Anybody apply the Aston 3M Sill Tape before?
Discussion
I'm talking about the official Aston Martin 3M clear protective film that is usually applied at the factory to protect the portion of the sill in front of the rear wheel opening from stone chips. I'm getting ready to install my new N420 sills and the sill tape is not pre-applied.
I'm wondering if anyone has done this before and can offer some nuggets of wisdom on the install. The sill tape has a backing film with the 3M logo, but comes with no instructions and I don't see any in the workshop manual either. I don't know if the film has an adhesive backing or is simply stuck on using water and a squeegee as with the vinyl wraps.
I'm wondering if anyone has done this before and can offer some nuggets of wisdom on the install. The sill tape has a backing film with the 3M logo, but comes with no instructions and I don't see any in the workshop manual either. I don't know if the film has an adhesive backing or is simply stuck on using water and a squeegee as with the vinyl wraps.
Tip one don't use the Aston template
Get the large laser cut one from 3M
It protects a lot better
Have a look at this and talk to these guys
http://www.invisiblepatterns.co.uk/installation.ht...
There are some good clips on Youtube as well.
Get the large laser cut one from 3M
It protects a lot better
Have a look at this and talk to these guys
http://www.invisiblepatterns.co.uk/installation.ht...
There are some good clips on Youtube as well.
Found a pic!
You can see the extended version here along with the extra protection
Eurohoon 2011 02 to end 049 by mikey k V8VR, on Flickr
You can see the extended version here along with the extra protection
Eurohoon 2011 02 to end 049 by mikey k V8VR, on Flickr
Guys, thanks for the responses. What I have noticed is that most of the Ventureshield stuff I'm seeing installed in YouTube videos seems to be much thinner than the film supplied by AM. A while back, I bought a roll of 3M film and it is about 8 mil thickness which seems to match what I see in these videos. The film I got from AM is much thicker than that—about 20 or 25 mil. It almost feels like a rubberized coating compared to the more cellophane-like appearance of the other typical Ventureshield.
Most Vantages used to come with the thick sill tape applied just to two places per side:
a) A big piece at the rear of the sill in front of rear wheel opening
b) A small piece underneath the front of the sill behind the front wheel opening. This piece is not visible unless you look underneath the car.
On newer cars in the AM showroom, I'm seeing that they are adding a third piece to each side. This piece is mounted to the leading edge of the rear fender. It is similar in shape to a shark fin as Jockman described.
Most Vantages used to come with the thick sill tape applied just to two places per side:
a) A big piece at the rear of the sill in front of rear wheel opening
b) A small piece underneath the front of the sill behind the front wheel opening. This piece is not visible unless you look underneath the car.
On newer cars in the AM showroom, I'm seeing that they are adding a third piece to each side. This piece is mounted to the leading edge of the rear fender. It is similar in shape to a shark fin as Jockman described.
JohnG1 said:
Front mudguards? I had them fitted to my V8 and they made a huge difference to the amount of crap that was thrown up from the road surface at the leading edges of the rear wheel arches.
I bought and installed a pair on my car as well. They fit with either standard or N420 sills mounted on the car. I read in another thread they must be trimmed to fit when used with the V12/V8VS sills.KarlFranz said:
JohnG1 said:
Front mudguards? I had them fitted to my V8 and they made a huge difference to the amount of crap that was thrown up from the road surface at the leading edges of the rear wheel arches.
I bought and installed a pair on my car as well. They fit with either standard or N420 sills mounted on the car. I read in another thread they must be trimmed to fit when used with the V12/V8VS sills.Also having the full V12 Ventureshield kit put on.
The AM film is slightly thicker but the coverage is too small.
mikey k said:
Bought a set to "trim" to fit my V8VS
Also having the full V12 Ventureshield kit put on.
The AM film is slightly thicker but the coverage is too small.
I wouldn't say "slightly". My guess is the AM film is about 2.5 to 3 times as thick which I think offers a lot more protection. However, it might look awful if you did too large an area. It also tends to yellow with age as I've witnessed on some white cars, so it must be renewed every few years. Also having the full V12 Ventureshield kit put on.
The AM film is slightly thicker but the coverage is too small.
BTW thanks for the tip on the insulator wax. I got some and it's amazing.
The stuff you are referring to is called "helicopter tape" orgianlly used for protecting helicopter blades and popular with bikers. It is much thicker and not UV stable.
AM UK have used it on vulnerable parts of their fleet cars. I saw it all over the front splitter of a ex press V12V.
As you say over a large area it is not too pretty but good for gravel traps on press launch track days
On the other hand Ventureshield is much more flexible & elastic.
In 23k miles of B road blasting it never failed to protect from stone chips on my last car.
AM UK have used it on vulnerable parts of their fleet cars. I saw it all over the front splitter of a ex press V12V.
As you say over a large area it is not too pretty but good for gravel traps on press launch track days
On the other hand Ventureshield is much more flexible & elastic.
In 23k miles of B road blasting it never failed to protect from stone chips on my last car.
mikey k said:
The stuff you are referring to is called "helicopter tape" orgianlly used for protecting helicopter blades and popular with bikers. It is much thicker and not UV stable.
AM UK have used it on vulnerable parts of their fleet cars. I saw it all over the front splitter of a ex press V12V.
As you say over a large area it is not too pretty but good for gravel traps on press launch track days
On the other hand Ventureshield is much more flexible & elastic.
In 23k miles of B road blasting it never failed to protect from stone chips on my last car.
So do you know if helicopter tape is self adhesive (ie. peel and stick) or is it applied wet the same way as Ventureshield? I've never seen any footage fron Gaydon of them applying the film but would seem rather tedious for them to do the wet install. Of course peel and stick would be much harder to get bubble free. AM UK have used it on vulnerable parts of their fleet cars. I saw it all over the front splitter of a ex press V12V.
As you say over a large area it is not too pretty but good for gravel traps on press launch track days
On the other hand Ventureshield is much more flexible & elastic.
In 23k miles of B road blasting it never failed to protect from stone chips on my last car.
Gassing Station | Aston Martin | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff