Collected my new twinair 500 lounge in white. LOVE it! Great fun to drive and now constantly fighting the wife over who should have it!

Anyway made a slight mistake when I bought it. It was in the showroom pre-registered so got a good deal, however later on the road saw another 500 with black side rubbing strips and realised that I should have perhaps ordered a new car with these fitted.

Dealer wants £300 to supply and fit new rubbing strips in matching colour of my 500. I am not bothered about the colour as black looks a nice contrast against the white of the car.

I bought a set of rubbing strips from Automotiva, ( £40 ) they state on their website that these are manufactured by Fiat. Quality seems nice and the rear strip has a 500 style badge which looks genuine.

Anyway my dear Fiat loving friends, point of this post is to ask all you your knowledge/tips/advice regarding these rubbing strips and the process of fitting them.

Watched a few videos on youtube re; fitting etc and it looks straight forward plus fitting instructions easy to follow and well written.

Anything I should be aware of before I do the job? Any pitfalls to look out for?

Any help, comments or advice will be (as always) gratefully received!!

:worship:

If you got the rubbing strips for 40 quid, you got a bargain. I'm assuming here they are the same as the ones in the following link?:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-F...689?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item234a64d1f1

frupi said:

If you got the rubbing strips for 40 quid, you got a bargain. I'm assuming here they are the same as the ones in the following link?:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-F...689?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item234a64d1f1

Click to expand...

Yes from the picture it would appear to be the same strips. Funnily enough the strips from Automotiva were on sale and were £36 + £4 postage.

Tbh black running strips don't look the best on the 500 in my opinion. I'd have gone for the dealer supplied ones.

No over keen on black rubbing strips on white car myself.
If there is no adhesive backing on the strips you can get the adhesive from the dealer. BMW do a specific adhesive for sticking spoilers etc. it looks exactly like windscreen bonding adhesive to me.
BEWARE! It's really easy to get in a mess with that stuff. If you use too much it will squidge (technical term lol) out around the edges. It's also very black and can stain white paintwork if not removed quickly.
Also be careful to position the strips correctly.. There is not much of a visual reference line to follow.
Honestly, I wouldn't bother, we have a lounge with them and a Twinair without them. Personally I prefer without. One mans pleasure is another mans poison I guess

Received rubbing strips and "Fiat" badges but they certainly didn't appear to be the genuine article as claimed in the advert. Sent them back.

Have now found a Fiat dealer who has fitted rubbing strips to numerous 500's in the past and quoted as follows.

Genuine Fiat rubbing strips £70
2x chrome 500 badges at £25 each = £50
Spray strips to match colour of car and fit same £70

Total cost £190.00 including VAT.

As the wife points out, to spend 12 grand on a new car and mess about yourself to save a hundred quid is stupid, so get it done properly!

highlander52 said:

Received rubbing strips and "Fiat" badges but they certainly didn't appear to be the genuine article as claimed in the advert. Sent them back.

Have now found a Fiat dealer who has fitted rubbing strips to numerous 500's in the past and quoted as follows.

Genuine Fiat rubbing strips £70
2x chrome 500 badges at £25 each = £50
Spray strips to match colour of car and fit same £70

Total cost £190.00 including VAT.

As the wife points out, to spend 12 grand on a new car and mess about yourself to save a hundred quid is stupid, so get it done properly!

Click to expand...

What you've stated seems fair, though I'd have been a little cheeky and asked them to price match on the parts because judging by the fact you can buy the parts yourself inclusive of postage from Fiat dealers on the famous auction site, they could quite possibly do you a better deal:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-F...788?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3f1dcaecbc

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-F...048?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item35c0ba1830

http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/710-5...689?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item234a64d1f1