How to remove badges from the Clarity

Discussion in 'Clarity' started by Viking79, Mar 18, 2018.

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  1. Viking79

    Viking79 Well-Known Member

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  3. Hobbesgsr

    Hobbesgsr Active Member

    Thanks for the how to.
     
  4. KentuckyKen

    KentuckyKen Well-Known Member

    Great write up. Also everyone, Viking has a lot more very interesting and educational info on his link. Well worth reading.
    Viking, I’m very envious of your well organized garage! Will you come do mine?
     
  5. Rob_v1

    Rob_v1 Member

    Great! I managed to remove both left and right badges using a heat gun and fingernails. Set the gun at 280F, blowing on badge for about 5 minutes each. Since the charging door appears to be made of a composite material, I might have tried 260F if I was doing this again. There was no apparent damage, though, and the badge wasn't too hot to touch. Began pulling at the top left, and then pulled it off from left to right, and slightly top to bottom. You're right, the edges of the badge are sharp enough to make a slight scratch in the clearcoat.
     
  6. AlanSqB

    AlanSqB Active Member

    I like the idea of removing the one from the charge cover, but the other side looks like it might look a bit naked/odd without the badge. Does it look ok over there or is it lacking after the debadge?
     
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  8. Viking79

    Viking79 Well-Known Member

    Thanks, everyone. Ken, I have enough trouble keeping my garage from being a disaster. My dad did teach me to put up shelves to keep crap organized though :)

    Alan, I will get a photo later, it was tight on that side in the garage. It won't be noticeable if it is only on one side, people don't look at both sides of the car at once. I had different hubcaps on a car and just made sure they match on each side and no one ever notices.

    Rob, Thanks for the tip, I need to buy a heat gun instead of using that old hair dryer. I also got a light scuff under the back edge of the first badge I took off, which is why I had to put the warning there, like oh crud, where did that come from?
     
  9. Rob_v1

    Rob_v1 Member

    Clarity Debadged Right.JPG

    Naked Clarity. I like this, but to each their own.
     
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  10. AlanSqB

    AlanSqB Active Member

    Ok, that looks pretty good. I think the hairdryer and floss are coming out this weekend!
     
  11. Viking79

    Viking79 Well-Known Member

    Floss is a great idea, will have to try that next time
     
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  13. Cali65

    Cali65 Member

    Thanx, I just removed both of the front side "Plug In Hybrid" badges..........was so easy and took 5-10 mins. I used a hairdryer + fishing line then cleaned the residue with a couple of alcohol swabs and microfiber towel.

    20181231_160129.jpg 20181231_160143.jpg
     
    Last edited: Dec 31, 2018
    Cash Traylor, VTSAX and Viking79 like this.
  14. Clarity_Newbie

    Clarity_Newbie Active Member

    Viking79

    Thanks...works like a charm. Finally got around to this task.

    I ended up having to use a pry tool on the passenger side and with proper padding...no scrapes or dings...lol. Drivers side came off with floss. The tip about padding the edge as the other side is pulled up was spot on.

    Thumbs up for another helpful DIY thread.
     
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  15. Robert_Alabama

    Robert_Alabama Well-Known Member

    Wondering what the energy savings could be over the life of the vehicle. Got to cut wind resistance a a little...
     
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  16. insightman

    insightman Well-Known Member Subscriber

    More importantly, customization makes it easier to spot which car is yours in a parking lot full of Claritys, saving you the effort of pressing a button on your key fob.
     
  17. Mikep00

    Mikep00 Active Member

    Just remember to keep the badges and glue them back on before you go to sell the vehicle.

    Vehicles missing their standard badging take a significant hit on resale value. Unless it is one of a few niches where people want that vehicle without the standard badges.


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  18. Cali65

    Cali65 Member

    Agreed.....keeping mine in the pouch they give you with the booklet etc.

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  19. 2002

    2002 Well-Known Member

    Even before I bought my Clarity I knew that I would want to remove the Plug-In Hybrid badge from the charge door. Having a badge there makes perfect sense in the dealer showroom to help explain what the second fuel door is for, but I preferred not having it.

    After removing the charge door badge and realizing that it wasn't that hard to do, I decided to remove the badge on the passenger side also. Having completed that one I wasn't sure about the rear plug-in badge but decided that it made the back end sort of busy, especially since the plug-in badge was right above the Touring badge. So I decided the back one goes too. I know some people carry debadging even further but I just removed the plug-in badges.

    Debadged.jpg

    For those who have never debadged and are worried about damaging the car or paint it's quite safe with just a little bit of care. The first post in this thread links to a method with photos, using a fishing knife :eek: to remove it, which worked out okay but they said in hindsight floss was probably safer, which is what I had already planned to use. Also in their method they cut through the adhesive part of the way then pulled the badge the rest of the way off. If done carefully this is probably okay but I didn't want to risk breaking the badge so I just kept cutting until it basically came off by itself.

    I somewhat modified things but basically followed a similar strategy, here is what worked for me:

    Tools:
    Hair dryer
    Dental floss (or fishing line)
    Digital thermometer (optional)
    Wooden shims (or thin piece of plastic, styrofoam, etc)
    Goo-Gone (or similar adhesive remover)
    Rubbing alcohol
    Wax and polish

    Step 1. Use a hair dryer to warm up one end of the badge and soften the adhesive, but don't overdo it. I used a digital thermometer to monitor the temperature, taking regular readings helped me know when I needed to hit it with the hair dryer again. There would be no problem not using a thermometer I just found that it made it easier at least starting out, as I got more familiar with how much heat was needed I didn't use the thermometer anymore.

    Step 2. Using the floss (or fishing line) carefully start "sawing" on one side of the badge in between the badge and the paint. You will quickly learn how much pressure to use, which isn't much. But it is somewhat slow going, probably about ten minutes per badge to saw all the way from one side to the other. I used floss because I didn't have any fishing line handy, it worked fine except it would break fairly often and I had to use a new piece. One thing I learned is to vary which part of the floss is doing the sawing which made it last longer before breaking. Fishing line probably would go faster but floss seemed a little safer (plus my car will have fewer cavities). Below you can see that I went through quite a bit of floss just for one badge.

    20190426_110710.jpg


    Be sure as you are sawing that you are pulling the floss (or fishing line) towards you to minimize pressure on the paint, the pressure should be on the badge.

    As you go along use the hair dryer as needed to keep the glue warm.

    Step 3. When you get a inch or so along it can help to wedge something into the side that you have removed so far, this bends the badge away from the car and makes the sawing go easier. You can use a wooden shim wrapped in cloth or a piece of plastic or styrofoam, basically anything, obviously use something that won't scratch the paint.

    IMPORTANT - do not be tempted to pull the badge off when you are halfway, otherwise you can break it. Breaking the badge wouldn't hurt the car but then you won't have the badge later for resale or trade, which may not be an issue but no need to chance breaking it and later having to purchase a replacement.

    Step 4. As you near the end you can occasionally pull carefully to see if maybe the badge will now easily pull off the rest of the way, it if comes off easily great, if not then continue sawing.

    Step 5. After the badge is removed most of the adhesive will still be on the car.

    20190426_115241.jpg

    20190426_115203.jpg


    I was able to remove the majority of the adhesive by peeling it off and/or rubbing with my thumb. Stubborn pieces I carefully used my fingernail. For what was remaining I used Goo-Gone. Normally you don't want to use chemicals on paint but in this case it's a tradeoff to avoid using a lot of force or abrasion to remove the adhesive.

    Step 6. Clean the area with rubbing alcohol, then polish and wax.

    Before putting the badges away for safe keeping I decided to place them together on the charge door for a photo op

    Resize web.png
     
    KentuckyKen likes this.
  20. KentuckyKen

    KentuckyKen Well-Known Member

    LOL. Y’all are de-badging and I’m adding badges because, well, you’re never too old to play with stickers.
    Also, IMHO, growing old is mandatory, but growing up is optional. (My late wife used to claim she was raising 2 boys, and my son was our only child.)

    Thanks for the excellent instructions. If the novelty wears of, I now know how to safely remove them.
    image.jpg
     
  21. When I was younger it was not uncommon for me to turn a job I could pay $50 for a professional to do into a $150 job for the professional to do the original job and fix what I broke. For those like me, my local body shop charged me $50 to remove the three plug in hybrid badges.
     
  22. Raymondca

    Raymondca Member

    I don't like the plugin badges either. Feels like yelling to the whole neighbourhood. But I'm concerned what if I want it back later after I have removed it. Looking for the right stickers to cover it.
     
  23. NocEdit

    NocEdit Member

    To each his own... I think the plug in badges are what makes it unique. Otherwise it looks like a mash up between and Civic and an Accord with little differentiation.


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