My Transformation, In Progress: Vinyl Wrap, Forged Wheels & More
 

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to make a post that I could update often with my progress. Over the next year or so I'll be lightly modding the car for a more modern appearance. I am not really a performance guy, the 380 hp is enough for me at this time. Quick backstory: I picked up this 2007 Vantage with only 5k miles on her after looking for over a year.

If you're interested in seeing more pictures of my car, here are my first two threads:

What's the deal with the color "Pearl White - Porsche"?

My 2007 Porsche Pearl White Vantage


Color: Porsche Pearl White
Year: 2007
Interior: Black with black stitching

First line of business, protection.
The car was mint, but over the summer I received a ROCK CHIP from lovely NY roads! It was horrible, so after getting it touched up (almost impossible with this color) I decided to get the paint protection film. After many hours of research and connecting with different Long Island shops, I decided on Xpel film and a shop called Phenomenal Vinyl in Oceanside. I got the full nose protected and I can't speak more highly of their shop. Clean, organized and did a perfect job, literally perfect. You cannot even tell it's on the car. It even goes under my AM badge. Amazing.


https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...9645bb0089.jpg






https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...e272643907.jpg




Next up, interior sun protection:
Knowing that the dashboard leather on these cars starts to pull with direct sunlight I didn't want to take any chances. Yes I have one of the sun blockers, but having this extra level protection on the glass feels good. F shrinking leather! Took it to a shop called 631 Coatings in Deer Park LI. They used Suntek films, 75% on the windshield, 35% on the side windows. Really helped with interior temps!! The front windshield being tinted is undetectable.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...87d57e936d.jpg




NEXT UP: Full Vinyl Wrap in Arlon Satin White:
Fact: Porsche Pearl white is an amazing color, just photographs horribly! One of the classiest whites around, but I did want to wrap the car in satin white since I think it's an amazing finish. The whole process is cool. Don't get my wrong, I love my color, I love Aston paint, but I wanted to be different. Decided on Arlon Satin White over the Avery Satin white, both are amazing. I used the Phenomenal Vinyl Shop again in Ocean side and I plan on picking it up next week!

Progress pics:

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...1a6f38b5ad.jpg





https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...337151a7bc.jpg



And now for my favorite part, FORGED WHEELS:
I have a background of modding all of my cars. I've have Volks, Works & Enkei's, however having a true custom forged wheel was something I didn't think i'd ever commit to. After all, brands like ADV1 & HRE are insanely expensive, and it's justified because of the costs of manufacturing. Fortunately after months of research I stumbled onto a company called Brixston Forged wheels. I chatted with Adam who was extremely patient and understanding. I finally pulled the trigger on the Mono Series R10 in Anodized Bronze II.

Here's the rough rendering of the wheels/coloring.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...38ff3fc9ed.jpg

Here are the stock photos:

http://brixtonwheels.com/sites/defau...ce-front_0.png



http://brixtonwheels.com/sites/defau...e-right-01.png


https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.6sp...ffcd9898c8.png

Sizes are:
20x9 + 42
20x10.5, +50 offset.

I should receive them in about 4 weeks!!! Couldn't be more excited!

Thanks for looking, will have more updates soon!

-Peter

those are great looking wheels. Another relatively cheap mod is to change to a later model grille with 6 vanes instead of 8.

Thanks! This will be my first "no lip" wheel. I would love to do the 6 bar grill, but I was hoping to pick one up used as they're costly (for a grill anyway)

I hope people buy that new vcollection v12 grill and sell their 6 slats lol.

You know, I'm not a fan of white but . . . WOW . . . that satin white looks amazing. That's a very sharp package you've put together. Well done!

Love the white/bronze combo, great choice!

Love your car! beautiful pics.

Great Job! Love the wheels!

looks amazing, man!

Excellent choices, and the photo-documentary of the process was really good too.

Very cool! Love the wheels and the color. 2007 Vantage's are the best.
Ron

Thanks everyone! Some more good news to share. I noticed that the car had it's tire wells opened and I took that opportunity to replace my door struts. $85 from the dealer and about 10 mins of work. Thanks to this forums info I was able to do it myself :)

Now I can open the door and "let go" without the wrath of a heavy ass door slamming into me.

Looks fantastic!

Stupid question... Did you have to remove the XPEL to put on the vinyl wrap? If not, was it only because you chose to have the XPEL with rounded edges and under all the badges?

Thanks! Not a stupid question at all. The Xpel paint protection is under the Arlon satin white. It's essentially double wrapped on the nose, even though the Arlon is thick enough to act as guard. I think the only catch to that is that the Xpel clear bra needs to 100% dry for the wrap to be applied on top.

From what I've learned some more advanced shops (like the one I'm using) can apply clear bra either under or OVER the wrap. It probably makes more sense to put it over the wrap, however with the satin finish that wasn't possible.

There is a real science to this wrap stuff, not an easy task!

Thanks for the description! Is there a noticeable line where the clear bra ends? Just curious as I'm considering replacing my existing bra with XPEL to refresh it and add a bit more coverage, but who knows, might also want to wrap it at some point!

Love the username, btw.

Thanks! Yes there is one spot on the lower bumper where you can see a very faint line of where the Xpel bra ends. It's hardly noticeable, however if i had left the BS factory bra on i'd have a huge line running across the hood. Definitely 100% get that factory bra off! Mine made the car look yellow!