Ok, so I ordered bonnet stripes and realized it is pretty fricking fugly IMO. Getting a place to install some sport stripes(my original choice but the dealer wanted to charge $700 for them -.-). Either way, the cost to install plus the decal is pretty competitive but they quoted $75 an hour for the OEM bonnet stripes removal that is currently on the car. I said that I could probably do that and was warned that the leftover residue can be a PITA to remove and even damage the paint. So, how easy is it to remove the OEM bonnet stripes? In addition, is there a ton of residue leftover? Do you just use Goo-be-Gone or something similar to remove it?

 

You didn't say how old your car is. If the OEM stripes have been on for less than a couple of years... they should peel off fairly easily... may help to do it on a warm sunny day and let them heat up first.. or use a hair dryer to heat them up a bit... yes, goo gone works FINE for adhesive residue... as does isopropyl alcohol or WD40... depends on the particular adhesive, which one will work best. I've used all of the above many times on my paint will no ill effects....

The reason folks quote T&M for removal is SOMETIMES it can be a real bear... if they come apart in lots of little pieces, it can take hours to get them off...

 

It's an 09. I'm debating whether I should just pay the hourly fee and let them do it right(both places said it could be done for under an hour) or try it myself and save the cash. Obviously if I do it myself and screw up, it'll take more than an hour to remove it.

I guess I should give it a go since it's not even 2 months old. It should come off pretty easily. :X

 

I did my stripes easily with a hair dryer and lots of patience. Pull the top edge and Slooowly heat and peel. Keep the dryer aimed just at where the stripe is stuck to the car. I think it took 20 minutes for each stripe. No residue and they were on the car for four years in the CA heat. Take your time and good luck!

 

As mcpeso said, just take your time. With some luck, you may even be able to get both stripes off in one piece (well techincally two)!

 

Hey BLimey, Next time just for haha's, instead try using carnuba wax to remove residue. I just lay a thickish layer of that stuff on the residue for a good minute, then massage the area - "wax on - wax off" in different directions and it comes off great, meantime it is good for paint too.

I removed my oem bonnet stripes using Blimy's hair dryer method on an 03' this summer, worked just fine.

They came off easy and no residue left, just some darkish ghost marks in paint which can be seen from the sides up close at certain angles...

 

+1 on the hair-dryer-and-patience technique. Hey - it's $75 - that's gas for almost 900 miles of Motoring!

 

So there's only been one incident with ghost marks being left behind?

 

Depends on what the "ghost marks" are...

There are many occurrences of removing stripes to find that the paint under the stripe has *not* faded like the paint on the rest of the car has over time... but shouldn't be a problem on a car as new as yours. Usually only an issue on cars a few years old kept in the sun...

If it's some other hazing of the clear coat, it should polish right out with appropriate technique. See the detailing forum.

 

Three of us working together did an R53 in under an hour. This included boot and bonnet stripes as well as a roof graphic. Lots of little pieces in those graphics. The toughest part, we found, was removing the vinyl over the clear bra. It tended to adhere quite well in that area and left quite a bit of residue. Goo-gone did the trick there. Graphics had been on less than two years in sunny AZ.
We had already planned to detail the newly 'blank slate', so had some paint prep and wax materials on-hand to deal with any shadowing and/or ghost marks. Though we did have to hit some areas twice with the wax stripper/paint prep.

 

jet wash them off!

 

Just finished taking them off. It came off without a hitch. Took a total of 10 minutes for both stripes. No residue leftover, very clean removal. Thanks everyone! =D

 

All this fuss and stress for NOTHING.