Inner Circle aero parts

[KOUKI KA-T]

I wanted to know who else on here had any experience with the recent Inner Cirle line of aero Jspec carries. After 4 months of trying to get my hands on the OEM kouki rear valences with no luck I saw the IC ones just added to the line Jspec offered. Now I hate fiberglass parts, but it says they are all test fitted and guarenteed for perfect fitment, so I ordered a set a month ago.
I've had them for a while and the quality is great, they are pretty flexible and they looked good, but I didn't get to test fit them on the car until today when I went home for the holidays to where my car is stored. I was pretty disappointed when i tried to fit them on the car. There is a 1/4" gap all the way around the top of the valence that should be flush to the bumper and rear quarter panel and they are almost a 1/2" too long and stick out in to the rear wheel well.
I don't know what they were test fit onto before I ordered them but they don't fit "great" at all, damn I hate fiberglass parts. So now I don't know what I'm going to do with them.
Any body else on here have any experience with IC aero parts?
-Sean

[Ritz S14]

"guarenteed for perfect fitment"

You should get your money back!!!!

[KOUKI KA-T]

"guarenteed for perfect fitment"

You should get your money back!!!!

Yeah I'm going to e-mail Sam on Monday, I've always had nothing but good experiences through him so maybe I can send these back and he can use that 200$ I paid for them as a deposit on the next set of OEM ones he gets in....
They don't fit anywhere near how the ones in your sig are....

[Ritz S14]

Once in a while you'll see OEM ones on ebay for 220-275. But I bought mine off of zilvia.

[SilviaDriver]

good to know somebody has experience with IC. i think yoshi on this forum bought IC s13.5 fenders, i was really debating to selling my fenders and getting them too becuz they are 15-20mm wider, but for 650? spend about 50-100 more and i can get Masa

http://www.icautoworks.com/index.html

[projectRDM]

Once in a while you'll see OEM ones on ebay for 220-275. But I bought mine off of zilvia.

They're equally rare in Japan, but at least they pull less money. Good sets rarely break 18,000yen.

[KOUKI KA-T]

good to know somebody has experience with IC. i think yoshi on this forum bought IC s13.5 fenders, i was really debating to selling my fenders and getting them too becuz they are 15-20mm wider, but for 650? spend about 50-100 more and i can get Masa

http://www.icautoworks.com/index.html

How was the fitment on his fenders?

[SilviaDriver]

im not sure yet i think hez still waiting for them..but im NOT totally sure on this

read something like this in one of the HCI and UndergroundMotorposrts threads

[justinhustle]

i know renova has rear oem valances on ebay like once a month or so

as for IC, im not a fan from what ive heard. but its all hearsay since i dont have personal experience :(

[KOUKI KA-T]

I could try and make these fit, but would rather not do anything to them and just try and return them and get the OEM ones instead. It would take hours of work and cutting and re-fiberglassing to make these fit well, exactly what I didn't want to deal with at all...

[Siizzzoooo]

hell for 550 for each aero pice and 650 for fenders, you could get some JDM brand aero pieces

when i hear IC, i think of AIT stuff

[BobbyBoy]

Well what do you expect from Jspec fenders......Let me know how the whole ordeal goes through. I ended up hacking up my Jspec fenders to make them work.

[nightwalker]

jspec = bleh, and overpriced. There are other options out there people.

[Revolver Ocelot]

I just got the innercircle s14.5 fenders. They look real nice, clean edges and seem to be good quality. Havent test fitted them yet but they should be on in a few days. But i bought them from phase2.

[SilviaDriver]

make sure you update and take pics of the fender install!!!

[Siizzzoooo]

from what i hear, the IC are copies of the Masa fenders, so if you get one of the good ones then you lucked out

[KOUKI KA-T]

jspec = bleh, and overpriced. There are other options out there people.

The valences were only 200$, which was great when I saw the fitment was guarenteed, I only got them as I have been trying to get the OEM ones for months and no luck.
The quality of them is great, but turns out they just don't fit at all.....

[SilviaDriver]

how about some pictures of the bad fitment

[KOUKI KA-T]

how about some pictures of the bad fitment

I'll bring my camera next time i go see my car (in storage for the winter about 40 miles from my place). I e-mailed Sam and am waiting to hear back, but I suspect he'll want pics as well so I may have to make the drive some night this week after work...

[mike13]

i dont think Sam will be happy about your request considering its says you need to have a body shop install them, right on the page. he makes that disclaimer for a reason.

[KOUKI KA-T]

i dont think Sam will be happy about your request considering its says you need to have a body shop install them, right on the page. he makes that disclaimer for a reason.

Yes but it also says the fitment on the IC pieces are "Fitment tested and gaurenteed perfect fit", so shouldn't I be the one who is unhappy??? If they are gaurenteed to fit and mine sure as hell don't, then something needs to be done. His disclaimer basically says buy the cheap stuff and make it fit or buy the expensive stuff that does fit. I bought the expensive stuff, and the fit blows.
I didn't ask for a refund anyway, I requested that I ship these back to him and he keep the $200 I spent on them as a deposit on the next set of OEM ones he gets, that's more than reasonable.

[SimpleS14]

Ritz S14 - How did you mount your rear valence?

[Ritz S14]

3M body panel adhesive. Clip on the bottem and a bolt on the side.

[SimpleS14]

3M body panel adhesive. Clip on the bottem and a bolt on the side.


Thanks for the response. Do you happen to know what type of 3M adhesive? I've seen an array of them on e-bay, but I don't know which one is ideal.

[Ritz S14]

Body panel adhesive. Or moulding adhesive. I bought two rolls from autozone.. it's 3.99ish. Something around 1/4" thick.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7943990602&category=50450

I also used it to mount my JDM emblems.

[SimpleS14]

Thanks...one last question lol....

did you place the tape on the outer rim on the back of the valence or further inward (on the back of course)?

[Ritz S14]

All around the outer edges. Because the valance isn't flush with the bumper, it wont make any contact if you placed the adhesive inward.

[jspecusa]

I wanted to know who else on here had any experience with the recent Inner Cirle line of aero Jspec carries. After 4 months of trying to get my hands on the OEM kouki rear valences with no luck I saw the IC ones just added to the line Jspec offered. Now I hate fiberglass parts, but it says they are all test fitted and guarenteed for perfect fitment, so I ordered a set a month ago.
I've had them for a while and the quality is great, they are pretty flexible and they looked good, but I didn't get to test fit them on the car until today when I went home for the holidays to where my car is stored. I was pretty disappointed when i tried to fit them on the car. There is a 1/4" gap all the way around the top of the valence that should be flush to the bumper and rear quarter panel and they are almost a 1/2" too long and stick out in to the rear wheel well.
I don't know what they were test fit onto before I ordered them but they don't fit "great" at all, damn I hate fiberglass parts. So now I don't know what I'm going to do with them.
Any body else on here have any experience with IC aero parts?
-Sean


The IC rear valance is the exact copy of the origional if you put them side by side there are no difference in length or height.
The only difference is that the origional has L bracket(like a step down) in the lower rear to mount to the rear bumper.
The steps to mount the rear valance is to drill 2 hole matching the rear 2 hole of the wheel well then use double sided tape on the inner upper side of the valance.
Once it's on the car there should be a gap on the lower rear part of the valance to the rear bumper, that's where the difference of the stock and IC valance.
The stock uses the L bracket to mount it(self tapping screw) where the IC one you need to make that bracket or use a spacer in between to mount it.
You can also ask member who have install origional valance that's how they install theirs.
If you still want a refund, just ship the valance back in the origional condition and we'll give you a full refund(sorry you'll have to pay for the shipping back).

[jspecusa]

Well what do you expect from Jspec fenders......Let me know how the whole ordeal goes through. I ended up hacking up my Jspec fenders to make them work.

You are not very professional posting comments like this when you work for another shop.
We sold you the fenders at cost as a favor and this is what we get in return, you WORK at a shop you should know that any problem with the parts you contact the seller right away and ask for return or exchange.
Instead you decide to just post bad comments about it.
Remember what goes around comes around one day someone will do the same to you and whatever comes up in your head about that person is exactly how we feel.
Thank you,

Sam

[KOUKI KA-T]

The IC rear valance is the exact copy of the origional if you put them side by side there are no difference in length or height.
The only difference is that the origional has L bracket(like a step down) in the lower rear to mount to the rear bumper.
The steps to mount the rear valance is to drill 2 hole matching the rear 2 hole of the wheel well then use double sided tape on the inner upper side of the valance.
Once it's on the car there should be a gap on the lower rear part of the valance to the rear bumper, that's where the difference of the stock and IC valance.
The stock uses the L bracket to mount it(self tapping screw) where the IC one you need to make that bracket or use a spacer in between to mount it.
You can also ask member who have install origional valance that's how they install theirs.
If you still want a refund, just ship the valance back in the origional condition and we'll give you a full refund(sorry you'll have to pay for the shipping back).
Thanks Sam, as I said I've never had anything but good experiences with you, I didn't mean for this to turn into a negative tone towards you. I have no problem paying the shipping back to you, do you think you'll be able to source and of the OEM ones in the next couple of months? If so I don't need a refund, just keep the 200$ as a deposit on a set of OEM ones.
I will go try and test fit them again this weekend and just double check I'm not wrong before I ship them back to you, but I won't drill any holes or anything.

[Yoshi]

wow, how did I miss this thread?
Anywho... yes I just got my s13.5 fenders from Sam after several lengthy delays (which to Sam's credit he tried to compensate for, monetarily speaking). It all worked out tho, I just received them xmas eve (a great xmas present to myself :P heh).

HOWEVER...
I've also just bought a new house, and am moving in 2 days, so I won't have time to give a detailed review on the fenders until I'm finished with moving.

As far as a preliminary opinion, tho they got a little roughed up in shipping, it doesn't seem to be anything too severe. The workmanship seems to be pretty good, there are some rough edges to smooth out, but I don't see any wavies, and hte mold seems to be fairly well done. For those interested, they are pretty strong (compared to the GTP ones), and of much higher build quality. They are advertised as "primed and ready for install and paint". I'd say that's 98% true, there are some spots missing primer wehre you can see something brushed it before it was dry, and all edges will need some sanding to remove burrs and such, but for an FRP product from the US, I'd say these are impressive. Note that NONE of my opinion thus far involves fitment.

I'll keep you guys filled in when the install happens mid january, I plan to document everything so that people following in the s13-15 footsteps will have an easier time of it.

[SilviaDriver]

keep us updated yoshi, ill remind you mid month ;]

[tranzilla]

I just got mine in this morning from phase2.. s14.5 IC fenders. Write back once i get it put on

[KOUKI KA-T]

Took pics this weekend of the IC valences fitment. Plus this came up in another thread so I thought Iwould update the original thread I made on these with the pics.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/30mmspacersandvalences002.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/30mmspacersandvalences001.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/30mmspacersandvalences019.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/30mmspacersandvalences016.jpg

[CoasTek240]

maybe im wrong, but will 3m tape and very precise placement make that fit right?

[KOUKI KA-T]

maybe im wrong, but will 3m tape and very precise placement make that fit right?

Nope, not at all. That is precise as it gets and there's 2 people pressing them to the car as hard as we could without breaking the valence. The valances will break long before they could be pressed against the body, and the fact that it wraps around the whole corner that way makes them impossible to fit without cutting them in half and re-fiberglassing the whole inner part that fits inside the lip of the bumper.
They're pressed so tightly up against the whole car that there's a solid line all the way around of scratched paint on my car now,

EDIT: Yes, you were RIGHT. I apparently gave up without really trying. These valences do fit and quite well, as I talk about later in the thread.
-Sean

[CoasTek240]

btw, did you paint your kouki another color?

[Ritz S14]

Somone on here has brand new ones for $400 with hardware..comes pearl white. Search in the for sale section.

[KOUKI KA-T]

btw, did you paint your kouki another color?

No I just haven't painted the rear bumper yet, I've been waiting until the valences are ready to just have it done all at once.

And Smog Tech I know all about he ones Seps is selling, he PM'd me about them before they were up in the classifieds. I'm waiting to see if I can get a refund on these IC ones first.

[Supra Hunter]

Kouki I have the complete OEM Aero kit down to the rear valances... I'm thinking about selling the Kouki rear bumper and the rear valances but I'm still undecided... however shoot me an offer and maybe it'll help me decide...

here's some pics:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v714/aclex21/DSC00092.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v714/aclex21/DSC00139.jpg

[KOUKI KA-T]

Well I'm being told that I am still installing them wrong. I've done lots of body work over the last few years and installed all the body pieces my car has ever gone through, but apparently I don't know what I'm doing....
I am being told that the bottom lip of the valences should NOT be flush with the bumper, even the OEM ones are not (all the ones I've seen sure as hel lare though). So in this pic I have been told I need to raise the top of the valence to the bumper and the bottom should have a big gap???
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/30mmspacersandvalences019.jpg

All the OEM ones I've seen fit perfect, anyone have a pic of the OEM ones on their car at the same angle as the pic i posted above?
Someone please help me out with similar pics with theirs, this is really pissing me off now. I've never seen this gap that's "supposed" to be there on the OEM ones too...

[North240]

look at the pic right above yours, look to the drivers side (i know its small) i dont see a gap....you?

[KOUKI KA-T]

maybe im wrong, but will 3m tape and very precise placement make that fit right?

Maybe after all, I've tried fitting them 3 times so far. Everytime I can't get them to fit. Then I come home and think about it and think I can again. I look at these pics and I think they will fit, but I've already tried 3 times and had other people try as well?? Maybe I'm thinking too hard. I'll go try again I guess, but I don't like the fact that they are telling me there is supposed to be a gap on lower part even with the OEM ones when I've never seen it before and there's definitely no gap on OEM valences on the cars above...
So I'll go try again and hopefully I am an idiot and these do fit.

[Ritz S14]

It doesn't take a genious to mount valences.. heck..even I did mine myself. If it doesn't fit... well it doesn't fit.
http://photobucket.com/albums/v98/smogtec/valence/?multi=5&addtype=

[KOUKI KA-T]

It doesn't take a genious to mount valences.. heck..even I did mine myself. If it doesn't fit... well it doesn't fit.
http://photobucket.com/albums/v98/smogtec/valence/?multi=5&addtype=

Well that's sure as shit how I look at it too. I've installed the bumpers, lip sides, and the previous K's wing and zenki valences on the thing, among replacing other stock body panels. All of which are alot more involved then little valences, but Sam insists I'm installing these wrong.... maybe I'm a just a huge moron I guess.

And BTW, I appreciate the photos, thanks!
-Sean

[Ritz S14]

Well..when people make a sale and don't want to loose a profit. Of course he' going to tell you to have a professional/bodyman do it for you.

Send the pic of the oem ones and the aftercrap ones..and see what he says. Better yet have him take a pic of valances installed on one of their used k's bumpers... see if he takes the challenge.

[SilviaDriver]

thats not that bad, my URAS ones are even worse than that

[KOUKI KA-T]

Well..when people make a sale and don't want to loose a profit. Of course he' going to tell you to have a professional/bodyman do it for you.

Send the pic of the oem ones and the aftercrap ones..and see what he says. Better yet have him take a pic of valances installed on one of their used k's bumpers... see if he takes the challenge.

Sam is being really good about it, he will refund me the money if I ship them back to him but he assures me they fit and that I'm just not putting them on in the correct procedure... I'm going to try it one more time I guess, I WANT them to fit, but if it's going to take an assload of work to make them fit I don't want them. I only bought them as the fit is supposed to be very close to OEM.
For once I hope I am being an idiot here and they do fit... I sent him the pics and he spoke to another person who instaled them and they told me what to try, so I'll try again tomorrow as long as it's not snowing.

[Ritz S14]

Have you tried messing with both sides? or just one?

[Sil Beer S13]

Kouki KA-T your funny. Saying AFTER MARKET BODY PARTS MUST FIT LIKE OEM. HAHA damn. No aftermarket body part will fit like oem. Fool.

[KOUKI KA-T]

Have you tried messing with both sides? or just one?

Tried the drivers side quickly first and saw it was off, so then I tried the passenger side and have just been working with that side since.
Unfortuneatly my car is stored an hour away from where i live and it's the middle of winter in maine so it's tough to get any time to work on this.

[TurDz]

Smog Tech,

You should of sent me those pix when I asked you about installation. Those are really good pics, and the valences sit very flush too. Nice pics of the bolt placements and stuff.

KOUKI KA-T, I feel you frustration, I felt the same way with the Kouki front bumper fitment, remember? but it wasn't a problem like yours. OEM valences should fit without any problem or anything. It's truly a bolt on part, with only 4 screws in different area. It's clear that the Inner Circle ones have fitment problems. Just look at the gap on both the top and bottom, you can't really fix that. And if there were ways to be able to fit it, it seemed like too much of a hassle. You might say, oh, well, it did mention pro-body shop install recommended. But these were claimed to fit just like OEM ones. I can imagine IC using the OEM valences as their model, and if the fiberglass was laid directly on top of the surface, that already explains the fitment problem since it is slightly larger all around.

it's funny, but do you have the IC logo on your valences?
http://jspec.com/iclogo.html


if not...maybe you want that version :hsdance:

anyway...I'm keeping up with these threads since I'm getting a pair of valences very soon too. If you haven't resolved your problem I will post up pics of mine. good luck.

[KOUKI KA-T]

Kouki KA-T your funny. Saying AFTER MARKET BODY PARTS MUST FIT LIKE OEM. HAHA damn. No aftermarket body part will fit like oem. Fool.

Yes no shit, I never said they must. IC claims OEM fitment so I figured it would at least be close. We are just talking about a small little piece of fiberglass now...
But thanks. ass.

[KOUKI KA-T]

And if there were ways to do it, it seemed like too much of a hassle. You might say, oh, well, it did mention pro-body shop install recommended. But these were claimed to fit just like OEM ones.

Yeah glad you see where I'm coming from. I hate fiberglass, which is why everything aceept the trust lip on my car is OEM (and that Trust lip fits absolutley perfect BTW) but after searchingf or the OEM ones for months i saw that these were gaurenteed etc.... I went for them. I wasn't expecting perfection, but I figured a small non-intricate piece such as this wouldn't be hard to have fit right.
And again, I could just be fucking this all up somehow and installing it wrong, so we'll see what happens when i go back tomorrow. I'll be the first to admit it if I'm wrong about these.
-Sean

[Ritz S14]

Smog Tech,

You should of sent me those pix when I asked you about installation. Those are really good pics, and the valences sit very flush too. Nice pics of the bolt placements and stuff.

You just asked me how I installed them. If you asked for pics you would have gotten them right away. Besides, I went to your house to pick up the bumper.. and there was your good look. ;)

Pics have been updated.

[KOUKI KA-T]

Okay, okay, okay. So here is where I formally admit I was wrong. After talking to Sam he told me of a way to install these that would make them fit. I honestly could not see how installing them in a certain way would have any affect on the fitment. Maybe I was just pre-convinced they weren't going to fit since they were fiberglass-knockoffs that I really just wasn't trying.
Well it did. After a little sanding on the inside of the valences and installing them from the top rear forward I was able to make them fit in a way that is acceptable to me. They don't fit super snug like OEM of course, there is about 4mm gap on the lower lip but I am fine with that considering these are half the price of set of OEM ones. I tried taking new pics, but they were in the dark, 20 degrees out so I couldn't stop my hands from shaking, and my camera died after 3 pics. I will try posting the 3 Itook when I get home if they aren't too blurry, but I will take more this weekend in decent lighting.
So i officially retract my previous statement of these not fitting at all, again I must have already convinced myself they weren't going to fit before I even really tried. While the may not fit as well as OEM they are certainly worth the 200$ Jspec charges for them.
-Sean

[OptionZero]

do they make any other aero parts

[wylin]

they make s15 conversion fenders that are wider than stock.

[TurDz]

do they make any other aero parts


don't be so lazy....

http://jspec.com/ics14sid.html

:keke:

[KOUKI KA-T]

I had like 8 people contact me for pics on the fit on the IC valences so here's an update. Keep in mind it's only 7 friggin degrees outside right now, too cold for any 3M tape to even stick and there are no screws holding these on. It was so cold my camera couldn't focus on shit either and it kept fogging up. This is just to give people a better idea of how they fit....
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/valencereviewpics011.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/valencereviewpics009.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/valencereviewpics006.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/valencereviewpics002.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/valencereviewpics003.jpg

This next pic shows the only gap I haven't been able to reduce yet, but i think in warmer weather when the tape can stick and the valences are a little more flexible I'll be able to get rid of it entirely. (i was already able to on the driver side)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/srhamlin/valencereviewpics010.jpg

The trick to these valences is to install them from the rear forward, finishing off in the fender well. Attach the rear and corner with the 3M tape then you can push down on the lower lip portion and tap a screw up through the bottom into the bumper, then go and tap 2 screws into the fender well.
Of course there not as nice a fit as OEM ones, bit for 200$ it's a good deal if you don't mind spedning some time test fitting them until you can get them to fit how you like. (i did a bit of sanding as well, overall I spent about an hour or 2 and was able to get the driver side one to fit perfectly.)

[Ritz S14]

After applying the adhesive you'd want to tape up all the edges to get a firm hold.
3M blue tape is your best friend in this case.

Congrats on the fitment.

[KOUKI KA-T]

After applying the adhesive you'd want to tape up all the edges to get a firm hold.
3M blue tape is your best friend in this case.

Congrats on the fitment.

Yeah I only slapped a couple small pieces on as I figured it was too cold for that shit to stick anyway, and 3M tape is like 8$ a roll....

[Ritz S14]

You get what you payfor. If you were to use ebay it's about $15-20 for 30yards.

With 3M, you only have to do it once.