the riveted look is hot.
i would take the molding off and chop it so that it goes right back into the fender flare
edit: i agree that it would look better with no molding at all, but that will require body work to finish so i was thinking u wanted to stay clear of that. but preferably, def ditch the molding
to each their own, that is why its your car ;)…
good luck with it regardless
when i picture riveted flares, i picture toyota trucks like below
now that i see the pics of an e30, i guess on a euro styled car its not so bad, but i would imagine that molded wouldnt look bad either…
ie…
AFTER LOOKING THOUGH, i am struggling to find what i am visualizing in my head… but what i picture in my mind is a very stock looking flare that is slightly larger than stock, meh, i quit
maybe, maybe not. My Corrado moldings were held on with just adhesive from the factory. A little heat, and they come right off. I do not know how the BMW moldings are attached. I bet coldaccord or dmoffitt do though.
well, in order to shave the side moldings, I think they sit in recessions in the door, so I think I would have to fill those…
The side moldings are not that big of a issue. I would keep them since that is part of the look of the car.
Since the flares are thermoplastic you have some options. You can take a iron pipe, heat it up and press is into the flare where the molding would lie. You can also make up a steel plug of the molding and use the same heat procedure to make a impression.
I would have a can of “Air-Duster” (used upside down) handy to cool the piece after you have it where you want it. The plastic will retain some of the heat after you remove the plug and may partially return to its previous shape as it cools slowly.
The other option is a dremel tool… and to cut a notch where the molding resides. Done slowly and with a trial fit approach you can make it look perfect.
There is a lot more going on in the back bumper so I would need a pic of the flare to get a good idea of what needs to be done.
if thats the case i would def. do it.
i know if u pull them on a civic it leaves some pretty decent size hole. granted they can be welded up, ground down, and body filled easily, its still extra work, and prolly a few days worth of it
not necessarily. my civic has recessions and it doesnt look bad at all. i think a lot of ppl who remove the molding keep the recession. you would have to see how it looks once its done.
but as im writing this, i realize that the flare would be placed over a recession. that might look shitty.
Are you sure? On my jetta that is how it appears as well but when you pull them off you realize that it is just a body line and all you need to do is cover 5 or 6 holes up. Should be pretty easy to do if it is like this on your e30. Do you plan on running small bumpers still?
i think i am going to keep the stock bumpers and just paint them flat black.
Hmm maybe then you could trim the bumper/flair so the top of the flair runs behind the bumper. It would tie it in nicely and then you could either shorten the trim or get rid of it.
Riveted flares, no moldings. If the bumpers are going to be flat black do the same with the flares.
Also what color is planned for the body?
a super deep/high gloss olive army green
Interesting choice, I’ll have to play with photoshop some and see what I come up with.
i’d opt for molded and painted to match the car so it looks as if it was supposed to be there rather than it actually looking like you riveted body parts on…just my .02
someone should PS this shit for me…
Have it done by a professional i work with a experienced guy always looking for more barnjobs… LMK