Mazda MX5 Race design
We love a good original car wrap design. Yes, new renditions of classic car wraps are cool and all, but there’s nothing like a fresh new design, when done right.
How do we begin? At times we will start with a few simple notes based on the clients’ wants. This commonly includes some predetermined color scheme. We decide whether the car wrap design will be fully plotter cut, printed or both. A fully plotter cut design traditionally uses cut vinyl and is usually layered to achieve many colors, stripes, logos and text. A printed car wrap design will normally include all its parts and colors within a print on the same layer. However, it is very common on race car wrap designs to use both techniques. Often the main design will be printed in full color and then the sponsor logos and racing numbers applied in the traditional plotter cut method.
With that, we have most of the tools we need to get started.
The main hurdle when designing a car wrap is based on the fact that you are designing in 2 dimensions for a 3 dimensional object. This is a skill that is necessary if the wrap is to fit and look like it’s supposed to once installed on the car. This skill is not strictly car-based, but is also commonly used in other industries such as graphic design for packaging.
The other very important factor is that the design elements need to line up from panel to panel. Remember, each panel on the car is wrapped individually from a few large prints. The design must match up as close as possible where one panel meets the next.
