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To debadge or not to debadge

9030 Views 23 Replies 22 Participants Last post by  joachimkazmaier
That is the question...
So I'm new to the Forte world with only 500 kilometers on so far since last Friday, and I'm debating whether or not I should go ahead and strip my Koup of all evidence of "Kia" because I have been brainwashed into thinking of Kia as a kind of lame duck, boring car. But in so doing, would I be showing embarassment about ownership of a Kia product? This I ask myself. I realize that hey, what's to be embarrased about, just look at how good she looks. So I say, no, I really am proud to be blessed with such a fine work of art. But then again, when I see others that are debadged, they really look cool, nice clean lines on the back trunk without the forte and koup badges and the kia badge replaced with an after market which says Koup. Such a dilemma. What would you do and why.
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I think it adds appreciation for the car to other people when they realize - wow that's a Kia??. I did it and I can't tell you the amount of times I've heard that since I debadged it..
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I took off the forte badge, but I actually like the kia badges on mine, a black sedan.
when all work is completed on this car,it will definitely be one hell of a sleeper car
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I replaced my grill with the roadruns grill because I like it alot more so no Kia badge there and I really liked the Koup/Forte badge I replaced where the rear Kia was and took off the lettering since I think it looks more stylish.
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Well IMO...

Do what you want. I debadged mine because I hated the KIA logo. It's boring from a design standpoint. The forte both the koup and sedan is a grey looking car with great lines and then there is the logo. Big thumbs down.

Thats the only reason I replaced with a more appealing badge. Still says Kia on my wheels and I left the forte and sx badges on.
If you're doing it just b/c you're ashamed of kia as a brand, don't do it!! Take pride in the fact that you're the owner of the car that is beginning to put kia on the map.

but if it's for aesthetics (i.e., you don't like how the logo looks), then that's a different story. i personally like the way the kia logo looks, but i guess that's for you to decide!
I took all of mine off because:

- I don't like the Kia emblems
- I prefer the "clean" look
- I love seeing people try to figure out what it is
- it's a conversation starter ("What kind of car is that?")
- it sets my car apart from the other Koups in my city

With all of these reasons backing my decision, it was a no-brainer.
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The KIA logo is kind of boring. I really do not like the design of it. But I will not remove the badges. I like how the Forte and the Koup looks in the car. Now, if someone comes up with a new KIA design logo that looks kool, I am up for a replacement of the KIA logo badges.
I replaced the Kia badges with the Tigris emblems and removed the Forte emblem, left the KOUP on. It's a ton of fun watching people try to figure out what kind of car it is.
you just spent nearly 20k..... I wouldnt be embarrased. However, with the emblems off it does look sweet!!
I would take them off and put the Tigres or something similar on, but I am scared shitless to try it... I am not the handiest of people to say the least.
I just removed the Forte and Koup badges the very first day because i prefer the clean look of shaved trunk and its easier to clean/wax overtime... Im planning to keep the Kia logos because i like how people stand to look at it and "wow.. its a Kia?" lol
I would take them off and put the Tigres or something similar on, but I am scared shitless to try it... I am not the handiest of people to say the least.
its really easy with some patience... theyre still fresh :cool:
If you're going to take them off do it early. A good friend of mine just took all of the lettering and emblems off his Infiniti G35 and you could still see where they were after he washed, waxed, and buffed it! The paint under the letters was as bright and clean as the day it left the factory but the rest of the car wasn't.
3M tape

So for those of you that have debadged and replaced the stock badge with the (<) emblem, does the 3M tape keep it in place? I've read through the removal of the grills and trunks and steering wheels...and i see the originals have tabs and the replacements are 3M adhesive. Living in MN with drastic weather changes, im concerned that they may fall off...any issues?
I had my Spectra debadged on the back....I'm scared to do it to the Koup 'cause it totally killed my Spec :( The person who did it had no idea what they were doing, and between the razor blade and wd40 or something, the clearcoat was shot and some places it was scratched down to the metal. Awesome huh.

I'm thinking of taking "Forte" off, but that's it. I liked what someone on here did by putting it under the hood...thought that looked so awesome.
I also would love the K badges, but they're a bit more expensive than I'd expected.
I wouldn't debadge because I cannot be bothered.
leave the rear KIA, change front grill/badge, get rims.

steering wheel up to you.
i just took off my forte badge this weekend. i am ordering the 'k' badges off ebay later this week. i'm not ashamed of owning a kia at all. my intentions are to baffle people's minds even more when they see it driving down the street and say 'wow, what kind of car is that' and there are no badges besides 'koup.' but that's just me and i like to confuse people. plus, it will look a lot nicer than the kia logo everywhere
i havent had a problem with mine and ive had them on almost a year.
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