As most of the forum members know I am not one for making modifications to my 2009 Jaguar XKR Portfolio Edition Convertible. It is one beautiful luxury automobile built as is. HOWEVER, over the past several weeks there has been talk about engine covers for the XK/XKR/XKR-S models. Most of talk was reference Carbon Fiber. While these carbon fiber engine covers look awesome, I could not consider spending the $3000 to $3300 which seems to be the present cost for these covers. I consider the carbon fiber covers to be a cosmetic enhancement only. They do look cool.


I was also quite interested in learning about a topic which was briefly mentioned on the forum, which was Hydrographic Coatings. So after spending quite a bit of time researching (which I love to do) I felt educated about this process. I then searched via quotes with many different Hydrographic Coating shops for prices to experiment coating my 4.2L engine cover in a Carbon Fiber pattern. I ultimately choose a Silver Carbon Fiber pattern, compared pricing to competitive shops and ultimately sent the engine cover out 3 weeks ago. Today, I received the engine cover back from the shop which is located very near the Road Atlanta Road Race course, in a smaller town close to Braselton, Ga.


The end result was awesome. Before sending the cover I spoke directly with the company to make sure they were whom I wanted to work with.


I have posted photos of the final result. You can compare a real carbon fiber cover to my Hydrographic Coating cover. The major comparison is pricing.....$3000 vs. $180.


Keep in mind that these Hydrographic Coating shops have numerous patterns to choose from. I went Silver Carbon Fiber as my XKR is painted in Shadow Gray which was a special edition color strictly for the 2009 Portfolio Edition.


The cover was thoroughly cleaned by myself before shipping, to remove any oil based or silicone based contaminants. Once the shop received the cover it was sprayed with a "black" base coat, then dipped into the hydrographics water transfer vat. Then dried, and then clear coated to a satin finish.


The results were awesome and shown below. If anyone wishes to know the vendor, please send me a PM and I will advise who I used. I am sold on this process of Hydrographic Coatings and after these results fully endorse the technology, but don't want to endorse any one shop or vendor.


While some may feel this process is "cheap" and does not look good, I will disagree with that thought.


Here is the results. These are just photos and the in person visual results are quite impressive.


Let me know what you think.

 

Rich - looks great!! They did a nice job!

 

That looks great.

 

Rich,
It looks geat, is it a painted pattern or do they adhear material to the cover. It looks way to detailed to be painted. I only had my cover off for a minute but I thought there was a type of foam or cloth on the bottom side of the cover. Thanks again I didn't think about doing something like that. I did love the looks of the engine without the cover but after reading your comments won't drive without one. In your research did you see any in a clear plexiglas which might be hard to keep clean.
Jim

 

Jim:

The underside is taped off (foam and heatshield) then the cover is base coat painted, then dipped in a vat of water that has a transfer sheet of printed pattern that adheres to whatever surface it is applied to. The transfer sheet floats on top of the water vat, and is sprayed with an activator chemical. Then the item is dipped into the pattern that has been activated, and the paattern is released and adheres to the item. Then it is carefully rinsed, dried and sprayed with an automotive quality clear coat.

If you have ever seen a camouflaged gun or rifle, it's the same process.

I strongly believe that many custom paint applications will be replaced with this new technology. I am trying to find ways to invest via common stock in this industry. It's kind of like the new rage/technology called 3D printing.

Now, I will apply the Pinnacle Paint Coating to the finish so it will repel any dust and dirt buildup. It should be very easy to keep clean.

And not being biased because it's my cover, man it looks awesome. If you think the photos look great, you should see this baby in person with human eyes.

 

I am sold, I have at least 4 weeks till I can expect the ice snow and salt are gone. It's a perfect time to do it. And for $180 its a deal. You have my email I would like the same place you used, they know what they are doing.
Thanks
Jim

 

Richard, that looks absolutely awesome. Do you think it would be possible to chrome fill the "Supercharged" lettering? That would look amazing.

 

Want!

Nicely done!

 

+1

 

Richard,

I think it looks great! You mentioned that the hydrographic products come in different patterns and colors. Why did you decide on that particular pattern, and what other patterns did they have available? Do you know if they have a pattern that matches or is close to what Jaguar uses for their genuine CF parts on the 2014 XKR-S GT? Here's a photo of that rear wing:



Stuart

.

 

Looks absolutely awesome!!

 

Questions to answer....

Do you think it would be possible to chrome fill the "Supercharged" lettering?


Syd: I agree on the chrome. I don't know how it could be done. I expected the word supercharged to also be printed, but when it came back black, I was very pleased.

You mentioned that the hydrographic products come in different patterns and colors. Why did you decide on that particular pattern, and what other patterns did they have available? Do you know if they have a pattern that matches or is close to what Jaguar uses for their genuine CF parts on the 2014 XKR-S GT?

Stuart: I choose the pattern from what was offered on the vendors website. They have a section that shows automotive work completed. I liked what I saw.

There are various patterns available to choose from on the website.

I am sure you could call the company and submit your photo to see if they have the pattern to match the photo.

I have sent you information via email

 

Sent you a PM...

Any thoughts on how the heat from the engine will affect the coating?

 

+1 that looks amazing.


There are a few members in the x100 section who have done parts in the engine bay, including the cam covers, and had no issues with the heat.

 

Questions to be answered......

Any thoughts on how the heat from the engine will affect the coating?

I inquired about the same question. The engine cover has a foam inner lining then between the foam and the plastic cover there is an additional heatshield lining. I was told the hydrographic coating will withstand 450 degrees of heat.

I posted some remarks about the heat transfer of removing the engine cover and running the engine without the cover which I suggested was not a good idea, and I got beaten up over my comments.

I am considering adding an additional lining of heatshield to protect the cover even more as any car engine displaces a large amount of heat.

I am not sure if it is necessary, but I have some heatshield material left over from my formula race cars that I can use.

Hope this helps answer your question.

 

+1 , looks great IMO

 

Rich, Wow that is really classy and nice looking. I have always wanted to upgrade the look of certain engine bay plastic covers but thought the options were a little pricey. I'll PM you about this group since they're fairly close to Asheville and I make occasional trips to Atlanta which takes me past Braselton on I-85. Thank you for your effort!

 

This is from the liquid carbon shop near me.

 

Patterns available: LINK

Carbon Fiber

I have a guitar I'd love to have finished using this process.

 

Syd:

I think a guitar would be a good candidate if it can handle the water, which I am not sure. The guitar would have to be submerged in a tank/vat of water.

There are lots of patterns and lots of companies/shops that are doing this process. I am sold on the technology. I think it's awesome.