KSkins 3M Audi Key Fob Vinyl – Matte Carbon Fiber

I was recently sent this really cool product called a “key skin” to review by the creators of Kskins themselves, Erik, Ole & Kris. While I’m quite familiar with wrapping your car, I had never thought of wrapping my key fob before; but that’s just what the team at kskins dreamed up of. It seemed unnecessary at first, but after having applied to my key fob, I think they’re really onto something. I opted for the matte carbon fiber finish, and every time I go to pick up my keys I notice and appreciate it as one of the smaller details that make me happy.

For just $12.99, this pre-cut kit is sent directly to your house with shipping included. It arrived in about a week, and was about as easy to install as putting a sticker on anything else. I wiped my key fob down with alcohol to remove any oils or grease, let it dry thoroughly, then placed the stickers on one section at a time.

The key is to go slow, and be patient. It reminded me a lot of installing tempered glass screen protectors in my iPhone, if you’ve ever done that. Once I had all three parts of the key skin laid down, I hit my key with a hair dryer to help the vinyl conform into place around some of the curves and edges. It looked great, but oddly enough after a few days it looks even better as the adhesive really took hold. You can see in one of the pictures below I didn’t have one section lined up quite perfect, but after a few days it seemed to have worked itself into the right spot.

The quality of the 3M vinyl is great, and seems like it should hold up well over time, not to mention protect the original key fob finish underneath, too. Although it is a matte carbon fiber finish, it does have a nice gloss in direct sunlight as shown above. Sometimes the carbon fiber vinyl looks a little too fake for my taste when I see it on cars (such as wrapping the whole hood), but on such a small surface like a key fob the pattern isn’t repeated too much so it actually looks pretty realistic. Oddly enough with the size of the key fob, it would be nearly impossible to actually wrap it in carbon fiber, so in this case going for a faux carbon fiber look isn’t just cheaper but it’s probably the only way to accomplish this look in the first place.

The other thing I love about this being vinyl is that it doesn’t make the key any thicker. With my old B7 S4 I had a plastic key fob cover made by OSIR and while I loved the look, it made the key bulky and the plastic cover had a tendency to fall off once it jostled around in my pockets for a while…with vinyl neither of these are concerns, the vinyl stays glued into place (literally) and its so thin you’ll never notice the increased thickness. As long as you align the sticker well when you apply it, you really don’t have to worry about it going anywhere.

The guys at kskins are looking to add more key fob designs and colors over time, so definitely check back in if you don’t see your particular key available. At the time of writing they hadn’t even added my particular key fob to their site, so email them directly if you don’t see your key listed as they might already have the design ready to go. I can tell you they make this for the style of key you see pictured (Type II) and the more recent design (Type III), so they should have most Audi owners covered. I hope they consider adding an Ibis White color in the future, as I’d love for my key fob to match my exterior – in the meantime, carbon fiber works well as it matches my OEM mirrors and the aftermarket carbon fiber bits I have installed like my front & rear spoilers.

A special thanks to kskins for sending me a sample to review. Although I was provided this free of charge, I would say if I didn’t like the product (or simply decline to post) so I like to think it didn’t influence my review whatsoever. If you’re in the market for a key skin cover, or if you’re like me and didn’t even know these existed but suddenly now want one, I highly suggest you check them out. For the price, it’s a great way to add a little custom flair to your keys, and it’s one of those mods that make a bigger difference than you’d think since you’ve almost always got your keys on you or pick them up and put them in your hands and notice “hey, this looks pretty cool” that makes you really appreciate it.

Update August, 2019:

I’ve had the key skin over a year and a half, and it’s still holding up really great!

I’ve put this through the ringer as the car is not only my daily driver, but I’m an avid long distance runner so it often is zipped into my shorts where it gets both hot and sweaty…and no peeling or issues to speak of.

I also get lots of questions and compliments on the key skin, so that’s really neat.

If you’re worried about the durability of this, I wouldn’t sweat it – it’s been holding up great for me, and is showing no signs of damage.