My wing is still flawless, but if it ever gets bubbled, I will personally raise living hell with Mitsu. I paid extra $$$ for the damn thing, by god, it will be perfect.

 

Can anyone give a ballpark idea on how long it was before their wing bubbled? Mine is in good shape so far, but I have not had it very long.

 

I noticed mine within the first few weeks. Of course, they may have existed prior, and I failed to catch them in the correct light. I DON'T think they were there when I first got the car, however, since I went over it very carefully - both the first time, and around the time the bubble issue was first raised and was unable to identify anything.

At this point, it's really not whether it ever bubbles or not for anyone - the bigger issue is that Mitsu has essentially disavowed responsibility for what appears to be a poorly finished product. I know it's primarily cosmetic, but this is an issue where I paid a hefty premium for a flawed product and I'm unhappy.

I still love my Evo - I just hate my bubbles. Maybe they're there to lighten the weight even further

-Josh

 

I am new to the boards, and in the process of acquiring an Evo. However I do work with Carbon Fiber, Kevlar, and Fiberglass everyday of my life for the last 6 years.

In all likely hood ( i am goin to agree with "theheff") the process which was used to build the wing is to blame. Whenever too many layer is of carbon or whatever is layed up in a single cure cycle excessive heat can develop causing invisible voids in the nonsurface structure. Or if the resin used had a wax present in it this could have been a multistep lay up in which the layers of the laminate where not scuffed in between lay ups. What will then happen is almost the same thing seen in poor window tinting.

The air trapped in these voids will expand during prolonged exposure to high heat (eg. leaving the car sit in the sun). Will this weaken the overall composition of the structure, yes. Depending on which layer in which the void is formed most definately. Depending on the layer some of you guys may see in the near future surface cracks and runners forming.

Can you do anything to stop it, no not really... unless you can avoid exposure to high heat (sunlight). Those of you not yet experiencing this be glad, you may have caught a good run. Those not so fortunate should be able to go back to and have it covered under manufactures defect, b/c that is what it is. Good luck to all of you guys in dealing with something that should have never happened.

 

Thanks for the info Triple6. From what I can tell (based upon my limited knowledge), it appears that the bubbles form at the corners of the interleaving of the composite. In other words, the strands of composite are woven together and overlap each other forming nifty little squares giving CF it's distinctive appearance. The bubbles will occur on all four corners of the little square - but not covering the actual surface of the square itself. It appears that there is a height differential resulting from the weaving, and the bubbles have formed in the spaces in between.

I am hoping that the resin on the wing will be sufficient to prevent any cracking, but as you said, only time will tell. Unfortunately, as has been mentioned above, the tech bulletin that Mitsubishi has released details the specific problem, and proceeds to discount it as a normal (and harmless) by-product of the CF production process. This is appearing more and more like a load of BS from Mitsu, covering until (hopefully) they can implement a strategy to deal with the issue.

Currently, it represents just another minor cosmetic flaw that I'm learning to live with since the car is essentially an econobox, with the heart of a tiger. If the wing begins to crack or weaken structurally, then I will pursue it more agressively.

I guess my biggest concern at this point is that the tech bulletin ensures that the dealerships won't warranty the part, which in turn means that they might not be telling the regional Mitsu reps about the frequency of occurence. I think it would behoove all wing owners with bubbles to contact their regional rep and inform them of the defect. They can in turn, pass the information on to corporate. If the volume is sufficient, perhaps we can hope for a remedy. Or not - this is the same company that brought us crankwalk after all. I'm just a little more optimistic since I think theirs is a climate of change - especially with the stiff competition from Subaru in the performance sedan market.

-Josh

 

Anyone here have any pics of this "bubbling" on the wing?

 

i noticed 2 slight bubbles in the wing this past weekend when i was cleaning the evo. you can only notice them at a certain angle, but it really isnt raised. I will try an take a picture of one today, although i dont think i will be able to capture the bubble.

BTW....how can i find out who my area rep is??

 

It is a good idea to get anything CF clearcoated to protect from UV and heat, as a clearcoat will cause more glare off the wing, thus reflecting heat. The black of the CF gets very hot from direct sunlight and after time will "brown"; the color of the CF will go from the rich black to an amber brown. I think you are seeing the bubbling because the CF heating up is continuing the curing process that wasn't done long enough in the first place. Is it just the vertical section that's getting the bubbles, or the sides too?

 

I dont have any CF wing issues yet. But it is getting to be summer time around here and I was curious if I should start applying the UV protectant spray sooner than later? I haven't bought it yet from Mitsu....but does anyone know or can recommend any other product to possibly use?

Is it also worth getting the wing clearcoated as one poster above mentioned?

Thanks!

 

Mine sits in the garage most of the time so it's exposure to sunlight has been minimal. More than likely this will bite me in the *** in the future as time goes by and warranties expire.

 

so much for authentic CF wing, i guess the manufacturing process would leave imperfections. would you rather have fiberglass with carbonfiber sticker/cover? a plastic wood dash would look like - plastic, at least it will not be eaten by termites

 

Does the wing come from the factory with a clearcoat or no?

 

woah ooolddd thread