Custom Parts Limited.

Unit 1a, White Horse Garage, White Horse Common, North Walsham, NR28 9LL.

All Animal bodykits have been designed using our revolutionary "per-fit" system. This ensures a perfect fit every time on every car. Using our 16 years experience fitting this type of product day-in and day-out, we were able to come up with a fitting system which is easy, quick, and takes into account the inconsistencies that occur between cars.

Many of our competitors are unable to fit their own bumpers to a professional standard because they do not have the experience to understand why they have problems with fit, and how to resolve them – so they simply continue to sell poor quality products that do not fit. Typical problems are – sags around the front of the car, and huge gaps under the headlights and wings, bumpers that are just too wide for the car, fittings that fall out after a couple of months. Because of our great experience with fibreglass bumpers we have been able to design out these types of problems at the outset.

Many such incorrectly fitted items are fitted on the covers and within magazines. This is so prevalent that many people have come to accept such ill fitting kits as normal - it is not, and we will never accept this.

These products may be fitted by a professional bodyshop (please give them these instructions) or by the customer at home. It is not a five minute job to fit these items to a high standard, but even someone with little experience can do an excellent job if they take their time. Do not rush the job. If you have any questions then please feel free to contact us and we will do our best to help you out. Cars and power tools can be dangerous so please be careful – we want you to live to enjoy your car.

Masking Tape

Marker Pen

40 grit sand paper

Sanding block

Jigsaw or fibredisc for trimming fibreglass

Drill

3mm drill bit

Screwdriver

Sockets and Spanners to remove old bumpers

Jack and axle stands (arches/skirts)

Your animal front bumper is supplied with two supports, which are fitted under the headlights to support the weight of the bumper. Before you start the job of fitting the bumper take a moment to carefully look at the old bumper you are removing. Where it joins the car, and around the headlights you will see a huge gap. Depending upon what type of bumper you have to start with this gap may be as much as 1 ½ inches and is likely to be at least ½ inch. White aftermarket indicators rarely fit very well, but note how they fit, and take pictures for reference if required. When you have finished your Animal bumper will have a gap of only a couple of millimeters!!!

The first job is to remove your old bumper. The Fiesta bumper is fixed by some nuts on the left and right, and by two screws into each arch. Remove all of these (the front ones are a little awkward to get to) and the whole bumper should slide off. If you have an SI or XR2i/Turbo bumper then you will also have to remove the electrical wires to the fogs.

Remove the headlights, which are retained by the visible screws from above and clip into position below, and also the indicators.

The Animal bumper will not fit straight on the car. It appears that too much fibreglass has been left on and it jams before it fits. You are required to trim it to fit around the wings and headlights. This is because experience has shown that even from the factory the cars are very different. Once they get a little older then things get far worse, some cars may have been knocked, some have had new wings, and many other factors effect the dimensional stability of the shell.

If you look carefully at the top surface of the bumper then you will see that there is a slight mark in the gel which indicates how much is normally required to be trimmed off. Do not trim directly to this line, or you may well end up with gaps.

The first job is to place masking tape around the wings of the car so that you do not scratch them whilst trying the bumper on, which you will have to do a few times. Using a marker pen and the car itself as a reference draw a line on the bumper, which is well inside the line indicated on the Gelcoat. Remember that it is far easier to cut a little bit more each time than to try and add some on! Cut away the fibreglass you have marked, and try the bumper in position.

Do not be tempted to cut away too much in one go. Keep cutting and then retrying the bumper in position. On each attempt you will find that the bumper goes a little further back into position. The objective is to get a really tight gap around the wings and headlight and to get the bumper to line up with the arc of the arch.

As many as half a dozen attempts may be necessary to get it right. When correctly positioned the bumper will clip around the wing as the old bumper did, and is secured using the old fixing screws. Remove the bumper and fit the front supports, which are handed and fit just under the headlights.

Drill two holes using a 3mm drill bit and screw the support into place using the screws supplied. These only fit one way around and should be fitted so that they support the bumper and ensure a tight fit against the headlight. The bumper should be trimmed away to the inner edge of the support or the headlight will not fit correctly.

It is essential that a full dry fit be done prior to preparing and painting the bumper to ensure that there are no problems fitting it back on. Fit everything back including the headlights, and indicators. Note that the white aftermarket indicators are never a very good fit – you have probably not fitted them wrong.

The rear bumper is fitted in exactly the same way as the front. The top edge that fits against the shell, and under the taillight area is oversize and requires trimming down to an accurate fit. Two angled supports are provided, the main difference being that the rear bumper also fits on the panel near the boot seal. This seal should be removed during the fitting process, and replaced during the dry fit stage.

As per the front and rear bumpers the side skirts are supplied oversize where they intersect with the car. This is considerably less so on the sideskirts since there is far less deviation from spec along the sill area, and the arches are an accurate fit being double sided (no rough inside GRP visible)

Remove your old skirts and arches if you have any along with any fixing brackets. The top of the new skirt sits under the door and so the door should be covered in a couple of layers of masking tape during fitting to ensure that with paint on all will still clear, and also to prevent damage to the door whilst trial fitting the skirts.

The skirts will be fitted by screwing down to the door step under the door, and also by fixing into the sills at each end. The arches are secured by fixing into the return from behind the metal panels onto which they fix. This will necessitate removing the wheels. The car should be put securely on axle stands when working under it.

The skirts and arches much be fitted as one since each relates to the other. Trial fit them using masking tape to hold everything roughly into position, and then follow this by drilling one or two holes just to hold it more securely, whilst you make final adjustments to the alignment. Once happy drill all the fixing holes and carry out a full dry fit.

The arches/skirts may be painted off the car, and then fitted using sikaflex as an adhesive/sealer. Please note that this can only be done if you are very accurate with your fixing and trimming.

The other alternative, which we tend to favour at Autofashion, is to bond on the arches and skirts using Fibreglass Bonding Paste (which we can supply) and then blending out the arches/skirts with a minute amount of filler. This not only looks better, but also offers better waterproofing.

1. To bond the arches/skirts you must first fit them as above, and then correctly prepare them. This involves sanding the inside of the fibreglass which contacts the car using a very course sandpaper (around 40 grit) and sanding the car back to bare metal. Then each component is fitted one at a time, with bonding paste spread all over the joint, and the fixings are done up this will squeeze out and should be remove whilst wet. When all 6 items are fitted the joints should be sanded, and then each can be blended using normal car body filler – you should ideally need no more than about the size of a fifty pence piece for each arch, and about 3 time this much for each skirt.
2. To fit them with sikaflex you must dry fit as above, and then you have two options. Firstly remove them and paint them before refitting once dry, or secondly fit them and paint them on the car. In either case sikaflex should be spread on the fibreglass in a bead just as you do up the fixings. Any excess should be removed with a clean cloth immediately. NOTE:-You must on no occasion fill over sikaflex or any other flexible sealer/adhesive because it will definitely crack. It may take a few days or even a few weeks but it will crack and spoil your paintwork.

The rear spoiler is very simple to fit. Firstly remove any old spoilers that may be at the top of the tailgate.

The Animal spoiler can only go in one position. With the help of an assistant position the spoiler and then open the tailgate. Drill 6 holes through the tailgate and into the spoiler from inside the tailgate and then screw them up using the fixings provided. As per the arches/skirts the spoiler may be fitted using either sikaflex or bonding paste. The same provisions and preparation procedures are required.

The blade is completely separate. Once the spoiler has been fitted, position the blade and drill the fixings through the upright legs and into the end of the blade. Each end requires two fixings. If you want the blade removable, then countersink the fixings, and paint. If not then the blade may be bonded on as per the arches, but you should ask your paintsprayer before doing this as it makes the spoiler far harder to paint.

The secret of successful painting of fibreglass is adhesion. This means sanding. All of our products are supplied in black gel as standard and normally with a glossy or satin finish. On the face of it this is a waste since the first thing you have to do once fitted is to sanding thus destroying the glossy surface finish!!

This is the whole point. The product should be sanded for bonding using a 40 grit dry paper. For painting all products should be sanded using a 240 grit. Sand the product until all the gloss has gone and you are left with a matt grey finish. Clean the product down and deal with any remaining glossy sections. These are likely to be left in corners and inside vents.

Be warned if you leave any glossy sections then the paint will not stick and is very likely to peel later. Equally you can not prepare the surface using a scotch pad or the paint is also likely to peel.

If these products are to be painted using old style cellulose paints which are now very rare then you will require a self etch primer prior to your normal primer to help adhesion. If it is to be painted using modern 2 pack paints then plasticiser and adhesion promoters are not required, provided you use a 2 pack primer suitable for use on fibreglass, and provided that it is sanded very thoroughly. Paint only peels from fibreglass if it has not been correctly sanded or cleaned!!!

Most fibreglass companies state that you can not oven bake fibreglass. This is wrong. You can oven bake but you have to be very very careful. The panels must be baked prior to sanding, and must be baked for only a short period (30 minutes) at a low temperature (30 degrees C). If you are unsure then we suggest you air dry. If you need further advice then please call.

Nothing is more important than your health and safety. If you are unable to fit this product or do not have the relevant safety equipment then you should get it fitted by a professional. Whilst sanding fibreglass always wear a suitable mask. When carrying out any drilling or cutting operations also wear eye protection. Never work under an unsupported car. If in doubt leave it to a professional.

If you experience any problem or require clarification of these instructions then please feel free to contact us by telephone or Email as above. We will be only too happy to help, although please understand that bodyshop staff may well be in the middle of fitting products themselves, and you may have to call back.

We wish you well and are always pleased to see photos of your finished project, which may be included in our up and coming customer galleries on the website.