stupid pinstripes
 

okay just have to vent - left front fender pin stripe starting coming off on my mazda 3s 2007 sedan - errhh :FIREdevil

so I took a hair dryer to them and took them off all the way on both sides of the car.

man what a difference - looks a lot cleaner without them IMO.

still kind of mad wasted an hour taking them off just because some dealer thought they looked good and could charge more for them - well when I bargained for the car the final price was definitely without the charge for the pinstripes so it all was a waste of time. why do the dealers bother I think the pinstripes look cheesey.


okay I am done - thanks for listening car looks a lot better without them - guess I can't complain if this ends being the only thing wrong with the car.

I hate that dealership crap. Pinstripes look gross on most cars.

And yes, it's a very good sign that a little pinstripe is the only thing you have to complain about. :)

do you have before/after pics? I'm debating taking mine off...

here is before
 

here is before - will have to take a picture without them

will try to get to it tomorrow for ya


here is the after - will try to get a better picture but I just haven't been home and when I have been it has been dark - that time of year where I go to work in the dark and I come home in the dark. along with our weather has been pretty damp lately and the car is pretty dirty.

plan on washing within the next couple of weeks when I do will take a better picture.

Definitely looks better without, IMO. The 3 has beautiful body lines that don't need to be accentuated by a cheap tape stripe. To me, the stripes look like they belong on a Corolla.

they push at dealerships over there???
not even an option here in australia... glad it isn't either.

looks a lot better without the side mouldings as well...
before:
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o...1062007002.jpg
after:
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o...8/IMG_0319.jpg

i still need to take pics of the side now that i have relocated my sp23 badges too! i have deleted the 'sp' and just relocated the '23' to sit under the side indicators.

Most dealers in the U.S. would tell you almost anything. As long as it made them a buck or two. If I ever want pin stripes, I can do them myself.

FSB -
Looks sharp without the side mouldings. Did they come off easily? Your wheels and the small rear spoiler look great too. Not too flashy, but unique. I imagine it makes it easy to wash and wax as well.

It's all about $$$..
The dealer will call in the pinstripe guy who does several cars at a discount to the dealer, who in turn pops the buyer for what..$199 or so on the second sticker.
When negotiating a deal, tell 'em you don't want the stripes, rust-proofing, or the b.s. Scotchguard crap. Or the damn credit life insurance.

hehe, i guess dealers are the same where ever you are... its just we have much fewer options down here... no sunroof etc. only one option is available here in aus... leather with a bose sound system aka luxury pack!

the side mouldings where the easiest mod that i've done. took a total of about 15 minutes. just get some fishing wire to loosen up the double sided tape thats holding them onto the door, work your way back and when you can get a good handle on the moulding strip... pull out and back. easy as pie. then jsut get some bug and tar remover to remove the excess grime and any glue residue, and then wash down to protect the paint.

check out this thread on the ozmazdaclub forum... inlcudes pics:

http://www.ozmazdaclub.com/forum/3-3...or-strips.html

okay now you got me thinking about removing the molding -

your car looks nice without it and helps show the true lines of the car.

the pinstipes made me do it because one section was coming off -

mmm have to think about this one - decisions decisions.

okay - we have been having some really bad weather and I finally got to do the monthly cleaning

brought the hair dryer out and I took off the 3 on the trunk and the 2.3's on the side

looks much much cleaner without the 2.3's IMO - started to do the side molding but my fishing wire broke and I was running out of time so will do those another day

can't wait to get the moldings off - I know it will look one hundred percent better if removing the 2.3's is any indication.

hate these short winter days - need more sunlight - would do it in my garage but I have a house that was built in 1933 and it has no power so it would be kind of a pain to do it there plus it is only a single car and the room isn't the greatest. I really only park in there when there is bad weather because in the summer our house is totally shaded by an oak tree that is much older than the house so sun isn't an issue.

will post pics when I do the moldings not sure when I will get to it maybe this week if the weather keeps getting better.

I hear ya on that one my man.

Looking forward to your pictures. I'm sure it looks really sharp with all the badges and moldings removed. I have a 3i (2.0 engine) so if anyone asks, I'll just say I removed the badges to look cool... heh heh.

well here they are

very happy

the molding was a joke - once I was able to grab the molding with my hands it came right off - took like 5 minutes.