One of the great aspects to owning a new T2 is how open they are to customisation. Apart from all the accessories you can buy, you can make your BraziBay (or any vehicle for that matter) more individual by adding vinyl graphics, stickers or even stripes. There are loads of companies on the web offering vinyl in a variety of shapes and sizes and with a bit of planning and patience you can apply these to your vehicle yourself at relatively low cost.
I've been toying with the idea of some stripes for Max and haven't come to a definitive decision yet, but my recent purchase of a new hatchback has given me the chance to try my hand at applying stickers.
The first job is to define where the centre line of the vehicle is. Looking head on at my 500 I could see that the left hand side of the A in FIAT on the nose badge was dead centre of the car. Then I took a few measurements across the roof using a paper measuring tape - these are free at your local IKEA - and are very handy for this sort of thing as they bend with the shape of the car. Finally at the rear of the car I worked out that again the left hand edge of the A in the badge was dead centre. So then I made a centre line from nose to tail of the car using some string held in place by some duck tape.
I planned to fit a couple of stripes: one thin the other wide. I decided where I wanted the stripes to lie and measured the distance from the centre line to where the left hand edge of the first stripe would be. I then used a white chinagraph pencil to mark the position on the body of the car. Next it's imperative to remove any wax coating on the paintwork as that will prevent the vinyl from sticking, so using a can of surface cleaner (from Halfords in the paint section) I wiped over the area the stickers would go.
Then it was time to fit the first stripe. In order to be able to move the vinyl around and position it, you spray a solution of 1/4 water mixed with 5 drops of washing up liquid. You spray both the car and the adhesive side of the sticker. Place the sticker on the body of the car and move it around into position. Then using a soft cloth, gently force the liquid out from under the sticker so it can adhere to the paintwork.
Next I marked up where the second stripe would go in relation to the edge of the first, and we were in business.
A bit of time and patience later I think the results speak for themselves:
It's important to not wash the car for a couple of days to really let the stickers set, but I can handle that given the enhanced look I've managed to achieve for under a tenner. Now I just need to decide how I'm going to stripe up Max.
www.viperstripesdirect.com
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Max SportsKombi - The Bay Racer 
@brazilianvwbay
