I want to add some more carbon fiber touches and there are a few vendors offering them - DB Carbon, MA Carbon, Bumper Plugs (whose I assume are made by a vendor) and others. MA Carbon & Bumper Plugs requires a core charge on most parts so they must be some type of overlay as opposed to pure carbon fiber. Does anybody have any information on the various qualities of these vendors and whether they are pure or overlay.

 

MA Carbon is top notch in terms of carbon fiber construction quality. Their parts are overlays over factory pieces so the fit and finish will be just like your stock part. This is ideal as it makes installation and fit much more uniform and you do not risk cracking a fiberglass base like you do on some other trim parts. We have seen the MA Carbon pieces hold up better than the OEM CF trim which tends to cloud or discolor over time. I am sure you will find other members vouching for the level of quality and attention to detail put into the MA Carbon pieces. We were thoroughly impressed with their strict adherence to perfection in terms of construction, fit, finish and looks.

 

I wonder how they 'overlay' the cf, wouldn't that make the product slightly larger than the original size?

 

Most of the highend carbon fiber trims are overlay base on OEM parts. Even the factory Porsche CF trims are use the same method of making. All the name mentions above has very good quality in terms on fit and finished. OEM CF trims will be color fade and crack from times. Most aftermarket companies use different resin and gel coat to for UV protection. Some cover can be made out of full carbon, but most Porsche interior part tend to have complicate mounting bracket which overlay it a better solution for perfect fitment.

ROTtec also carry full line up of carbon fiber interior trims which are overlay on OEM parts and not require core exchange. We're working on website and should have all info up in 2 weeks. We offer twill, plain weave match 996 and 997 OEM CF trims. You can also choice from silver carbon or dry carbon finished. Please PM me if you have question or need a price quota.

 

My thoughts exactly. If it is so thin as to add next to nothing to the thickness of the piece, then wouldn't it be very susceptible to splitting, cracking or being scratched through to the original surface.

 

Part of the process in overlaying the carbon on to the OEM trim is sanding down the original trim so it is not larger than the factory part. This provides enough room to lay down the CF and resin on the OEM trim so it sits like the factory part when installed. It's a matter of mm but is a necessary step to prevent it from protruding.