Carbon fiber amuse install help needed

Riptide67

No worries apology accepted and hopefully you can get it done a lot cheaper than I did

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2009 Nismo 370Z and 1975 Datsun 280Z 2+2 - PNW_INC - Legacy_Ohana
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nomodsjk

thanks man I really appreciate it. I was really upset with myself when I read your post this morning. the last thing I want to do is be a jerk to a forum member. this community is the best part of z ownership. I never expected to be a part of something like this forum when I purchased my car. you guys are awesome!

cooltoy

Ya, I was like - "Riptide is no going to be happy when he reads all that."

Good on you to apologise and good on Riptide to accept it. Both repped.

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Riptide67

I'm not upset about it, I have been modifying all my cars since 2005. I have learned a lot and I know what is beyond my skill level. After doing a fiberglass bodykit on my eclipse, I knew that I never wanted to do any type of bodywork again. It was a nightmare. A carbon fiber bodykit...that is what professional car customization shops are for.

Sure I could have cut down on some cost by gutting the car myself, but I was on an extreme deadline to debut my car for NissanFest. It was 5 days prior to the event that I received all the pieces after a bit of a shipping debaucle. The body shop came to my apartment and picked up the kit and then I dropped the car off. I check on it randomly throughout the week and they pushed all other projects to the side to help me out. People tend to think its just drill some holes and put it on. It really isnt that simple or easy...especially with carbon fiber. IDC what anyone says...there are two of us (that I know of) that have this installed. I can't speak for what the other person paid or even if they did the install. This is not a predrilled kit, there is no mesh installed, the license plate and lights will not just "bolt" on. These things add up.

Had I known I was going to have that much money wrapped into the kit, I may have gone another route with the car. 3k at the body shop quickly turned into another 3k for an accuair system. Ya know the saying...Gotta pay to play, lol. Hell, just in the hood alone...I had two days with about 10 hours or so wrapped into it. The hardware that is molded into the hood does not work with the OEM parts of our hood. This was my first stab at tapping and dying threads and it was successful, but very nervewracking. Tha could have easily been another 1k if a body shop did it, lol.

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2009 Nismo 370Z and 1975 Datsun 280Z 2+2 - PNW_INC - Legacy_Ohana
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nomodsjk

Yea i just got an airrex elite air suspension system plus the Fly1 skid plates. Try pricing those 2 just to be able to drive the car without damaging the body kit. This is getting ridiculous. Wish to God I could have talked to you about this before pulling the trigger. Wouldhhave bought the varis kit in frp and never looked back. On the other hand when this build gets finished it's going to be remarkable

Riptide67

Even on air, the skid plate isnt needed. I could have saved some money. The car maxes out and still doesnt sit on the ground with the front bumper. It is just an awesome visual effect with some added security, but I just air all the way up if I am in doubt.

I have a set of custom side splitters to install. The rear end has a lot more room to drop than the front. You will run the side skirts into the ground on air lol.

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6MT-Z34

Curious....where did you get the side skirt plates and how much if u don't mind sharing? I plan on doing the amuse kit on the far future but I'm reading a lot so I know I have everything I need when I do

nomodsjk

Fly1 Motorsports hit him up. Good guy good product good price

pfdaxe

I'm in the process of mounting my Shine Auto Amuse front and it fit right on with no issues. Only mod I had to do was trim a bit to clear my aftermarket oil cooler. I also had to enlarge the hole on the skid plate for oil changes. Both took less than 5 minutes. No other body modifications, trimming or anything else needed. Rear fit the same. Unbolt the old, install the new. As for the rear license plate, I just used a thin license plate mounting bracket and attached directly to the rear. No custom fab work needed. I think if you have a quality kit, you have very little to adjust or mod. The Shine kit also has the marks on the skid plate to drill the bolt holes. Now, my BSD side skirts were another thing. Horribly fit and took a lot of work:

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Riptide67

Please do not take this as a knock...I absolutely do not intend it that way and its my own personal opinion.

I would not be satisfied with the way your front fits. It is great that you did it yourself and saved a lot of money (props). You are also working with a flexible material. CF is not flexible by any means...especially when dealing with very large body panels. I take my cars to shows and judges have remarked that the fitment looks OEM and like it rolled off a production line. That is something that I can be proud of and makes a 3k bill worth it. Can I attest to it being the kit....possibly. Was it the hard work and finesse of the body shop knowing this is a show car....more than likely. Every kit has flaws. Those flaws can be hidden and tweaked with the skills and experience of people who have been doing the **** forever.

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Follow me on Instagam @s3zero_z3four

wheee!

I agree with Riptide, my Amuse kit (Extreme Dimensions) was FRP and was a 'close' fit but still required massive time in the bodyshop for custom fabbing etc. The time spent was well over 40 hours and the bill was $4000 over the quote! The owner honoured the quote to a point, but I ended up paying over $3500 for the work plus the kit...
Bottom line is: be prepared to pay for quality work and never assume anything related to body work is either fast, good or cheap! Pick any two.....

The end results are what counts and having the Amuse kit was a big piece of my vision for my car.

and yeah, I kept the crash bar and the foam in my Amuse front bumper. The rear foam had to go though....

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Riptide67

and I did make a mistake. It was only the foam that was removed from the front and rear crash bars. Not the actual crash bar.

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nomodsjk

Ok awesome because that was really concerning me. As much as the price. So you think I could do without the side plates? I've already paid for the front plate

wheee!

I try and tell people that buying a bodykit is like going FI.... be prepared for the unexpected and expect a 30% premium for the "extras'

Things like fabbing the license plate area and light/remote trunk switches was a pain, not to mention the fabricated supports you don't see. I know some people claim to have ordered a kit - bolted it on - and driven away, but I seriously doubt anyone has done just that...

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6MT-Z34

I think most of the ppl that say that are like me that we would just take it to the body shop ask them how much it is to put the kit and paint it then let them do it lol....but that is why i research this threads to make sure I know what really goes 'behind the scenes ' and I understand what am I getting charged for and to make sure they do what they are supposed to