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Took a while to get this post up after having a great time at MOTD, then getting back to work. I have had great luck with most vendors on NAM, but wanted to vent a bit here about an install at MOTD this year.

The only thing missing from the above phrase is Atom Bombs. Didn't know which thread to put this experience in, so here it is.

I had Viper stripes installed this year at MOTD and am including pics of the final product. All photos I've seen, including those on the AC website show parallel stripes coming down the car bonnet. As you can see, mine are off center (look at the wings) and they become closer as they travel down the bonnet, then flare out at the bottom. The boot would have been the same except I sat there and made them measure the distance between the stripes. Not just eyeball it, as I was told installers do.

During the conversations during and after install, after purchasing materials and paying for install, I wasn't pleased with the final product which was expensive. The install certainly took time, granted. I also have irregular stripes around my scoop and around the windows on the bonnet. They weren't the same width either, from front to back, although I was told it was insignificant. I drove back to the cabin, and as I was looking at it again, I noticed the stripes had superficial cracks in the surface, not full thickness, but still not "esthetically" pleasing. When I went back to discuss this, I was told about the 5 foot rule.

For those of you who don't know about this rule, anything you can see when you are closer than 5 feet to a car, is given a pass. So for those of you showing your cars, the judges can't get closer than 5 feet, any defects seen don't count unless you are further away than 5 feet! So as long as you have horseshoes, hand grenades, and atom bombs, anything close counts, except installs by Aesthetic Creations. So buyer beware. I know many are satisfied with their installs, but I can assure you that I will have to have my stripes re-done and they didn't stand behind their product.

 

I like the design of the stripes. But, I can certainly feel your frustration as there certainly should not be any cracks in a brand new product and they should be installed straight. It's hard to believe they won't stand behind the product or the install.

I would love to see a pic taken from farther away to get a overall idea how the car looks.

 

HORSEFEATHERS!

I would raise a ruckus if those stripes were on my car. The front bumper and below really stand out to me. The fact that they are not straight is simply UNACCEPTABLE, period.

And, FWIW, as an attorney, I don't know of any court that would recognize this alleged "five foot rule". Maybe I was absent that day, but more likely, its pure bullhockey by an incompetent installer. They should be ashamed to hold themselves out as a top shop.

 

do you have a clear bra? in this photo i can see two little creases above the scoop to the left and right.


i know of the 10 ft rule/5 ft rule for show cars but that means squat when it comes to customer satisfaction.
is the yellow supposed to show inside of the scoop at the corners?

 

sorry to hear that you're having a problem.

I've purchased several things from Aesthetic Creations and I've been pleased with everything. There communications is great and everything I have has turned out great. I'm looking forward to MITM where they will be putting on the new roof decal that they will be designing for me.

 

Yeah... I can see it's a bit "off".

Odd. I've been a member here for almost two years. I, myself, have purchased many (too many ) items from AC. And I can't recall ever hearing another complaint about them.

Not that it makes you any happier, of course.

 

/\ must not have read any of my posts

my stripes from AC are not symmetrical - one set is wider than the other and I have similar 'gaps' in the crevices when looking closely. Truth be told, I too was disappointed with the craftsmanship, especially being asked to assist with the install (which I paid for) and asked 'is this straight?' and 'does this look right?'. If I wanted a DIY install....I would not have paid for it.

Once bitten, twice shy.

 

I've read hundreds of your posts. Not sure how I missed any though.

 

I wouldn't have paid if I wasn't happy...

 

doesn't work like that...AC takes payment in advance for install dates like MOTD.

 

wow those don't look very good at all... i'm sorry. I'd pull them asap.

P.S. with the smoothing you've done to the headlight rings... i think the car would look better with no stripes @ all. Just my .02.

 

Sorry to say but they really do not look good, I would pull them. I would also send those pics to AC I think a refund is in order.

 

That is a very poor job. I would be so disappointed if somebody did a job like that on my car. Thanks for bringing this up and mentioning the vendor also.

 

I have those exact same stripes and exact same problem, except around the wings, there is no spacing there, it looks like it was put under the wings.

 

ahhh, the way he told his story it kinda sounded like he payed afterwards...

that sucks...

 

I sat there off and on throughout some of the install. I paid via paypal long before the event, so no chance of a refund. During the install I said they weren't straight, and it fell on deaf ears. The bonnet would have been worse, except I had him measure between the stripes and showed him they were off by as much as 2 inches once he reached the bumper. Mike knew I wasn't happy with the install, but I don't think he really cared because he didn't have any other stripes to re-do. He was also behind on installs so was in a hurry, as I was the first and it was putting him behind.

I wouldn't recommend using him for installs, although I read a lot of posts before I purchased, that he does a good job. I also had the stripes looked at by someone else because of the creasing and cracking, and they say it is from the quality of the vinyl. He also does a dry install, so this also contributes to an inability to move the stripes around while installing.

Number of issues...........Bottom line is I'm out close to $400 and will still have to have them replaced.

Yes glnr13 I do have a clear bra.

 

IMO, the only way you're going to get a perfect look is to paint it. It appears that the pieces in the scoop area and the bonnet were one piece that was cut out of the same stripe..which would make sense for alignment purposes. It seems that there wasn't enough vinyl there and that actually the scoop would need to be wrapped separately from the bonnet. I think you could improve this dramatically by using additonal strips of black vinyl to cover the yellow painted areas--inside of the hole where the scoop is, and inside the scoop itself.

As for the emblem not lining up, there are worse alternatives--the best is to remove the emblem and let the stripes run through it, then glue it back, but some people don't like that.

When I had my stripe done on my '03 Cooper, my vinyl guy had never worked on a MINI before, and it pulled the stripe together like this.


Used an Xacto to trim it, and left a little seam.


It wasn't the best, but after watching him struggle for 3 days to get the stripes in place thanks to the bonnet bulge and my stripe design, it was good enough.

Btw, one reason he may have chosen to do a dry install was to allow you to get back to driving the Dragon, instead of having to wait all day until the stripes were dried.

 

he's ALWAYS behind it seems. Same for me 1.5 years ago. So bad, he was doing Sat jobs on Sunday. first rule of scheduling - better to bump one than delay all.

 

That really looks horrible. Totally unacceptable work. I see 4 creases right off the bat. I don't know what to tell you. Try to exhaust all avenues towards getting a refund. I can recommend Cooper Flags for replacement graphics. Their graphics are top notch. I have a checkered roof decal that they did 2 years ago. My MINI is ungaraged & the decal still looks brand new, no yellowing on the white bits, no fading on the black bits. If you could find a good installer in your area I say rip that mess off that you have now, put this behind you, & think of it as a distant bad memory.

 

That is TERRIBLE - get the NAM admins involved - they often have a fair amount of pull w/ our vendors. I was very close to pulling the trigger on ordering some stripes myself.

As of now - I will hold off until seeing how they resolve your issue.

 

Hey Aesthetic Creations!Make this guy happy....that job aint gonna bring you any business.

 

That's a shame. I like the design, which is a lot of stripe material that must be hard to handle, but he knew what he was taking on. There's way too much gap in the center of the bonnet, and the bumper and lowest part aren't good either. The "5 foot rule" is BS, everybody knows that, and anyone can see the variance from 10 yards away I bet. If they won't make good on it can't you invoke "the Paypal rule" and jerk the payment out from under them? If I were AC I'd suck it up and refund it if you showed that you had it done again. Not every job turns out well even if you're good at it. That's a drag, man.

 

Sorry they didn't do a good job for you quemas. Hope that AC sees your post and recognizes that the right thing to do here is to help you get new stripes installed correctly.

The best way to maintain your business AC is to ensure happy customers! Show all the NAMers you care about customer satisfaction and know how to turn a problem into an opportunity to build customer loyalty!

 

Yeah WOW i just noticed the OP said he paid $400 for that I didn't realize you paid so much. I would fight hard to get that money back as that is nothing to shrug off

 

In all fairness, Have you contacted Him? Since the Dragon..? Not saying him being busy and moving on to the next customer instead of addressing your concerns is fair.. but now.. after the Dragon when things have settled down for him.. might be a good time to try..
I'm sorry this happened to you, and I would be upset too, but anyone who knows me, knows Im the type who won't say anything it sucks Im like that.. but trust me.. I know how you feel.