I drive the Ortega Hwy. on my commute, which can be challenging for less capable vehicles, and the debris that kicks up with vehicles swerving out-of-lane trying to keep up with the faster traffic convinced me I needed to do something quickly or my MINI would look like a pimple-faced teenager within 6 months. I decided this week to have a local tint and clear bra shop apply 15% Sun Tek ceramic tint and a full-face XPEL clear bra to my '11 MCS. I had been planning on the tint anyway so, getting it done at the same time was a nice convenience.

I took it to Victor at Invisible Edge in Riverside and he and his tinter did a great job. I had Victor apply a full bumper, hood, tail light and mirror XPEL clear bra while his tint dude did 15% ceramic Sun Tek tint all around with 5% Sun Tek on both sun roof panels to combat the desert sun my home town of Lake Elsinore sees during the hot months. Victor let me watch him and his tinter do the entire job and he described the entire process along with color commentary on some of the experiences he's had as a clear bra installer over the years. (He applies XPEL to all kinds of exotics and race cars as well - very interesting technical rational for these.)

Here are some pics of the before and after.

Before


After


Before


After


Before


After


Before


After


A few more after shots








The clear bra makes very little impact on the looks of the paint - you can see the very edges of it if you look closely from a few inches but it's undetectable from a couple/few feet away. You won't notice it if you don't know it's there.


Note the painted PW bumper plugs I installed to fill the holes the dealer drill in the front bumper expecting me to run the front plate.


There's a layer of XPEL on the headlight


Oh, I also hardwired my Valentine V1 in yesterday.




A parting shot showing the rain clouds rapidly approaching this morning just as I finished up washing her.

 

Looks pretty sharp!

 

Looks great. I'm sure that tinting the sunroofs will be nice.
Did you tap into the overhead console wiring that stays on 15-20 minutes for power for the V1? Or did you find another source that powered on and off with the ignition? If the later which wire did you use?

 

I had posted asking about the overhead but got no really viable options up there so I ran the wire between the roof and headliner over to the passenger A-pillar, ran it down along there and pulled it through the side of the dash down to the fuse box and tapped into a harness that has a switched-power wire that another member here had posted about. He had the dealer wire his and they tapped into this wire - if the MINI technician deemed it safe and effective, it should be good. It's working well for me. For ground - once again I relied on this forum - I used the screw that is exposed to the right of the glove box when you open the glove box door. The V1 is instant On/Off when I start and shut the car off - no delayed power off.

Here's a pic of that power wire. It's the red, black and yellow wire.


I used the Valentine mounting clip with some Velcro - soft side on the inside of the clip to not damage the headliner, hook side on the top of the V1 to help it stick to the headliner material - and clipped it in between the roof and headliner. That way, I can transfer it to one of my other cars if need be.

I will probably order the remote display for the V1 and mount it near the steering wheel since I placed the V1 junction box in the fuse panel. That will make it easy to add the remote display when I get it rather than having to rewire.

 

Patches,

Nice looking Mini and Corvette(s?)! Do you have any pics of the sunroof before and after tint from the outside and/or inside?
Also, that lift car park is pretty sweet. I want want one of those one day!

Thanks

 

I was trying to get some decent pics of the before and after tint on the sunroof but kept getting too much reflection from the glass on the inside. I believe I have a before pic that's decent so I'll try and get one from the inside of the sunroof tint when the sun is out. It's raining and overcast today so I'll try it tomorrow.

That's a BendPak 4-post lift that I've had to assemble twice now - the first time when I bought it and recently after moving. I'm in the process of getting the garage up to the previous one's state but all I have left is more cabinets and the floor. Those are two '02 vettes on and under the lift - his and hers.

 

Nice car! I am picking up a new CR MCS this week so I am trying to decide on bra and stripes. Are your black stripes over or under your bra? I want stripes, but something more than the sport or bonnet stripes which the dealer offers. I also want to get the bra on as soon as possible, so I am thinking of having the dealer do the bra and then I can deal with the bra later. Thoughts? Thanks

 

Stripes are under the bra. They were already there when I bought the car but the bra installer prefers them under the bra for the extra protection they get. He recounted a story hwere he'd done a half-hood bra on a newer-gen Roush Mustang with hood stripes and said the guy came back a few years later to have the whole hood done. The installer said the uncovered part of the stripes were badly faded and chipped while the covered parts looked like new when he stripped the old bra on to install the new.

 

That looks awesome, but good luck with the CHP (and locals for that matter) with tint that dark. The lack of a front plate won't help either, and getting spotted for one will almost certainly get you nailed for both.

One nice side effect of getting exiled from SoCal to Phoenix several years ago - no front plates in Arizona, and VERY liberal enforcement of tint laws here, due to the crazy heat.

 

It's been my experience of 41 years of driving that the CHP are not that **** about tint and no front plate. You may have a different experiece but the only time I've ever been given a tint citation is 20 years ago when I was pulled over for speeding.

 

I like the car very much either way, but prefer the look without the tint (I am sure I am in the minority on that ). I have had a clear bra on an Infinity FX35, G35 Coupe, and my 05 Vette. I have litterally ripped it off the Vette after a few years. I always knew it was there and prefer the naked metal look. The bra can scratch so careful when drying and using clean towels or better yet a leaf blower. Enjoy, thanks for sharing.