There’s a bit of confusion about the difference between semi-custom car covers and custom car covers. A lot of people don’t know that there’s a difference, or if they know, what exactly that difference is. So, let’s take a look at some of the similarities and differences between semi-custom and custom car covers.

Protection from the Elements

Both semi-custom and custom car covers will protect your vehicle from the elements. Rain, snow, hail, and animals can all damage your car’s paint, impacting the visual appeal of your car and possibly even it’s resale value down the line by allowing rust and other damage to accumulate on your car.

By using either a semi-custom or custom car cover you can prevent, or at the very least lessen, the damage caused by nature and the elements, prolonging the life of your car’s paint job and increasing the amount that you can one day sell it for when you’re ready to upgrade to a new car.

Protection from Impact Damage

While no car cover is going to completely prevent impact damage from things like hail or shopping carts, that extra bit of padding that a semi-custom or custom cover provides can turn a deep dent with chips in the paint into a smaller dent without any damage to your paint, requiring only to have the dent removed, not having the car’s paint job redone or touched up.

In the long run this can save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars, especially if you live in an area prone to hail storms.

Protection from Dust

You might not realize it, but that dust that accumulates on your car is fairly abrasive and can do severe damage to your car’s paint job if not either removed or prevented. By covering your car with a semi-custom or custom car cover you can prevent a large amount of dust from building up on your car when it’s not being driven and from damaging your car’s paint.

Designed to Fit Your Car

A semi-custom car cover is designed to fit your car’s overall shape and design. One car cover can fit several different models, from a Toyota Corolla to a Honda Accord, an advantage if you move from one make and model to another that’s still similar in design. That’s not to say that the cover will be loose and billowy, only that it’s not designed to fit only your vehicle. That being said, a well made semi-custom cover will still fit your vehicle snuggly, preventing it from being blown away in high winds or from allowing dust and other abrasive dirt to get in underneath the cover.

A custom car cover is designed to fit your specific vehicle. The advantage of this is that you know it will fit your exact car without question. The disadvantage of this is that if you change your car to a different make and model, there’s a good chance that your car cover is now useless and that you’ll have to buy a new one. Like the semi-custom cover, the fit of the custom cover will help prevent the cover from being blown away in high wind and from allowing dirt and dust from getting under the cover and onto your vehicle.

Cost

At this point you were probably wondering exactly how a semi-custom and custom cover were different. Price is a big factor. A semi-custom cover can cost hundreds of dollars less than a custom car cover for a cover made with the same materials. In an experiment, covers for a 2010 Honda Insight were compared for semi-custom and custom. Prices for the semi-custom cover ranged from $30 to $150 depending on the color and material. The custom car cover ranged in price from $160 to $400 depending on material and color. That’s a huge difference for a cover that you can only use on one car.

Protecting Your Vehicle

In the end, having a car cover is what’s really important. Protecting your vehicle ensures that it not only looks good, but runs well also. Purchasing a semi-custom car cover can offer you the same protection of a custom car cover, but save you hundreds of dollars and last you through several vehicles. Make sure that you get a cover that is tailored for your vehicle to ensure maximum protection, and most importantly, remember to put it on.

Author Bio: Jack Labens works for Empire Covers, a leading provider of semi-custom car covers and accessories such as floor mats and Tonneau truck bed covers. Empire Covers can be found online at: EmpireCovers.com .

Category: Automotive
Keywords: car cover,car covers,custom car cover,semi-custom cover,semi-custom car covers,custom car covers