for me to use in other applications like protecting the front of my $8000 carbon mast where the clew from the jib strikes the front of the mast. We put two layers of 3M product on it vs a clumsy looking pad held in place with velcro straps. Amazing stuff it took one **** of a beating over two years from a metal stainless shackle on the jib clew and not a single mark on the pretty carbon mast.

I would get it done, but proabably not at the price of $700. When I bought my '06 Forester it came with a 3M clear bra on the front of the hood and fenders, that the previous owner paid $250 for installed and the front is still pristine 6 years later.


However on my '03 Outback there was nothing protecting it and now after 9 years the hood looks horrible and is full of stone chips that are starting to rust and and clear coat is all cracked, so now it will have to be repainted evetually...

$700 is a fair price for the 3M clear bra material from an experienced installer. The pre-cut material should include the head lamps as well as cut outs for the areas behind the door handles. I usually get a lip along the door edges and a bumper strip if you do not already have a protector strip along the top of the rear bumper. I have been very satisfied with the 3m clear bras in the past. I keep it cleaned up with Plexus.

Easily worth the investment if you care about how your car looks........

Venture Shield is better and will not yellow. I have one third the hood done and the lights. $200. Just to prevent rust. Bumper is plastic so Dr. Colorchip to hide the nicks on that.

There's this thing called a magnet bra that i'm thinking about purchasing. It's $50.