Been looking all over for pictures of a 2020 Pilot with the LeBra custom cover on the front. Didn’t find any, so for $90 with tax and shipping I pulled the trigger. I had one on my Odyssey as I’m retired and doing a lot of road trips. Here’s what it looks like and a review of the pros and cons.
The install: LeBra is a synthetic type leather with a thin felt backing. The backing is not plush but keeps the vinyl off the paint. It utilizes a number of straps and plastic C clips with loops, which they say you only use the loops to remove the Clips not to install. Weird. Those connect around the wheel wells and under the airdam. Vinyl tabs fit under and around headlights and grill work. The top clips reach by straps to points in the engine compartment. The top hood protector connects via a long strap that crosses the entire width of the hood. The instructions are minimal but the illustrations are easy to follow even if it doesn’t look exactly like your model. It took me 20 minutes to figure it all out and get to fit.
Pros: The overall appearance makes it look like a blacked out rig. The mesh covers a lot of grill work and the fog lamps. There is a reinforced stitching to cut away a front license plate if required. It covers a good part of the grill. It will protect that leading front end from bugs, small rocks or road debris like salt and sand from damaging the finish. There a a small 1/4” air dam on the hood to help deflect air over the windshield for bugs but that’s minimalist too. Watch for 20% off sales on-line for best deal.
Cons: It’s a tight fit. Make sure you try a first fitting on a warm day so the material is pliable. Double check where clips fit. If there is a wrinkle, you messed up. The vinyl clips on the air dam will likely break if you run over a concrete carstop so beware. Also...you’ll have to disable your parking sensors as it will interfere with them. I already have to do this when my bike rack is on the back hitch. The instructions say to cut away the material, but I have no clue where they are or how many. I’ll have to hunt that down. It seems the traffic follow sensors are not affected, but I don’t fully trust that yet in all conditions. You’ll have to cut out the front plate hole. If you use a custom plate cover like I do, you will have to be careful how much you cut. I’m using a wood burning tool to seal the edges. A soldering Iron would work. It would be wise to serge sew any edges if going beyond the reinforced area of the plate template. Beware tucking the tabs in. Some spots are tight and if pushed too hard you risk breaking a trim mount or headlight. Loose tabs can be ticketed with electrical toe or duct tape. The mesh extensions seem to curl and not lay flat with out a strap. Perhaps it will lay back after driving in some days. Wisconsin is still in the 30-40’s as I write this. I use this misting on month long road trips cross country. They warn it protects the paint from fading, so beware if left on too long. Remember to remove before a car wash and if using in winter driving to wash and remove after covered in sand and salt that would collect under it and scratch the finish. Here’s the pics. Enjoy.
The install: LeBra is a synthetic type leather with a thin felt backing. The backing is not plush but keeps the vinyl off the paint. It utilizes a number of straps and plastic C clips with loops, which they say you only use the loops to remove the Clips not to install. Weird. Those connect around the wheel wells and under the airdam. Vinyl tabs fit under and around headlights and grill work. The top clips reach by straps to points in the engine compartment. The top hood protector connects via a long strap that crosses the entire width of the hood. The instructions are minimal but the illustrations are easy to follow even if it doesn’t look exactly like your model. It took me 20 minutes to figure it all out and get to fit.
Pros: The overall appearance makes it look like a blacked out rig. The mesh covers a lot of grill work and the fog lamps. There is a reinforced stitching to cut away a front license plate if required. It covers a good part of the grill. It will protect that leading front end from bugs, small rocks or road debris like salt and sand from damaging the finish. There a a small 1/4” air dam on the hood to help deflect air over the windshield for bugs but that’s minimalist too. Watch for 20% off sales on-line for best deal.
Cons: It’s a tight fit. Make sure you try a first fitting on a warm day so the material is pliable. Double check where clips fit. If there is a wrinkle, you messed up. The vinyl clips on the air dam will likely break if you run over a concrete carstop so beware. Also...you’ll have to disable your parking sensors as it will interfere with them. I already have to do this when my bike rack is on the back hitch. The instructions say to cut away the material, but I have no clue where they are or how many. I’ll have to hunt that down. It seems the traffic follow sensors are not affected, but I don’t fully trust that yet in all conditions. You’ll have to cut out the front plate hole. If you use a custom plate cover like I do, you will have to be careful how much you cut. I’m using a wood burning tool to seal the edges. A soldering Iron would work. It would be wise to serge sew any edges if going beyond the reinforced area of the plate template. Beware tucking the tabs in. Some spots are tight and if pushed too hard you risk breaking a trim mount or headlight. Loose tabs can be ticketed with electrical toe or duct tape. The mesh extensions seem to curl and not lay flat with out a strap. Perhaps it will lay back after driving in some days. Wisconsin is still in the 30-40’s as I write this. I use this misting on month long road trips cross country. They warn it protects the paint from fading, so beware if left on too long. Remember to remove before a car wash and if using in winter driving to wash and remove after covered in sand and salt that would collect under it and scratch the finish. Here’s the pics. Enjoy.
