With more than 32 million cars on the road in the United Kingdom (32,697,408 at the last count!), it’s fair to say that we love our cars! Whether they’re a simple run around to get us from A to B or our polished pride and joy, we spend a lot of time in them. In fact, in 2019 the average driver spent 63 hours driving to and from work, and a whopping 293 hours in total with all journeys! 

Of course, with spending so much time in our cars, some people like to add a few personalisation options and finishing touches to their machines. Whether it’s a simple seat cover set, weight reduction kits or dechroming, the customization options are endless!

We’ve put together a list of potential customization options for you to try out on your car! Remember though, if you’re not confident to do it yourself, bring in a professional!

---

Interior

• Seat Covers  

Recovering your seats could mean a couple of different things, from buying relatively cheap seat covers and protectors through to reupholstering the seats themselves!

If you are reupholstering, then admittedly they’re not overly easy to DIY, which means that it’s a pretty expensive option for a lot of us. There are some great different customisations available with cheaper options such as styling kits, which can look brand new with some fantastic details from the stitching to the branding. Sometimes kits even come fit to size with specific models – just have a look through the website which you’re ordering from and see if they fit your model car. If you’re happy to splash a little more cash then you can definitely consider looking at a professional reupholstery job, however this can be much more expensive – but you can tell the difference! 

 

• Interior Trim Wrap

A classy great way to really make your car stand out. Yes okay, not everyone’s going to see it… but surely you’ll love the difference when you’re spending your 293 hours there! You can go for pretty much any style material you’d like (do bare in mind that getting the actual material can either be impossible or ridiculously expensive, so we’d stick with a wrap!). From leather, carbon fibre or high gloss there are so many options! Adding new finishes, colours and textures to the interior can boost the aesthetics of the car and even the price… win win surely! Wrapping the interior also means that you are protecting the original surfaces of the car from scratches, marks and stains. So the next time you come to put it on the market you have interiors and dashboards that look brand spanking new!

 

• Interior Lighting Kit

Making the inside as perfect as possible is easy with interior lighting kits. Neon lights set the mood, it’s undisputable.  They can add some serious visuals and change the whole feeling of the car as a whole. Not only can you change the colour to whatever you want, but you don’t even have to turn them on – that is if they’re giving you a headache! Transforming your car this way is a doddle, giving it that luxurious feel for a pretty penny… why wouldn’t you!

Doors & Windows

• Window Tints

Window tints don’t just give a high-profile suped up look, they have other benefits and uses as well – two for one! With reducing heat, blocking UV rays and giving extra privacy and security, they are undoubtedly the most multi-functional car mod. They’re relatively easy to DIY, but we would suggest that you speak to professionals about fitting them and get a quotation prior to making the decision! 

 

• Car Door Lights

If you’re a fan of your car manufacturer and the car itself, then these are a great little extra. They’ve only recently started coming out and so not all manufacturers actually do them, however if they do then you’re definitely in luck. Some companies sell these projector lights with characters and words on, and there are some manufacturers who have them pre-fitted on particular models and trims, such as Mini. So take a look round and see what you like. There couldn’t be anything better than seeing the floor around your car lit up with a logo light of your choice! They’re not expensive to put in nor are they hard, so these are something which we’d recommend to anyone. 

 

Headlights

• HID4 Upgrades

If you’ve not got LED or Halogen lights on your car, then you might want to consider a HID4 upgrade to your beams! They’ll definitely make your car stand out and be seen in the dark with their incredible brightness and clean white appearance. We would suggest having these fitted by a professional or garage, however if you’re comfortable that you know what you’re doing then go ahead and DIY!

Wheels

• Alloys

Customising your alloys is certainly one way to turn heads. There are lots of companies that will happily paint, wrap and spruce up your alloys. With hundreds of options available, the choice is yours. Refurbing them will also help to repair any previous damage or corrosion, and make the new alloys extremely attractive and durable! We think they look ace, creating a low-profile and smooth look to any car no matter the make or model.

 

• Lower Suspension

Altering the suspension is a personal preference more than anything. Some people love the bad-boy racing style however some prefer to keep theirs more conservative. No matter the size of the drop, lowering the suspension at any height will have a noticeable effect on the vehicle’s aesthetics! It must be noted that although lowering the suspension can look totally awesome, it can negatively affect the car’s handling. As well as lowering, you can also boost the suspension, which is more popular on SUV’s and more “rugged” style cars. 

Lowering suspension has the effect of making your car look more sleek and sportslike. This can be done at a car modification garage. Even a slight drop can have a big effect on the look of your vehicle.

 

Body

• Racing Stripes

The classic racing stripe pattern is not going anywhere. Old but gold, we love them! A pretty simple vinyl strip is cut out and put down the side of the car, bonnet or roof and can add a great splash of colour to the car! We would most definitely recommend getting a professional to wrap yours, as if you get it wrong it could look horrendous and cost a lot through redoing it over and over again! You could ask your wrapper if you can purchase the material and they apply it, we have found that this is a cost-effective way of wrapping your car as some garages could rip you off for the material costs, so don’t get caught out! We’d also suggest that you carefully consider the colour of the stripes, as we’ve seen some clashing colours in the past on cars!

 

• De-Chromed

Chrome delete. A fiddly and ‘perfectionist’ job, but with a beautiful and sleek finish. You may not notice how much of a difference getting rid of the chrome can make! With a make-over your car won’t look the same again! Just take a look at the images we’ve put in below, you can see the before and after, and who hasn’t fallen head over heels already? Such a difference, with gorgeous detailing and a subtle but ‘mean’ look! It isn’t the cheapest option and might cost you a pretty penny but we say it’s worth it! Professionals will do the best job by far!

 

• Number Plates

Becoming more and more popular, number plates are a great way to personalise and spice up your car’s exterior. From private number plates spelling out initials, words or names, to matching coloured neons. With more people customizing their cars through their plates, it comes as no surprise that they’re great! The matching colour look is definitely a favourite of ours – just have a look below at some of our customers’ plates and cars. Furthermore, with additional borders and slogans the possibilities are endless. Head over to our builder and create your perfect plates today to add the finishing touches to your car’s personalisation.

---

There you have our favourite trimmings for all vehicles, whatever the make or model. There are so many more out there for you to try and have a go with. Have them all, have none… but send us pictures if you do have them as we’d love to see all of your customizations! If, when doing these, you feel at all uncertain or unable, get in contact with a professional straight away as it will save you stress, time and money… for sure! Pay cheap, pay twice!