Poor vinyl. It’s developed a horrible reputation to a lot of us. One need look no further than the circa-2000 import scene for proof: vinyl-painted interiors, two-toned vinyl seats, played-out vinyl manufacturer roll calls under side mirrors . . . and Fast and Furious/Troy Lee-style exterior graphics that are still, still, to this day mistakenly used to identify us. It’s not that vinyl’s all bad, either—it makes our lives easier in ways few of us realize. It just never seemed to find a place in our circle. That is, until Meguiar’s dropped their matte-black Wraptivo CR-Z at this year’s SEMA show in Las Vegas.
You should already know who RJ DeVera is. As the very first show registrant of Ken Miyoshi’s legendary Import Showoff held in SoCal over 15 years ago (way before HIN), RJ’s been in the scene literally since day one. From big-budget, corporate-sponsored show-car builds, to RO_JA wheel development, to the aforementioned Hollywood flick, and even a little drifting and road racing, he’s done it all. Needless to say, he and vinyl go way back. So when RJ greeted us at Wraptivo’s SEMA booth—where this CR-Z held a crowd for four straight days—and broke down its mods and the advantages of its exterior appearance in plain-speak, we were sold.
Yes, this car is wrapped entirely in vinyl. But not just any vinyl—high-performance vinyl developed by 3M, perfected by the car-care specialists at Meguiar’s, and adapted by the enthusiasts at Wraptivo to do virtually anything paint can, but better and easier. “It’s not like ordinary vinyl,” RJ says. “First, it’s easier to apply. Wraptivo is way more flexible than traditional vinyl, is shrinkable with a little heat, and is actually porous to let air out during application. Plus, it holds up way better to sun, cold temps, rock chips—whatever.”
But why would anyone want to wrap their car in the first place? “It just doesn’t make sense to repaint a car with perfect paint to begin with, and be married to the new color,” he says. “With Wraptivo, you can change colors in a day—no sanding and buffing, either.” But the two biggest bonuses might be the most overlooked. “The track guys love it because it’s easy to replace. You never need to worry about color-matching replacement parts or spraying that matte texture just right; wrap it and you’re good to go.”
He goes on to tell that the concept of the car was to invoke the notion of fun, which lies at the core of the CR-Z’s DNA. His use of genuine Honda accessories, along with other aero components from Rando/Tracy Sports Japan, is complemented with a design package created to give this concept a special uniqueness; more aggressive, yet still in an image that’s not too far gone from OEM styling.
That aggression carries over to genuine performance mods underhood, with an HKS-developed prototype GTS 4015 supercharger system and Silent Hi-Power exhaust that bring a serious bump in horsepower and, more importantly, for a 1.5L engine, torque—an increase of 88 hp and 95 lb-ft of torque, tuned by Hondata. Like the power gurus who worked the engine, flexmasters at Tein developed a full coilover system for the car, while an off-the-shelf (yes, for the CR-Z) Brembo brake package featuring six-piston calipers and two-piece floating rotors can now be found behind those lightweight Volk G2 alloys.