My underbody kit had an accident...need help!

[JHuck]

Ok, so nothing major happened. Just a little breaky breaky of one of the underbody tubes. I was driving down a dark street and saw nothing in the road. I just felt a huge thud under my left foot. I saw what looked to be a pop can or something in the rear view mirror, so I pulled over, took out my tiny flashlight and checked the wheelwell. There was nothing. Then I looked at my underbody tube. Broken

The Damage Done (http://www3.sympatico.ca/phuculak/DSC01212.JPG)

I duct taped the hole up for the night, and now I plan to take the whole kit off for the winter so I can fix it. Problem is, I don't know how to fix it. Anybody have any ideas?

[GrandAm95]

replace it, that is the only way i know of and have done alot

[DowmaceWH99]

yep tube replacement, give streetglow a call and get a replacement,

[JHuck]

I thought there may be an easier way. I mean it's led. Nothing's broken except for the tubing.
Besides, it takes me forever to get ahold of anyone at liteglow, and I figured there might be a cheaper alternative to buying a whole new piece and shipping it to the middle of nowhere.

[DowmaceWH99]

liteglow? I'm not trying to diss you or anything but liteglow is poop, I suggest you go to www.oznium.com and pickup a complete new kit

[wokeupscreamin]

yeah bro.. im sure she's gonna ditch her whole underglow kit just because you dont like that brand... LOL Anyhow.... If its just cracked... super glue it back together. If there are pieces missing.. just find some clear plastic and cut it to size then glue it in place. If Its under your car and if the LED's still work .... who cares what the tubes look like.

[tenspeed]

You might be able to find a clear plastic tube, slit it and slip it over the break. Some clear RTV to seal the edges. Check out the home centers.

If you can't find clear tube, get some plexiglass. Heat it in a oven (try150*) and bend it over a piece of pipe to form a half circle.

Maybe easier, clear packing tape to hold it together.

[wokeupscreamin]

clear packing tape. I like that. <Blank> rigging at its finest! That will deffinantly work. Go with it.

[nice96gt]

Yeah, the clear packaging tape does wonders. I would go with that. Unless you happen to find something better.

[JHuck]

Yeah, i'm missing a chunk of the plastic on the bottom. I'm probably going to try finding a clear plastic tube.

I think i'm going to spend a few hours taking the whole kit off this weekend and attempting to fix it. If it just gets worse, then i guess i'll have to order a new one.

[WhiPontiac]

Does it still work?

[Pte Socks]

its LED so it should still work, if its neon, it might not. I have 1 large spider crack in my rear one and im making some covers for it before it gets REALLY cold. I could maybe give you some ideas on how to cover them up for the winter months. Basically im just mounting plexi-glass shelves around them that I took from my work. HOpefully it gives you some ideas.

[JHuck]

You're lucky! Just a spider crack! Here's what happened to mine (http://www3.sympatico.ca/phuculak/underbody/)

Anyway, I took the whole kit off so I can figure out a way to fix it before next year. Everyone's saying clear packing tape and then find a clear plastic tubing and cover it, so I might just do that with them all to be extra safe next time i've got them on.

And yes, all the led's still work.

[tenspeed]

There is another cheap fix if it's the right type of plastic.

Hobby stores sell a chemical to glue plastic model together. The chemical is applied to the crack and is sucked into the void, melts the plastic and then evaporates to leave a welded joint. The jar I have is called ProWeld, it's also caled MicroWeld. It's a clear liquid like water and comes in a bottle with a small brush on the cap.
After the parts are stuck together, the packing tape can cover any voids and keep dirt out of the tube.

[Dexman1349]

Another idea...

try going to a clear-bra dealer and ask if they have any left overs they would be willing to get rid of. I know there is a 1"- 2" clear-bra material that comes with adhesive on one side. It's a lot thicker than packing tape and is more durable. You could cover all your tubes with it to prevent any future cracking. I used it to cover my headlights (living in Colorado has it's graveled roads in the winter).

[JHuck]

Originally posted by Dexman1349
Another idea...

try going to a clear-bra dealer and ask if they have any left overs they would be willing to get rid of.

I've never heard of clear-bra. What is it?

[Dexman1349]

Clear bra functions like those black strap on bras (le Bra, carcover) except that its a clear polymer that glues directly to the car. It's like an extra thick layer of clear coat typically used for the front end of the car to protect against paint chipping. It's clear so all you see the the color of the car. The other benefit of it is that since it's "glued" to the car, you don't have to worry about cleaning under it like the black vinyl covers. They're very popular here in Colorado, especially on higher-end cars like Porsche and Mercedes ( I apologize for using those names on this board).

[Pte Socks]

Hehe omg girl, what did you hit? I used to have a tube like that, but thats because they put a jack right on it and then lifted my car to change the tires! Yea, you might want to ge that replaced. If your wondering, I found out that many places that install neons, have many extra tubes lying around that you can usually buy off them for a half decent price. If youd like, you could go and check to see if any have a spare one kicking around you can buy. As for your tube, its completely busted and would be hard to repair. Do you always take your underbodies off during the winter though? To me, that seems like a lot of work, you shoudl try to find some ways of just covering them to protect them, it would save you a lot of hassle.

Oh, Dexman, Is it like the 3M tape they put on hoods and front bumeprs to protect them from rocks?

[JHuck]

Originally posted by Neo-Blue99GASE
If youd like, you could go and check to see if any have a spare one kicking around you can buy. As for your tube, its completely busted and would be hard to repair. Do you always take your underbodies off during the winter though?

What I hit? Good question. It was busy on the street and it looked like a pop can in my rear view mirror, but who knows, coulda been a small bomb for the damage it caused that tube lol
I would definitely appreciate it if you checked to see if you had a spare tube. We're talking plastic right?
As for taking the kit off, I've only had it since april, so I figured I might as well take them off for the winter and get this problem fixed. My back one needs a bit of tlc too because it dropped down and melted a bit to my exhaust lol....I just have bad luck with this kind of stuff.

[Dexman1349]

Originally posted by Neo-Blue99GASE
Oh, Dexman, Is it like the 3M tape they put on hoods and front bumeprs to protect them from rocks?

Yeah, that's the stuff. It either comes in sheets used for hoods/bumpers or in 1" to 2" strips for miscellaneous things. I had a 2" strip put on my X-terra where that air dam on the roof-rack comes in contact with the roof to prevent the paint from wearing off.

[Cobra^R]

I melted the tube in the rear above the exhaust on my plasmaglow LED kit bout 2 months ago.
I have not had time at all to fix it (I called the company and they sent me a new lexan tube for free)
Anywoo, i know its not the best thing for the kit but 2 months of dirt and rain with this huge open melted area in the tube hasent stopped it from working. So you should be fine(if your worried) if you cant repair it right away.