Car body kits

Body kits comprise all the modified bumpers, side skirts and spoilers that are offered in the aftermarket as alternatives to the stock car parts. Composed of either fibreglass, polyurethane and in some cases carbon fibre, body kits are available in a number of designs. Prices start anywhere from Rs 7,500 for the basic kit that includes a boot lip spoiler, side skirts and bumper skirts and then the sky is the limit.

While some manufacturers throw in body kits as optional extras, custom-made kits start in the aftermarket from Rs 10,000 for a basic unit and can go upto as much as Rs 50,000 for advanced kits.

One must bear in mind that aftermarket body kits only serve to enhance your car's aesthetics and offer no performance benefits. The additional weight only ends up increasing drag. A full performance upgrade for a car starts from a bare minimum of Rs 1.50 lakh from a reliable tuning workshop like Red Rooster Racing or Autopsyche. Body kits should ideally be installed after making performance upgrades like free flow exhaust, free flow air filter, cold/hot air intake, turbocharger, new ECU, race suspensions et al. In such a case, the body kit will optimise airflow thereby reducing drag.

Besides a drop in mileage, your kit is also at constant risk of getting damaged thanks to our pothole-ridden roads. So, while body kits can make your car look a million bucks, if installed without sufficient knowledge of their after-effects, can cause a huge dent on your finances. So think before you kit it up.