Wide Body Kits - The Evolution of Custom Body Kits
Are you tired of that plain stock appearance of your car and want to add some personality? Do you want your car to have a wider more aggressive look? There are 3 main ways to give your car that custom exterior look, 1) buy improving the exterior styling of your car by adding modification such as lambo doors, reverse hood, flip flop trunk, suicide doors, shaved doors handles, and new wheels and tires; 2) Adding a wide kit; and 3) the combination of 1 and 2. This article explains how a wide body kit will not only give your car that custom look but also improve your cars performance.
Body kits not only change the appearance of a vehicle but they also have a real purpose. Like with most car modifications, wide body car kits were first used in the racing industry and then mimicked by tuners. In order for race car drivers to be competitive they have to deal increase their cars aerodynamics to reduce drag. Aerodynamics is t he movement of air, particularly when it interacts with a moving object. In order to increase speed and fuel consumption the shape of the exterior body needs to be streamlined. One of the main causes of disrupt airflow is that the wheels extend outside of the vehicles body. Tires must not stick outside the body as it will disrupt the aerodynamics of the vehicle and create unwanted drag. Installing wider fenders over the wheels will reduce the negative air flow originating from the tires and increase handling around tight corners at higher speeds as well. With wider fenders now installed the front and rear bumpers must need to be aligned as well in order to streamline the body and complete the wide body kit look.
This main benefit of installing a wide body kit on your car is that your vehicle is more stable and aerodynamic and the ride becomes smoother at higher speed due to reduced turbulence.
What are wide body kits made of?
Complete wide body kits consist of: a front bumper, rear bumper, wide fenders and side skirts. Some kits also include streamlined side mirrors and spoilers. There are 4 types of materials that are typically used and will affect the overall cost of the kit – 1) carbon fibre body kits (most expensive; 2) Plastic body kits (least expensive); 3) Fibreglass and 4) Urethane. The latter 2 are the most common and economical and can be easily repaired when damaged.
The more expensive carbon fibre wide body kits are lighter, durable, stronger, and give more downward force to the car. Plastic body kits are cheaper and will break easily. These are usually knock offs of OEM body kits made using urethane.
Conclusion:
Wide body kits will transform your regular stock car into a head turning monster. Not only will you be the envy of your neighbourhood but you can also enter shows and potentially be sponsored. Just about any vehicle can achieve the wide body kit look. You can get them for many makes and model cars on the market today. You can dress up your everyday driver, enhance your modified sports car, or improve your competition race car.
