Body Side Molding Installation

Discussion in 'Clarity' started by Young J Kwak, Jul 31, 2018.

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  1. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    Hi All!
    Just installed the body side molding and took some pics / clips of vids during the process.
    Of note, I have had prior experience as an automotive tech and have done these installs in the past. Nonetheless, this is a very easy job to do, and well worth it.
    The body side moldings can prevent a significant amount of door dings - my honda pilot's body side moldings have many dents / scratches in it to prove the point.

    WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
    - warmer weather is favorable
    - No rinse wash solution OR washing the car + microfiber to clean any grime
    - isopropyl alcohol or alcohol pads (no, tennessee whiskey wont do the trick here)
    - scotch tape / clear tape of some sort to hold up the templates
    - a little patience and some good lighting

    INSTRUCTIONS:
    - clean the areas of the install to remove dust / grime
    - apply some clear tape to the upper left and right corners of the template that comes with the kit
    - on the Ends of the trim - remove the film over the double sided tape
    - only remove a portion of the film over the center strips of double sided tape so you have a curly "pigs tail" hanging down
    - align the body side molding to the template edge on the middle of the car (between the passenger and driver door)
    - press the end down that you are starting with to get some adhesion
    - you can now either align and press down the other side (far end)
    OR
    - you can press down the central portion and work your way down
    - as you go down along the trim piece, pull at the "pigs tail" of loosened film covering
    - start with the TOP part to get proper alignment along the templates
    - remove the film from the bottom part while pressing firmly as you go along
    - the instructions call for a "rubber roller", but firm finger pressure along all adhesive edges is sufficient

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    Attached Files:

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  3. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    If anyone has any questions on how to do this, feel free to message me.
     
  4. Richard Kelly

    Richard Kelly Member

    Does anyone have the Chrome Trim at the bottom of the door installed. Looking for insight as to how it looks and pictures if available.
     
  5. amy2421

    amy2421 Active Member

    Thanks for posting! Great "work in progress" shots! It is exciting for me to see that sparkly white paint close up... I am still waiting for my Clarity to arrive and I've never seen the white in real life. It looks beautiful! :)
     
  6. mrgb5

    mrgb5 New Member

    nice work, i got the same white clarity touring 3 weeks old, i am really enjoying it, i want to get that done
    where and what is the price you got it, here in toronto, canada , these are listed for cad $328 + taxes with dealer
     
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  8. Alantn

    Alantn Member

    Do you have link where to purchase? Are they custom to fit the Clarity and match color? Looks good and I'm all for.not getting door dinks
     
  9. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    This is where I bought it from:

    https://www.collegehillshonda.com/category/2018-clarity-accessories.html

    Took about 25 minutes to do it. If it is your first time, maybe add a few more minutes as doing things like this yourself makes you a perfectionist.
    At the dealer, they don't typically try to be "exact" in lining up the template to the body lines / door edge.
    I wanted the top lines of the front and rear pieces to be exactly flush with each other - you won't always get this with dealer installs. The photos are slightly out of order as what is pictured for the close up is not flush - it was just to show how they come together using the templates.
     
  10. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    Here is how it looks

    IMG_3443.JPG
    IMG_3445.JPG
     
    rickyrsx likes this.
  11. Alantn

    Alantn Member

    Beautiful. I just ordered, thank you. Mine is "Solar Silver Metallic".
     
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  13. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    Apologies to everyone, but I forgot to mention this in the initial post.
    I purposely swapped the Front Lt and Front Rt pieces to get the swoop at the ends going upwards on both sides.

    I personally didnt like the look of it as pictured here. Others will likely do it the regular way.

    08p05-trt_350x263.jpg
     
    Hobbesgsr, amy2421 and rickyrsx like this.
  14. Richard Kelly

    Richard Kelly Member

  15. bpratt

    bpratt Active Member

  16. Richard Kelly

    Richard Kelly Member

    Thanks for letting me know. Can you tell if the body side molding goes over the door edge film, or does it stop short of the film?
     
  17. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    It stops just before the door edge guards that I installed
    Maybe like a 1cm or 1.3cm gap from door edge to the body side molding.
     
  18. Sandroad

    Sandroad Well-Known Member

    Here are the Honda instructions.

    https://www.collegehillshonda.com/instructions/clarity/2018/bodysidemoldings.pdf

    I wonder if anyone will get brave and try a contrasting color on their Clarity? I considered a light color on my red car, but opted to go with the red moldings.

    To the question above about door edge film; the edge film is a little easier to install without the molding in the way, but the molding does not cover the area where the film fits.
     
  19. Young J Kwak

    Young J Kwak Member

    I have seen people cars with different bodyside pieces before and it almost never looks ok unless it is something like a darker car with black trim pieces, or sometimes even chrome.

    For this car, I would strongly suggest staying with the factory color of the car.
     
  20. su_A_ve

    su_A_ve Active Member

    The instructions shows to mount the molding about 1/4" away from where you would otherwise if you have the door edge film. I guess if you would install the door edge film after, it could be an issue.
     
  21. bpratt

    bpratt Active Member

    My car had the door edge film installed first because the body side molding had to be ordered. The dealer installed the body side molding just touching the door edge film. No gap at all.
     
  22. SkipperT

    SkipperT Member

    Hi Richard, not sure if you are still looking for pics, just LMK.
    I have the lower chrome trim accents installed on my red Clarity.

    -Skip
     
  23. Robert_Alabama

    Robert_Alabama Well-Known Member

    Young J Kwak ... My sons put the side molding on my father-in-law's white touring Clarity today and on my Black one. Your instructions with photos were helpful. Just wanted to say Thank You. We were very happy with the new look.
     

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