After reading about how the painted panels are subject to chipping, I've also read about owners who have installed the 3M type clear vinyl to those areas prone to being chipped.
I looked at several sites today and was quite impressed when one actually had the 2008 Smart Fortwo listed.
If you want to look at it yourself they can be found at:
I know I've not typed in the 'short cut' way to do this, but I don't know how, yet, so I just cut and pasted the address and perhaps you can do the same until I learn how..(blush). I did think it was odd that they had protectant pieces for the front fenders but no pre-cut kits for the rear fenders, yet.
I also like that they give directions for installing it yourself and saving big bucks.
I have a custom cut clear vinyl bra on my Audi TT, and a sprayed on clear bra on my Lexus. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't do anything but the spray on bra...especially on the Smart. Since the pieces are easily removable, they can sprayed edge to edge leaving no sign of the bra at all. They are both expensive, with the spray on about $100 higher in price, ($1K). I would hope that the Smart would come in significantly cheaper for either.
I'm not doing either on the Smart, of course, mine will be black and won't show any damage anyway.
Red, Blue, and Silver are painted on black panels. Yellow, White, Black are colored through.
I saw door panels of every color at the Smart SF showroom and they all looked like solid plastic in the color through and through (can't be absolutely sure because I didn't handle them though). There was a video in a review I recently viewed linked from here (the GQ one I think) that made a point of of pointing out the the all plastic non chipping body panels on a red Smart.
Hope that helps, might save you some money if they are solid and won't chip
The panel thing has been done to death in many, many previous posts. Following extensive and in-depth research by several forum members, the answer is that white, yellow and black are colored all the way through, and the metallics are painted on top of black panels.
My cheapskate solution for my silver panels will be one of those $5 touch-up paint sticks.
The panel thing has been done to death in many, many previous posts. Following extensive and in-depth research by several forum members, the answer is that white, yellow and black are colored all the way through, and the metallics are painted on top of black panels.
My cheapskate solution for my silver panels will be one of those $5 touch-up paint sticks.
Sorry, didn't mean to blunder into a hot topic, guess that video was incorrect.
The technology is amazing because these are the first automobile panels which are completely polypropylene. The material is called Daplen ED230HP. There is some confusion about painting because all panel colors have a clearcoat painted on them. The red, blue and silver have a color coat plus the clearcoat.
So even the solid dyed colors can suffer a chip to the clearcoat.
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