Quite pleased with my first attempt at wrapping a car. Used Avery Supreme Intense Blue. The last panels I did are definitely better than the first ones. I learnt a lot along the way. That said, it was a fifth of the cost of getting it done professionally and I can now easily re-wrap any bits I need. Not perfect but very pleased with the results.
Very brave to take that job on, looks great.
That colour looks good on the ND.
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No real knowledge on wrapping but a skill that will be very useful I’m sure.
Very brave starting on a MK4, value of car aside I imagine it is not the easiest car to wrap.
Would be very interested in an advisory write up on the wrapping process, from choosing material to how you developed the skill to do this yourself.
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I learnt nearly everything from YouTube and from trial and error.
I started by buying some tools from Amazon…
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Heat gun - Helps to stretch around curves, removes blemishes and for post heating.
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Isopropyl alcohol - For giving the surface a final clean
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Knifeless tape - To get a clean edge on parts that might need a join.
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Infrared thermometer - For checking post heating temperature.
Then I bought 1m of vinyl material from Victory Design (about £40 delivered). Plenty to practise with, since the roll is about 1.5m wide, and I used it to do inside the doors and wing mirrors.
I watched quite a bit of YouTube, the CK Wraps channel was good.
What I learnt
- Learn by doing. If you get it wrong then just tear if off and try again.
- The gloss vinyl is pretty robust and can be pulled quite hard without damaging it.
- Change your knife blade often.
- Make sure the car, and environment is really clean. If you’ve ever tried to put a screen protector on a phone you’ll know what I mean.
- You don’t have to do the outside of the car. If you want, just wrap some bits inside. They do a good carbon film.
- Any edges under tension must be post heated which is why I bought the thermometer. The vinyl can be stretched either cold or with the heat gun. Heating it again will make it go back to its original size, a memory effect, and will also remove any blemishes. So when you’re finished you need to remove the memory effect of any stretched bits by heating it to about 90-100c. Without this, on a hot sunny day, corners can pull away.
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Wow! That is a beautiful colour. Very much like the Pageant Blue that I had on a Triumph Spitfire. Fantastic job.
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That does look good!
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Looks great, well one on attempting it and the final result. Very impressive.
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Hello Haskey
Looks brilliant, great colour, just why Mazda cannot be “brave” enough to paint the MK4 in
bright colours in Japan is beyond me, if they did I would buy one.
I fancy a yellow one, maybe a yellow wrap over my 2014 white Sport Tech Recaro is an option.
Well done indeed!
Keith
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I’ve seen pictures of a Ceramic ND Recaro that has been wrapped in yellow. I’ve also heard a rumour somewhere that there might be a ‘Californian’ special next year.
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How much wrap around 11-12m required to do a 5?
I used 13m which allowed me to make one mistake with the bonnet.
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Fantastic result. I was looking at having my Mk1 resprayed over the coming winter. I expect this will cost about £1500-£2000 to be done properly. However wrapping seems like a good idea instead. If you need approx 13m and it is £40 per metre, then I suppose the cost s about £520, plus associated toools, so about £650 all in. However there is a skill level involved and does it cover minor marks, or does it leave blemishes in the finish? I have some bird poo damage on the bonnet and the paint is not entirely smooth. What is the comparable cost of having it done professionally? I suppose if it is painted, then it is “always done”, but an interesting idea…
Hi,
I managed to get the 13m2 for about £460 and I was quoted about £2000 to have it professionally done. A lot more to have it sprayed. I’m not sure what it’s like at covering marks. I guess it depends on the depth and you could always fill and sand before applying.
If you’re giving it serious consideration then I would suggest buying a metre of material and experimenting. You might pick it up quickly and love the results or realise it’s not for you.
It took me a little while and the last panels I did are definitely better than the first ones.
Great result! There is a lot going on in my life, too much to do something like this but I do find the grey of my NC a bit boring, however good it fits the car. I really like colors and maybe I’ll do this some day with Focus RS green 
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That’s stunning work and got me thinking.
Btw, I rather like the look of your exhaust. What do you think of its sound and which exhaust is it?
Thnx, Chris
Hi Chris007,
It’s an Ulter exhaust. I got it from MX5 Parts and it comes with the diffuser -> https://www.mx5parts.co.uk/stainless-centre-exit-sports-exhaust-with-diffuser-mk4-p-4349.html
I was thinking of getting the version with a bypass filter but the thought of only being able to control it with a key fob was too off-putting.
The exhaust sounds very good. My previous car was an F-Type and I loved the sound of that. It’s not nearly as loud, there’s not pops or growls, but the sound really suits the car. It’s loud enough that you can hear it but not so loud that you feel like an idiot driving around residential areas.
It wasn’t too hard to fit. Getting some of the nuts off the old exhaust proved a bit challenging but I quickly got the new one on. I think the whole thing took me about 2 hours and that’s including the fitting of the diffuser.
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Thank you for the really useful feedback about your exhaust.
I’ve not driven mine since 23 March due to lockdown and shielding. However, when I shuffled it out and back in the garage yesterday it sounded nicer than i remembered. I do still think it needs to
be sl deeper and louder so am now very tempted by a Ulter like yours.
My brother in law has a four-post lift so I think I’ll have a chat with him, buy some extra masks and see if I can fit it there 
Thanks for your response.
Chris
Ckwraps seem to sell reasonable quality stuff at around £17 pm. So £220 for the wrap.
Sounds good. I went with Avery Dennison wrap because I heard it was the most forgiving but for £17pm is certainly sounds work a try.
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