icarbon vs. BMW Performance grill

gavolant · 08-02-2010, 07:23 PM

Just wondering what you all think. Is the icarbon worth the price? For those of you that did go with icarbon, how easy was it to install the grill in the CF shell?

Yvette · 08-03-2010, 05:33 PM

2 different kinds product.
iCarbon offers cf grill
BMW offers glossy black grill
fitment and installation should be about same.

gavolant · 08-03-2010, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by e90sexion

2 different kinds product.
iCarbon offers cf grill
BMW offers glossy black grill
fitment and installation should be about same.

Kind of..

The Icarbon is actually just the outside bezel, you supply your own grill ( the vertical pieces)

mdg001 · 08-03-2010, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gavolant

Kind of..

The Icarbon is actually just the outside bezel, you supply your own grill ( the vertical pieces)

Are you sure about this??

I just ordered a set and my vertical pieces are chrome. It's gonna look like crap

I will email then and confirm.

IZAGLO · 08-03-2010, 08:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mdegrasse

Are you sure about this??

I just ordered a set and my vertical pieces are chrome. It's gonna look like crap

I will email then and confirm.

YES...is will look worse than crap with chrome inserts if thats the case,,
I am concerned as well, and did e-mail Andy a hour or so ago too...in the same boat as my grills are chrome...I studied the picture they show on there web site and it looked like a complete piece withBLACK inserts.....it should be for the price...if it comes as just a ring i will have to send it back...but i am hoping for the best!!

P

gavolant · 08-04-2010, 07:17 AM

95% sure haha. let me know guys

IZAGLO · 08-04-2010, 07:45 PM

my Grills are due to arrive tomorrow...will see....did talk to Chris over at iCarbon this morning and told him about this thread and our "possible" issues with the black inserts... I did e-mail this question lastr night but no response, although Andy did answer a different e-mail i sent him...by now he may be tired of my questions

.i told Chris the reason i ordered the CF Grills was to do away with the chrome as well as keeping the DRY CF theme of my car consistant,,...his first reaction was he felt the BLACK grill were included in the Grill set and we agreed they should be..but he was about 95% sure this was the case so he was gonna double check with the shop and get back to me..i just told him there was NO need to get back to me as long as the black grills were included as there product description showed on there ishop web page.. I did NOT hear back from him so....I am not to concerned one way or another...if by chance the black inserts are not with the kit than i will have iCarbon send me inserts at no charge, or i will send the rings back for a refund....It would be very bizarre to sell a CF Kidney Grill set without the inserts especially at the price.. And having correspondence with Andy quite a few times i am SURE he will make any of his products right if there was a mistake or if a product goes out and the fit is funky...

madostrich · 08-04-2010, 11:04 PM

i paid 80 bucks for my performance grill and I love it on my JB car.

Eric@e2design · 08-05-2010, 12:39 AM

you can always just paint your grill *shrug*

IZAGLO · 08-05-2010, 05:03 PM

hot -diggity-dawgs...the iCarbon Kidney Grills and LP Holders came today..
NO Black inserts for the Kidney Grills.....What the Shit!!! I really should not have to paint the OEM Chrome Grills Matte Black as i was hoping to have them for part out time if it ever came to that and re-install them,... but i may do it....I no iCarbon is a cool company and i like Andy, but IMO they screwed up on this ....and SHOULD of advertised this product as Kidney RINGS.....and under there product description should of noted that " the OEM inserts need to be installed behind the Rings for proper look... and may need to be painted "Inserts NOT included in the kit " even ,would of been enough. So do i go down to get some matte black paint or return these???? I put one up to the car and it fit exactly in place and looked way cooler than the stockers...and even sexy...but i don't no...There is one other issue which i am not sure is normal or not..as there may be some minor variations in CF color and finish techniques as the DRY iCarbon Diffuser does not match the new DRY Grill Rings and LP Holders....close but the KR and LP are not as contrasty as the diffuser and the dark black is not as black as in the LP and KR as well...They look good but not a match.....I do not no if there is a difference from batch to batch and i no DRY CF is more labor intensive...but should they match perfectly or is a shade lighter exceptable as these are only minor mods....I was also thinking DRY iCarbon OEM style CF Hood that they may make....what if that's another shade DOH !!! I need a Beer

3 hours later...
anyway just got back from Home Depot and bought a can of Matte Black paint...gonna paint the inserts tomorrow and install the Kidney Rings with my custom painted inserts LOL....No biggie to me on this..The Dry CF Rings look so hot i can't wait to get them on...so a decision has been made and now i can sleep good!!...I did send a letter to iCarbon giving them my feeling on this ...but however it plays out , it plays out i am done worrying and haggling about it. There CF speaks for itself and looks good on my car, and that's the bottom line....if iCarbon gets back to me soon to discuss any of this will determine if i buy again..

fatjoez · 08-06-2010, 05:35 AM

icarbon guys are friendly and always helpful, if there's one seller on this forum i'd recommend it'd be them.

considering getting black grills myself, but want the glossy black ones
tryina figure out where to buy from

IZAGLO · 08-06-2010, 03:25 PM

Well......I took the OEM Chrome Kidney Grills out a few hours ago and primed the inserts and painted them matte black and installed the iCarbon DRY Kidney Rings with the matte black stock inserts....All i can say is that it LOOKS AMAZING and has transformed the front of my car as much as the Dry Diffuser has to the rear...I could not be happier. Also the matte black inserts match the bottom grill where the intercooler is and looks perfect in color... I would ONLY go gloss balck if i was using WET CF...If you go gloss with all black gloss kidney grills they will be darker than the intercooler trim.. and IMO look out of balance ...The DRY LP HOlders and the Kidney Rings is still a tad lighter than the diffuser but IMO very acceptable and as the DRY Kidney Rings are in the front you would never no the difference. I am very very happy right now...
I did talk to Chris today from iCarbon and all is good. They are changing there product description on the web site and will be now calling it Kidney Rings. And honestly it was not a big deal to prime and paint the OEM inserts as the front of the inserts were chrome and the sides were already matte black. For anyone changing there Kidney Grills i would not hesitate to buy iCarbons product, it has made my 135i so so so so much better its amazing. I will be taking a minor photo shoot soon and posting up....I already have confirmed with iCarbon that the next CF will be a DRY OEM style hood without the vents and dome if it happens...which i am being told there is a GOOD chance it will.

as a final note...i have compared the competitions CF Kidney Grills to iCarbons....and lets just say you get what you pay for...iCArbons Dry Goods are amazing!!

sdpauly · 08-06-2010, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gavolant

Just wondering what you all think. Is the icarbon worth the price? For those of you that did go with icarbon, how easy was it to install the grill in the CF shell?

oops, I thought this was in regards to the diffuser, not grilles. disregard.

IZAGLO · 08-06-2010, 08:21 PM

You will be very happy with the results^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ for the Diffuser LOL
interestingly enough, if i was doing it again and not going Dry CF i would of just painted the OEM Kidney Grills matte black and called it a day....i did this today as well and they look nice....actually anyone can do this in there favorite color for a couple of cans of paint!! The hardest part of the job was finding a T-30 screwdriver to get the screws out LOL!!!

mdg001 · 08-07-2010, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IZAGLO

3 hours later...
anyway just got back from Home Depot and bought a can of Matte Black paint...gonna paint the inserts tomorrow and install the Kidney Rings with my custom painted inserts LOL....No biggie to me on this..The Dry CF Rings look so hot i can't wait to get them on...so a decision has been made and now i can sleep good!!...I did send a letter to iCarbon giving them my feeling on this ...but however it plays out , it plays out i am done worrying and haggling about it. There CF speaks for itself and looks good on my car, and that's the bottom line....if iCarbon gets back to me soon to discuss any of this will determine if i buy again..

Well... I haven't heard from icarbon yet... And I really did not want to paint my inserts....

I have wet cf, what paint did u use to prime and what type for the actual. Paint? I have no experience in painting plastic...

I have chrome wheels , I might try the chrome inserts first. If that dosent work il try to buy black inserts alone if that is possible. As last resort, il paint them but it sucks, I was expecting full grills replacements...

View Poll Results: icarbon or BMW Performance Grills
icarbon	9	34.62%
BMW	17	65.38%
Voters: 26. You may not vote on this poll

08-02-2010, 07:23 PM	#1
gavolant Second Lieutenant 20 Rep 212 Posts Drives: 2011 AW 135i M-Sport Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Falls Church, VA iTrader: (0)	icarbon vs. BMW Performance grill Just wondering what you all think. Is the icarbon worth the price? For those of you that did go with icarbon, how easy was it to install the grill in the CF shell? Last edited by gavolant; 08-02-2010 at 07:36 PM.. Reason: typo
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08-03-2010, 05:33 PM	#2
Yvette Major General 761 Rep 7,408 Posts Drives: M Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Vancouver iTrader: (19)	2 different kinds product. iCarbon offers cf grill BMW offers glossy black grill fitment and installation should be about same.
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08-04-2010, 07:17 AM	#6
gavolant Second Lieutenant 20 Rep 212 Posts Drives: 2011 AW 135i M-Sport Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Falls Church, VA iTrader: (0)	95% sure haha. let me know guys
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08-04-2010, 07:45 PM	#7
IZAGLO Mbira 30 Rep 1,011 Posts Drives: Sedonna Red 09 135i SOLD Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Garage cleaning Brake Dust iTrader: (3)	my Grills are due to arrive tomorrow...will see....did talk to Chris over at iCarbon this morning and told him about this thread and our "possible" issues with the black inserts... I did e-mail this question lastr night but no response, although Andy did answer a different e-mail i sent him...by now he may be tired of my questions .i told Chris the reason i ordered the CF Grills was to do away with the chrome as well as keeping the DRY CF theme of my car consistant,,...his first reaction was he felt the BLACK grill were included in the Grill set and we agreed they should be..but he was about 95% sure this was the case so he was gonna double check with the shop and get back to me..i just told him there was NO need to get back to me as long as the black grills were included as there product description showed on there ishop web page.. I did NOT hear back from him so....I am not to concerned one way or another...if by chance the black inserts are not with the kit than i will have iCarbon send me inserts at no charge, or i will send the rings back for a refund....It would be very bizarre to sell a CF Kidney Grill set without the inserts especially at the price.. And having correspondence with Andy quite a few times i am SURE he will make any of his products right if there was a mistake or if a product goes out and the fit is funky...
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08-04-2010, 11:04 PM	#8
madostrich Second Lieutenant 13 Rep 218 Posts Drives: '10 135i Black/Red M-Sport Join Date: May 2010 Location: SoCA iTrader: (0)	i paid 80 bucks for my performance grill and I love it on my JB car.
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08-05-2010, 12:39 AM	#9
Eric@e2design 7 Rep 169 Posts Drives: Supercharged E46 M3 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Santa Ana, CA iTrader: (1)	you can always just paint your grill shrug
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08-05-2010, 05:03 PM	#10
IZAGLO Mbira 30 Rep 1,011 Posts Drives: Sedonna Red 09 135i SOLD Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Garage cleaning Brake Dust iTrader: (3)	hot -diggity-dawgs...the iCarbon Kidney Grills and LP Holders came today.. NO Black inserts for the Kidney Grills.....What the Shit!!! I really should not have to paint the OEM Chrome Grills Matte Black as i was hoping to have them for part out time if it ever came to that and re-install them,... but i may do it....I no iCarbon is a cool company and i like Andy, but IMO they screwed up on this ....and SHOULD of advertised this product as Kidney RINGS.....and under there product description should of noted that " the OEM inserts need to be installed behind the Rings for proper look... and may need to be painted "Inserts NOT included in the kit " even ,would of been enough. So do i go down to get some matte black paint or return these???? I put one up to the car and it fit exactly in place and looked way cooler than the stockers...and even sexy...but i don't no...There is one other issue which i am not sure is normal or not..as there may be some minor variations in CF color and finish techniques as the DRY iCarbon Diffuser does not match the new DRY Grill Rings and LP Holders....close but the KR and LP are not as contrasty as the diffuser and the dark black is not as black as in the LP and KR as well...They look good but not a match.....I do not no if there is a difference from batch to batch and i no DRY CF is more labor intensive...but should they match perfectly or is a shade lighter exceptable as these are only minor mods....I was also thinking DRY iCarbon OEM style CF Hood that they may make....what if that's another shade DOH !!! I need a Beer 3 hours later... anyway just got back from Home Depot and bought a can of Matte Black paint...gonna paint the inserts tomorrow and install the Kidney Rings with my custom painted inserts LOL....No biggie to me on this..The Dry CF Rings look so hot i can't wait to get them on...so a decision has been made and now i can sleep good!!...I did send a letter to iCarbon giving them my feeling on this ...but however it plays out , it plays out i am done worrying and haggling about it. There CF speaks for itself and looks good on my car, and that's the bottom line....if iCarbon gets back to me soon to discuss any of this will determine if i buy again.. Last edited by IZAGLO; 08-05-2010 at 09:44 PM..
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08-06-2010, 05:35 AM	#11
fatjoez student 226 Rep 911 Posts Drives: e90 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bermuda Triangle iTrader: (0)	icarbon guys are friendly and always helpful, if there's one seller on this forum i'd recommend it'd be them. considering getting black grills myself, but want the glossy black ones tryina figure out where to buy from
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08-06-2010, 03:25 PM	#12
IZAGLO Mbira 30 Rep 1,011 Posts Drives: Sedonna Red 09 135i SOLD Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Garage cleaning Brake Dust iTrader: (3)	Well......I took the OEM Chrome Kidney Grills out a few hours ago and primed the inserts and painted them matte black and installed the iCarbon DRY Kidney Rings with the matte black stock inserts....All i can say is that it LOOKS AMAZING and has transformed the front of my car as much as the Dry Diffuser has to the rear...I could not be happier. Also the matte black inserts match the bottom grill where the intercooler is and looks perfect in color... I would ONLY go gloss balck if i was using WET CF...If you go gloss with all black gloss kidney grills they will be darker than the intercooler trim.. and IMO look out of balance ...The DRY LP HOlders and the Kidney Rings is still a tad lighter than the diffuser but IMO very acceptable and as the DRY Kidney Rings are in the front you would never no the difference. I am very very happy right now... I did talk to Chris today from iCarbon and all is good. They are changing there product description on the web site and will be now calling it Kidney Rings. And honestly it was not a big deal to prime and paint the OEM inserts as the front of the inserts were chrome and the sides were already matte black. For anyone changing there Kidney Grills i would not hesitate to buy iCarbons product, it has made my 135i so so so so much better its amazing. I will be taking a minor photo shoot soon and posting up....I already have confirmed with iCarbon that the next CF will be a DRY OEM style hood without the vents and dome if it happens...which i am being told there is a GOOD chance it will. as a final note...i have compared the competitions CF Kidney Grills to iCarbons....and lets just say you get what you pay for...iCArbons Dry Goods are amazing!! Last edited by IZAGLO; 08-06-2010 at 08:11 PM..
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08-06-2010, 08:21 PM	#14
IZAGLO Mbira 30 Rep 1,011 Posts Drives: Sedonna Red 09 135i SOLD Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Garage cleaning Brake Dust iTrader: (3)	You will be very happy with the results^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ for the Diffuser LOL interestingly enough, if i was doing it again and not going Dry CF i would of just painted the OEM Kidney Grills matte black and called it a day....i did this today as well and they look nice....actually anyone can do this in there favorite color for a couple of cans of paint!! The hardest part of the job was finding a T-30 screwdriver to get the screws out LOL!!! Last edited by IZAGLO; 08-06-2010 at 08:39 PM..
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