To the extent that they help prevent phone calls to Dent-Pro, I install (or have had installed) body side moldings on all my cars. After an extensive Internet search, I decided to go with this outfit on eBay that sells them for the CT. I ordered a set in Tungsten Pearl from the vendor (Sportwing) about a week ago. They arrived yesterday and a friend helped me install them today. They were easy to install, but four eyes work better than two to ensure they are at the proper height and lined up perfectly straight.
Total cost with shipping was $123.95 via PayPal. This link should take those of you who might be interested to the vendor: <http://tinyurl.com/3op6gl3>
Some CT owners may not like their appearance. To my eye, however, they help break up the space between the top and bottom of the doors and give the car a more unique look than similar cars without them.
Thought some readers of this forum might want to see what they look like, so I shot some photos...
Nicely done. I did the same for my Volvo when it was new. It does help. The only thing is that it doesn't protect against all the idiots who swing their doors open indiscrimately since it has to line up exactly with the door but better with then without. I found the best way to avoid is to park way out there in the lot away from the crowd but sometimes there is no choice.
Bi mat, I like the look and thanks for the link. I am purchasing the Tungsten Pearl as well. What did you go with for the interior and are you happy with it?
The interior of my CT is the Ecru (light beige) Nuluxe. I like the looks and feel alot, and it will no doubt be cooler in the summer than black. I thought the Water Grey that is also available with Tungsten Pearl was too bland. Also added the bamboo dash trim that goes well with the ecru.
Bilmat -
Thanks for the info. I was thinking about the Water Gray, but figured it would be too close to the Tungsten Pearl color and be a bit much. Now I'm thinking of going with either the Black Leather or Black Nuluxe. Do you know if this is real leather or a manufactured product?
The moldings have industrial-strength two-way tape on the back that is covered by a thin backing that you peel off when you are ready to press them onto the car.
Following the directions, my friend and I made two light pencil marks 14 1/2 inches above the bottom of each door (per the instructions) that we used to line up a long strip of painter's tape (blue masking tape).
Once the tape was applied and lined up perfectly straight from the front of the front door to the rear of the back door, we used one of the two alcohol wipes that came with the kit and applied the alcohol to the paint below the tape where the moldings will go.
We next used a small applicator that also came with the kit to apply a very light amount of substance (beats me what it was) and applied it to the area we had just cleaned with alcohol, being very careful to apply it only to the paint that would be covered by the moldings. The instructions made it clear not to let any get on the paint that wouldn't be covered by the moldings because, as the instructions said, "it could dull the paint." Whatever the substance was, it dried within minutes. It wasn't an epoxy. Best guess is that it was something along the lines of TSP.
Then it was a matter of my friend and I peeling off the tape backing from one of the moldings (there are two for each side of the car) and very carefully lining it up with one of us at each end, then pressing it to the paint when we were sure it was perfectly straight. Then we removed the painter's tape and voila; that side of the car was complete and we started on the other side.
The entire job could have been completed in a half-hour by someone who was familiar with the process, especially if it wasn't his or her car. Since it was mine, we worked at a snail's pace so we would make sure we got it right. Total time? About an hour.
Hey "Hey Gurl" — I'll snap a photo of the bamboo dash trim showing the ecru interior and post it tomorrow in a separate thread to keep the moderator(s) happy.
Thanks for the lowdown on how to apply the moldings. I think I'd have it professionally done (I wouldn't trust myself not to get it slightly off kilter.)
Your moldings look great. An absolute necessity for an urban car, IMO.
Both. To save a door ding, however, the stars in the universe as well as the door next to mine would have to be in almost perfect alignment. But if the moldings save one call to Dent Pro to come to the house and roll out a door ding, they will have paid for themselves.
Beauty, of course, is in the eye of the beholder, and to my eye, door dings are not more attractive than color-matched body side moldings, as was stated in a previous post. If they were, I'd be out in the garage right now improving the looks of my CT using a ball peen hammer.
By the way, those pictured are not Lexus OEM body side moldings, which I don't believe exist yet. They came from a private vendor who produces them for the CT.
You wouldn't get both the Lexus OEM lower door moldings and the third party color-matched body side moldings though, right? That would probably be overkill.
I'm not sure what they are made of. They feel like the same material that the Lexus OEM side body moldings I had the dealer install on my '09 ES350. The color match on my Tungsten Pearl CT is absolutely perfect. I can't speak for the other colors, but I suspect that the vendor I bought mine from wants to sell a large number of the moldings, and he knows that word will spread on the forums if his product disappoints. I'm completely satisfied with my purchase.
I'm having a hard time understanding how these low body side mouldings can protect the doors from door dings (from another car door) since they are so low??? Can someone please shine some light on me please... thanks.
I decided to go for it and have just placed an order for my white CT... I hate door dings more than anything else, so if this can help prevent them then I need them. I just hope I can do a good job installing it like you did. Thank you for the photos and all the comments on this product.
Go slow, follow the instructions and you'll be fine. Having an extra set of hands and a second pair of eyes is helpful and will give you confidence, so ask a friend to help you.
So I finally had the chance to install the side mouldings and here's a pic of the final result...
All-in-all I am pretty happy with the product, though I don't think the paint color was 100% identical, but it might also be because the moldings have curves so maybe it reflects the lighting a bit differently... but it is still pretty darn close. Now I just hope the double sided tape holds well with time.
I found a cheaper price on these at Welcome to Sportwing.com. There is a coupon code for 5% off. You can use coupon code 0771186 during checkout. The total is $117.86 shipped.
Really like the color of your car... OH, that's the color of my CT.
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