DIY Front Lip Mazda 6 MPS (Rubber Garage Door Seal Type)

[shakespeare]

The above was posted by member's Rogwick and Toddy22587 in the Itching for a front lip thread. As this now has detailed "How To" instructions and images I've created this thread to help anyone who would like to try this. This is the product the guys used

[07MPS6]

Hi Toddy,

Well, my parents are in Ballajura WA so a small trip to the retail outlet would make a nice little day out for them.
Is it possible you could PM the exact details.

Cheers

[rd415]

Is it possible to continually update thread on any developing hassles. They look great, just worried about scraping - my bar is already damaged on the bottom from speed bumps and driveways and I always take care - the front hit on the speed bumps at Merimbula accomodation.

I like the look but woud be interested to see how good they look in a few months time. Colour from sun bleaching, damage from gutters, other flying objects etc. (grasshoppers/birds/rocks), living in the bush the roads aren't as good as city roads .

[rogwick]

Is it possible to continually update thread on any developing hassles.

Sure! Good point for bringing it up actually. I had given some thought to sun damage, rain (saturation) etc. For the moment every time I wash my car (and I haven't yet) I will apply some protective coat onto the rubber. As I normally quick detail all the plastic on my car to save from the damaging sun and causing to be brittle. Just the usual tyre shine or wet-to-black or armorall equivalent should help in that respect.

Depending on the severity of the initial contact both Lips would bend out of the way on minimal impact. In the case of a harder impact Toddy's would incur damage (scratching) and there is a possibility of mine Ripping or coming loose off the double sided tape (towards the middle) It's very rare I scrape the front end, usually pulling out slow or on an angle nowadays.

I do have spare rubber that I can reapply or alternatively purchase a new stripping if this one is damaged. Maybe I/we will post images after a few months so all can see the how the lips are holding up in general weather and road conditions

Have you got coilovers or lowered Springs? For reference both Toddy and I are riding with King Springs (low). I wouldn't rule out scraping as a factor, seeing as I scraped my 6 pulling out of a shopping centre and it had standard suspension!

Based on King Springs Low Setup our approximate clearance figures (flat surface)
Toddy : ~120mm
Rogwick : ~140mm

See image below of mine, sorry didn't have a coke can. Hope that gives you some idea Russell.

For those interested, Just added an image of Dan reversing down the driveway, you can see about an inch or just over clearance (based on King Springs "low" set-up) Sorry, not really consistent having a stubby to view my clearance and driveway to view Dans, those were the images I had or could get at this point

[tigamica350]

Looks good fellas. Well done for thinking outside the box!

[A Pirate]

Ive been wanting to do this for ages (over 12 months) but cannot find the rubber to suit...my local 2 clark rubber donot have the rubber nor does bunning mitre10 and few other places ive tried.

[Toddy22587]

The rubber i use was from Clark rubber. Its called "Wheel arch flares / fender" there are 2 types, I used "RE fender 1" you will need about 2.5m

I couldn't find it on the clark rubber website but i did find another supplier. Its on the top of page 13 of the catalogue below

http://www.indrub.com.au/PDF/Rubbber-Extrusion.pdf

hope this helps

[07MPS6]

A huge thanks to both Toddy and Rogwick for the info contained within their PM's.
I really do prefer Toddy's because to me it looks slightly more aggresive being that much lower but I think I might have a problem, my car seems to be lower than both of theirs, it is on H&R springs.
I have attached 2 x images using the most universal measurement I could come up with which FYI is 87mm
The one with the least clearance is taken at the corner of the bumper and the one with the most was taken almost exactoly in the middle.
Looks like I will have to settle for Rogwicks type, believe me when I say your roads are considerably better than ours are at the moment.

[rd415]

I wouldn't rule out scraping as a factor, seeing as I scraped my 6 pulling out of a shopping centre and it had standard suspension!

Thanks - a great help the photo's help immensely.
I wish the driveways around here were as flat and low as shown in the photo's.

My standard suspension car MPS6 sometimes scrapes entering or exiting the T insersection at the entrance to my street. It has a concrete dip drain across the entrance and is uphill. I can't lower the car, son's std height Commodore with body kit regularly ripped off his front bumper backing out my driveway and he had to cross the drain at the entrance to the street diagonally at almost 0 kph.

But still they look terrific.

[rogwick]

Ralph, looks like your cruising a fair bit lower than us for day-to-day driving. The choice is up to you what lip you want, but I would think Dan's type would be too low for you in the front end. I've scraped my car on standard suspension with no lip before, so I can imagine you will almost definitely have problems with Dan's type and possibly even mine from time to time?

If you really prefer the look of Dan's I would suggest seeking another type of rubber which is similar in length to mine. BUT, in my opinion Dan's looks good because its lower, but when you're chasing the same length as mine, I would say mine would look better because it flares out a bit like a skirting (makes it look a little more aggressive) I don't think a lip like Dan's would look that great if it was shorter. It's not low, it's not flared...boring, Agree? Disagree? Just a thought. Have you checked out Chris' link he posted before?

How-To: Home Depot (HD) Lip - Mazda Forums

His ride height looks about the same as yours?

[mps05]

Done today!!

I like it, but I was sent the soft rubber instead of hard rubber also. Also didnt pay enough attention to the position of the Double sided tape and you can see it .... doh. Bought a spare pack of the rubber anyway. Will see if they send me the hard stuff before I rip it off and start again.

[rogwick]

mps05 - that looks familiar!! Good job! Looking good, thanks for posting a shot of your ride and your recent mod. About the double sided tape...how wide is the strip? If its wide enough (got enough meat on it to still stick) you could maybe grab a flat head screw driver and squish it back so you can't see it? Or alternatively, I did contemplate spraying my lip matt black. By taping off the bumper (so no respray) and painting the rubber, the paint should cover the tape, making it not stand out as much.

So I guess you now can relate and see the rubber is a bit soft?! It's not bad, but the harder type probably would be better. If you're thinking about ripping it off and doing it again, I would friendly suggest placing the double sided tape a little further back (around the sides of bumper) so it is not visable. If you're using screws you shouldn't need much tape on those areas. For the middle, I decided to use a full strip or even a dual strip of double sided tape for extra hold, about 7mm odd off the end of the existing lip. Depend on the quality of the double sided tape on how good its going to stick. Another thing is if you use a full stripping, if you see the tape still it will look better than tape dashed at intervals?

Good work though mate, looking good!

[mps05]

I actually contacted them about it being soft rubber. I advised them that I can still use it. They credited the freight and cost of the item. Pretty happy with that.

I will try pushing the tape back first, but I have a feeling I will end up starting over.

I would be a bit reluctant to paint it. I can see it looking pretty average after a few weeks from flexing during general driving, let alone scraping it.

I'm happy with it considering the little amount of outlay for it.

[rogwick]

Just an update for members (and Russell as I know you were keen on an UD)

I have not scraped as yet, or rather I have just and no damage caused. Clearance still appears to be no problem. Typical drives include various driveways including my sisters new house driveway which is particularly bad initial drop onto the road and typical speed bumps etc. I find that by going slow and on an angle (turning out onto the road on an angle anyway) seems to work a treat as per normal. I'm usually reversing out, but on occasion the front end enters the road first and haven't noticed any dramas.

As far as Toddy's lip goes, I can comment that he has scraped a couple of times but generally speaking if its a slow depart on the typical angle it usually clears ok. If Toddy reads this maybe he can pass a comment to scraping and any damage (if any) incurred on the rubber and if its noticeable? I don't think its a big problem anyhow.

Any members that have the lip installed, either mine or Toddy's version, maybe drop a little feedback too and tells us what clearance issues (if any) you're having, or any general feedback on the Lip really.

On another note; member 6mps (Anthony) has all finished his lip (where all this idea started) Looking pretty good and creative. Good work as he done the fabrication himself and produced some good results he was happy to share, thanks again mate. To view his Lip (the alternative to Toddy and I's rubber) with pics, Click the link below.

itching-front-lip-mazda-6-mps

Cheers,
Rog

[rogwick]

Toddy remind me to post a couple more images in here when we sort out a few or you can post a couple from your camera of the front end of our cars together? Might look a bit better than the first images on page one

[6mps]

Hey guys,
On the topic of front lips.
I'm starting a group buy for a mazda6mps front lip. Please check out the group buy thread if you're interested.
Regards,
Anthony

[mps05]

OK, The stuff from the states was too flexible and has sagged a little due to the sticky on the tape wearing off and not using enough screws. Other half grazed it anyway, put a small tear on one side.

Went to clark rubber today and bought some "4WD Guard Flare" rubber. It is about double the size of the other stuff, but a crap load more solid. Quite a bit more frustrating to fit, but I am happy with the look.
Photos below.

In regard to the ride heights mentioned above, my car with standard springs is 130mm off the ground from the bottom of my new lip. The pedders springs which I will be getting soon are going to lower the car by 50mm at the front, giving me 80mm clearance.........which ain't much.

[rogwick]

Good to see mate!

You have the same Lip as Toddy. Off memory I think he used about 4 screws on each side and in the middle 5 bolts top side facing down with a nylock nut under. Once lowered you will have about 80mm clearance, that is correct. Toddy has scraped his a couple of times but you just have to be mindful where you take your car and what angle to approach. The great thing is the rigidity of the rubber. It's pretty tuff and definitely won't rip.

The frost king rubber I installed on mine is still going well. I think I scrapped once when I had to reverse straight out one day and to be honest it was a little fast. Got out and looked and no damage at all. Then again I have got a sufficient number of self drilling screws and also gaffa tape at intervals. I actually ordered the nail on "hard" rubber but received the soft rubber. I complained and again they sent me more soft rubber lol. The hard rubber would be much better than the soft stuff but for the most part mine is still going great and now I have spare anyway.

Thanks for the pics, she's looking good!! Just a quick question, how did you mount the middle rubber to the underside of the bumper? I don't see any screws? Nice and neat. Hopefully you don't get any drama's once lowered! Just remember to approach at an angle when possible and go slow. If you see my attachment above with the stubby holder, yours would sit about 25mm below my lip (pretty much touching the stubby holder) after you put new springs in (just for information really)

[Toddy22587]

Looks good mate. Just like mine !!

I've hit a few things but it just bends back and has no damage.

[mps05]

Good to see mate!

You have the same Lip as Toddy. Off memory I think he used about 4 screws on each side and in the middle 5 bolts top side facing down with a nylock nut under. Once lowered you will have about 80mm clearance, that is correct. Toddy has scraped his a couple of times but you just have to be mindful where you take your car and what angle to approach. The great thing is the rigidity of the rubber. It's pretty tuff and definitely won't rip.

The frost king rubber I installed on mine is still going well. I think I scrapped once when I had to reverse straight out one day and to be honest it was a little fast. Got out and looked and no damage at all. Then again I have got a sufficient number of self drilling screws and also gaffa tape at intervals. I actually ordered the nail on "hard" rubber but received the soft rubber. I complained and again they sent me more soft rubber lol. The hard rubber would be much better than the soft stuff but for the most part mine is still going great and now I have spare anyway.

Thanks for the pics, she's looking good!! Just a quick question, how did you mount the middle rubber to the underside of the bumper? I don't see any screws? Nice and neat. Hopefully you don't get any drama's once lowered! Just remember to approach at an angle when possible and go slow. If you see my attachment above with the stubby holder, yours would sit about 25mm below my lip (pretty much touching the stubby holder) after you put new springs in (just for information really)

There are some small self tapping screws in there from bottom up. The black plastic diffuser actually gets thicker the furthe back you go, so I have angled the screws on an angle towards the back of the car so they didn't come through the top of the diffuser. Worked out really well.