Real Carbon Fiber vs. “carbon fiber wrap”

Lately I’ve seen an uptick in tuning companies selling a fabric that they call “carbon fiber wrap.”   It is meant to be a low cost imitation carbon fiber for the masses.  I think this is great.  It’s an excellent alternative for people who otherwise couldn’t afford a real carbon fiber upgrade and want to spruce up their interiors.  Furthermore, it only increases the exclusivity of real carbon fiber parts.

However, I’ve also noticed that some people that sell this “carbon fiber wrap” are purposefully vague about what it really is.  They aren’t forthcoming about it essentially being a vinyl sticker with a carbon fiber pattern stamped on it.  Some even go as far as to say it looks just like the real thing at a fraction of the price and this just isn’t the case at all.

I’ll let the pictures do the rest of the talking, they speak for themselves: