When I was deciding on purchasing this vehicle, I had a choice on a slightly used 2012 or a brand new 2013. I personally liked the 2012 more for the color matched body panels, however the 2013 has proved to be more 'utility' like which serves my purpose better. Regardless, the black plastic along the perimeter was rather drab, so here we have some love for the front with a small lip add-on!







The construction is ABS plastic (I have had terrible luck with fiberglass on previous vehicles) which offers a piece of mind if I (or the other half) does bump into something.

It came pre-painted which looks to be holding up fine. I'll have to see how it goes up against the elements but it's so low on the front chin anyways that if it ever does catch all the road debris I can quickly repaint it with ease, especially for such a small piece.

Before.



After!







Decided to pull out onto the driveway to get some better shots instead of being couped up in the garage.









It's a small detail but I'm really happy with how it sharpens the front. I've been on the lookout for a kit for a while and couldn't quite find anything with decent looks while maintaining a good amount of ground clearance. Now let's hope it won't fall off!

 

I was originally planning to do this before the first snowfall this past winter but ended up getting lazy and decided to wait. I think it's always a good idea to take emblems off soon when the vehicle is still new to keep the paint fade consistent. It was still very easy to get all the emblems and goo off after 7 months of ownership.

Before.







During.



After!







Piece of cake. This should make for easier detailing later on down the road.

 

I was thinking on how to apply more sound absorber to the firewall and figured it would be easier to just see what I can take out for now without pulling the entire dash. There is a small piece of foam on the backside of the glove box from the factory but just like the doors, it's not much. I cut a bigger piece of absorber hopefully to make a small difference, if not, to also help cut out the rattles from the glove box. Either way, pretty quick and easy job to help slightly for now.

 

I was looking for some light tint for the front windows to help with some of the glare during the day (that's when I drive most of time). Usually I like the front and rear to have the same shade but that would be too dark for a daily driver. I've seen some people do a light tint all around which I like the look of, but since the rear windows were already tinted from the factory, I picked up some 50% tint for the front.



If you also plan to DIY, make sure you pull the door panels off. It's kind of a hassle but it will pay off.

Here is a quick shot of before for reference.



Immediately after application.





Pulled out onto the driveway for some shots but it was almost sundown. It's still obvious the front is much lighter than the rear. During the day it is not very visible there is any tint on the front whatsoever when compared to the rear, but it still makes a good difference for the drive.







I'm enjoying the overall look. The tint is functional and cleans up the car by showing less of what is inside. It also goes with the new tail lights quite nicely as well!

 

Continuing from last time when I added some damper and absorber to the front doors, this time I did the rear doors. It's the same process as the front and the door panels come off very easily. I didn't go crazy with either material, but some coverage is better than nothing at all.





This was all we got from the factory.



All beefed up.



I applied the damper to the door skin and the absorber to the underside of the door panels just like the front with the vapor barrier in between to keep the foam dry. The drive is better now, seems like less pings and rattles going on behind and around me. It's not a drastic difference but still enough to make the sound coming from the front directly from the engine amplified. I think I will need to put the rest of the absorber under the hood as intended for a later post. I'm glad that at least all 4 doors are done for now.

 

I wanted to try something different with the rear emblem on the hatch.



Well that's new.





Measuring up.





Just as what I had pictured, but I think I need some time to let it soak in. I think there is too much focus on the upper portion for now and I will need to expedite my plans for the bottom half sooner than I anticipated.

 

Just wished there was a metal version of that lip, or better yet a full metal splash shield for us in the States!




Very nice work.

 

Great job my friend!

 

Simply Amazing...

 

Hands down to you.

 

Thanks guys, appreciate all the comments!

 

have you tried stuffing pillow batting in to the empty areas? it did it in the rear hatch and the rear trunk areas after I sound deadened it and it helped out a lot! it made the rear hatch sound a lot more solid when I close it as well. I have not gotten around to doing the doors yet but it is on my list cause my exhaust it really loud in the cab.
thanks for the pics I usually apply the sound eliminator to the door so I think I might try it your way this time and do it on the panels

 

I haven't done much with the hatch or trunk areas yet. Did you focus more around the rear wheel wells? I didn't even think of the hatch. There is absolutely nothing in there from factory so that will definately need some attantion. Thanks for the reminder!

 

no problem I went to a craft store and got 3 bags of that fiber pillow batting/stuffing, they were 1.99 each and you can tear handfuls off and stuff it in to any small areas so it works real well and is supper light weight as well.

 

I always thought the factory reflectors on the lower bumper were rather tacky, especially with the pizza slice orientation.



I picked up some LED reflectors the same size as the factory reflectors without the pizza slice look.



There is a 10mm nut on each side holding the reflector in place.





I had to drill a small hole to run the wiring.



Almost there...



And the end result. I wired these to the running lights only. The LED is 2 stage and has the option to illuminate even brighter when braking. That wasn't the look I really wanted and I'm happy with just having functioning reflectors that only come on and stay lit at night without the pizza look.