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Shower Cap for Cars with LED Tail Lights

alcal

By alcal
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SLR No.77

SLR No.77

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My Thundersports shower cap works fine with the new tail lights on my '99 era car, there's a small tube attached to the chassis at each side under the rear and the cords secure there fine. I believe later cars (metric?) don't have the tubes though, older cars possibly used it to hang a rear exit silencer.

I did buy some small plastic hooks on ebay that I've intended to fit but everything seems fine using the steel tubes.

Stu.

 

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JP

JP

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Reviving an old thread - I'm thinking of a Soft Bits long nose shower cap, but I currently have a full hood (which is a bit leaky).  I'm told that it is not designed for use with the full hood and the rear contour is intended to lie fairly flat against the roll bar.  So, for anyone who has used one with a full hood, how bad is the fit?  Does it still work or does the full hood actually prevent fitment?

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AlastairA

AlastairA

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I bought the long nose shower cap without realising that it was intended to fit the car without the hood fitted. It's  perfect without the full hood fitted and the hood bars lowered - however, with the hood fitted, the shower cap is lifted up. It basically means the bottom edge of the side windows are exposed (see photo below) but it still does the job of keeping the rain out.

IMG_5525.HEIC

 

 

Edited by AlastairA
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AlastairA

AlastairA

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Paul - I bought mine after reading that heavy rainfall could cause damage to the 420 alternator if the bonnet louvres are left uncovered. There was also a thought that having the windows covered by the shower cap might improve security by preventing inquisitive eyes looking into the cockpit. I therefore chose to use both the full hood and a shower cap on a recent NC500 run. It was probably overkill but did give peace of mind!

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paul richards

paul richards

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I wouldn’t have thought the alternator would suffer and I’ve certainly had no problems. However a long nose shower cap will certainly prevent water getting into the heater. I get your point about prying eyes and agree. 
I assumed you were arriving somewhere with no roof and then putting both a full hood and shower cap on. I know some put the shower cap over a half hood but if the shower cap is a good fit I haven’t found it necessary. 

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JP

JP

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22 hours ago, paul richards said:

I don’t understand why you would want a shower cap over a full hood. Surprised your full hood leaks but would expect it can be made waterproof. 

Sadly, this has happened and it seems that it's not repairable.  I don't fancy ~£900 for a new full hood...

20230319_155858.thumb.jpg.d052a9991daa959517317e1100eecaf2.jpg

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paul richards

paul richards

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James.  That’s not good. It’s obviously going to leak in use never mind when parked. You need a new one, but fortunately lots of people have spare ones. I’m sure a wanted ad on here would get you a replacement and at a much lower price. However I’d look to get a half hood. I’ve used nothing but a shower cap and half hood for years.

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John Vine

John Vine

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2 hours ago, paul richards said:

However I’d look to get a half hood. I’ve used nothing but a shower cap and half hood for years.

Same here.  The long-nose shower cap fits perfectly over a half-hood, and also covers the bonnet cut-out and RBTB air filter.

JV

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JP

JP

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Posted (edited)

I am considering a half-hood.  Does one provide enough protection from rain coming in from behind the doors? Also is there much to consider between the Oxted and the SoftBits ones?  I think I prefer the attachment of the side straps on the Oxted...would welcome experience of one over the other..

What are the downsides to a half hood?

Edited by JP
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SLR No.77

SLR No.77

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If you have a spare wheel very little rain comes in from the rear, however without a spare the airflow is different and in heavy rain you’ll get a good soaking from behind … in my case enough to get water into a couple of gauges on the dash! I still use it (Oxted) though.

Stu.

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paul richards

paul richards

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I have a Soft Bits half hood and had the easy in zips retro fitted. I like the Oxted version as the securing straps seem better attached at the side but not sure if they do easy in zips and Oxted weren’t available when I purchased mine originally. Positive point is less steaming up and no real down sides. As Stu says much better if you have a spare wheel to prevent rear water ingress. 

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JAL73

JAL73

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13 hours ago, paul richards said:

I have a Soft Bits half hood and had the easy in zips retro fitted. I like the Oxted version as the securing straps seem better attached at the side but not sure if they do easy in zips and Oxted weren’t available when I purchased mine originally. Positive point is less steaming up and no real down sides. As Stu says much better if you have a spare wheel to prevent rear water ingress. 

I didnt know you could have "easy in" zips retro fitted to a Soft Bits half hood - did you take it back to Soft Bits to do this work? If so what did they charge for this if you dont mind me asking?

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paul richards

paul richards

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On 10/11/2023 at 13:25, JAL73 said:

I didnt know you could have "easy in" zips retro fitted to a Soft Bits half hood - did you take it back to Soft Bits to do this work? If so what did they charge for this if you dont mind me asking?

Yes. Soft Bits retro fitted the zips. I can’t remember the price. Over £100 but less than £200. There’s a lot of work in it. I was concerned that zips may allow it to leak but it doesn’t. They make a good job of it. Well worth it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

worth it. 

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Jonathan Kay

Jonathan Kay

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On 08/11/2023 at 08:10, AlastairA said:

I bought the long nose shower cap without realising that it was intended to fit the car without the hood fitted. It's  perfect without the full hood fitted and the hood bars lowered - however, with the hood fitted, the shower cap is lifted up. It basically means the bottom edge of the side windows are exposed (see photo below) but it still does the job of keeping the rain out.

IMG_5525.HEIC 3 MB · 40 downloads

I can see a place marker to download the image, but I can't see the image inline. Safari on macOS.

Can others see it inline?

Thanks

Jonathan

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