- There are countless ways to customize your car.
- Get a closer look at how Plasti Dip, paint bombs, and artisans turn a stock car into a masterpiece.
- Some customizations are great DIY projects, while others are best left to the professionals
- See more stories on Insider’s business page.
Narrator: Car customization is a great way to personalize your automobile. Tired of the standard look of your horseless carriage? Here are six ways to customize your ride.
Tinted windows are typically installed for privacy, style, safety, and UV protection. At $50, you can tint your windows from home, but you may be left with lackluster results. That’s where professionals like Elliot Baker come in. The installation process is meticulous and involves cleaning, precision cutting, skill with tools, and expert squeegeeing technique. A professional window-tinting job can range from about $150 to $600. But you can sleep soundly knowing there won’t be an air bubble in sight.
Plasti Dip paint jobs are an affordable way to temporarily change the color of your vehicle. You can get a do-it-yourself kit at just $200 to $500. On the first day, mask out any areas that shouldn’t get painted and apply a heavy base coat of white. On day two, measure out racing stripes using masking tape. Then apply three coats of blue paint. To avoid the Plasti Dip sticking to the masking tape, quickly remove the masking tape after the final coat.
Want something a bit more artistic? A paint-splatter look might be more your speed. The process is rather simple. A black base is applied, and AutoFlex is used to keep that base coat protected. Then pearl powders are splattered on the car like a blank canvas. Excess pearls are gently blown off before being sealed with high-gloss AutoFlex.
Vinyl wrapping a car allows you to customize the look while protecting the paint underneath from chipping and weather damage. The process starts with a proper car wash. Then wing mirrors, handles, and occasionally bumpers are removed before covering the car in wrap. The vinyl is laid down across the body of the car in sections, and air bubbles are removed using a squeegee. The vinyl is heated to make sure that it will stay down once it goes outside and faces the elements. Once the vinyl wrap is fully applied, the car is fit back together and receives a final check.
Car engraving is like giving your car its very own one-of-a-kind tattoo. Hank from Hanro Studios engraves everything from the body to the bumpers, wheels, reservoirs, suspensions, and occasionally some interior components. Due to the detailed and unique style of customization, Hank’s clients range from his next-door neighbor to Hollywood’s biggest celebrities, athletes, and musicians. Once he sketches a concept, he uses a carbon pen stencil to draw an outline of the design. Once everything is to scale, it’s time to engrave.
Candy paint and flakes are a staple of lowriders. But it’s the artists who truly make the car stand out. The process starts with a silver base coat. After a clear coat is applied and the foundation has been sanded, masking tape is used to design the stencil. Once the basic shapes are masked out, more detailed accents are added for a bit more flair. Once the design is complete, it’s copied using a stencil onto the other side. A variety of paint-shaping techniques using water, metal flakes, and a towel are used to create different effects.
No matter the level of difficulty, customizing your car is a surefire way to personalize your vehicle and distinguish it from the pack.
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