[BasicDigital]

I just got the custom cougar drift kit, and the fiberglass is super thin. actually it was so thin that the rear bumper broke during the delivery and I had to reorder it. Anyway, I was wondering if there's a way to reinforce the body kit to make it stronger. Someone told me that u can lay more layers of fiber glass on it, but they were not too clear about that. I would greatly appreciate a good feed back, and possibly an estimated price on how much would it cost me to get my front bumper re-firberglassed or something on those lines.

 

[ProjectCougar]

The Drift Kits are made of 4oz Hand Laid Fiberglass.... Thinness had nothing to do with why the kit was damaged during shipping

 

[Nemesis]

To help you out with your question:

Its fairly simple. Just go get yourself some resin, hardener, and some fiberglass mat. Just lay layers behind the bumper and other pieces. The pieces will get stronger and sturdier. I did this with my Z front and i have to say, even though I have had some tough hits with my front, not one crack has appeared.

 

[ND4SPD]

ye, and a good technique to see where the bumper needs it MOST - is to take a flashlight and shine it behind the bumper - the light will come through the 'thinner' spots easier, so you know to focus on those areas most

 

[VHull03]

i've always wondered about spray-on bedliners... you'd think you could spray some of that on the inside and that'd be a hell of a lot easier than fiberglassing.

i also got the CC drift kit.... it was very thin, damn near see-thru in some areas... but it's hard to expect very high quality when it's less than half the price of other full replacement kits out there.

 

[ND4SPD]

hmmm... bedliner........ honestly, i'm not too sure! - but it would be sound proof, thats for sure :tongue:

 

[RyDwy]

bed liner would be very BAD for the front bumper ....there is so much weight on the 4 bolts and brace in the middle ...it would probly just brake on your front pot hole

i broke the metal brace once with the street weapon front ..it sucked!

 

[VHull03]

i didnt know how much that stuff weighs... just tryin to think of something easier than fiberglassing a whole damn bumper.

 

[1badcat]

ive seen a few drift kits in person now and they are not TOO thin. the cracking was most likely due to the shipping company and being "very careful". the thing that some people forget is that the bumpers themselves are not suppose to withstand a ton of smashing or banging, they are to be the "weak link" at the accident point so that the rest of the car doesnt get damaged. as long as the kits are sturdy enough to keep shape while driving they are plenty strong. instead of looking to beef up the kit you need to look at adding a few more mounting locations. easily done with some metal straping material. if you REALLY feel the need to beef up the kit use chop mat rather than the cloth. its heavier, takes more resin, but will add lots of strength if you plan on hitting your car with a baseball bat. and fiberglass is super easy to learn, and very cheep, so you shouldnt need to look for alternatives.
josh

 

[RichieRich1023]

I beefed up my drift along the bottom and added additional support like 1badcat mentioned. I found this to be very beneficial in helping with rigidity and with those uninevidable scrapings taht will happen.

 

[Mtang4life]

BasicDigital, please don't do anything to the kit. I am going to assume for the moment that the rest of the kit is the same quality/thickness as the rear bumper. The rear is perfectly fine, and better overall than a lot of other kits that come in to the shop. There shouldn't really be any reason to build it up if the rear is the same thickness as the rest. Dont worry, basically all fiberglass kits are about that thick. I CAN think of a few that are thicker but they actually make fitment of the piece a huge PITA if you need the bumper, etc to flex a little bit.

 

[BasicDigital]

Mtang, the front piece is thinner than the rear, but I'm not gonna do anything to it. I'm dropping my car off in 2 weeks, and I'll let ur shop take care of it. If there's a need for it or not. From reading the posts I think we should at least add a metal bar or something to reinforce the mounting of it to the car. Oh yeah I'm gonna need another estimate when I come in cuz I change my mind on some of the work that's getting done.

 

[silverfrost99]

I dont have the metal support in the middle and the bumper sags just a little bit. Should i be concerned not having the middle support? I have a 99 so i do have the support rods in the wheel wells that the 2000+ do not.