'78-'81 Lemans/GA Hood Option

[tdvick]

The feedback that I had gotten before is that most people wouldn't be interested in a standard Chevy style cowl hood on a Pontiac. What's your thought's on this style hood on a '78 to '81? This is a hood that VFN offers for '67-'69 Firebirds. I'm not sure how it would look on a G body. I just modified the leading edge of the Firebird hood to look more like it would on a '78-'81. I'm asking because VFN said that if they can get about 10 people to commit to buying a hood, they would tool up for it. The design is open at this point. Here's my modified picture.

This is the hood as it would be for the Firebird,

 

[Doug213xrj]

Hey, I would go with a shaker from a T/A or Fire bird for 78-81 Grand Am or Lemans, Then all thats needed is the shaker and I can use the stock hood.



Doug

 

[pontiacgp]

Hey, I would go with a shaker from a T/A or Fire bird for 78-81 Grand Am or Lemans, Then all thats needed is the shaker and I can use the stock hood.



Doug

x2

 

[G-Body_Vet]

If I could design a hood for them I would lean towards something like the '71-72 GTO style. The center could be raised slightly for hood clearance and it still has that Pontiac identity about it. I like the 68-70 GTO style but it doesn't do much for hood clearance unless it could be modified. The nice thing about the 68-70 is that it shares that similar center section that runs all the way to the front of the car like the GA & LeMans have. Otherwise I like the shaker too.
http://www.vfnfiberglass.com/6872gto.htm

 

[tdvick]

The main reason that I'm trying to get a hood is for clearance. A shaker does look good. I've seen a couple examples of them on these cars. There's no clearance gained with that though. I don't want to screw around with tiny air cleaners trying to get my motor to fit under the hood. Just trying to find something that would look better than a Chevy cowl.

 

[adam6640]

I agree with g-body vet a ram air style for sure raised a little then you could keep the pontiac lines

 

[tdvick]

The problem that I see this the ram air style hood is the square body lines and the wide header panel. I don't know if that style hood would fit with the lines of these cars or not. The A and F bodies that they were used on were a much more rounded car. I think the lines of the '64 or '65 GTO are probably the ones that most closely match these cars. They are both boxes. I don't think a '65 to '67 hood scoop would do anything for clearance either.

I really thought there would be a lot of interest in this, though, I'm starting to think VFN might be making the right decision by not offering a raised hood for these cars.

Oh, here's a picture for you guys that like the shaker. It does look good, just don't work for what I want to do...

 

[G-Body_Vet]

I think the '81 LeMans is probably the best front end to go with a shaker. It reminds me of the '77-78 TA in a way.

On 2nd thought, I don't think a cowl hood would be too bad as long as it follows the lines from where the header panel crests. I think the anti-cowl sentiment just comes from wanting to retain some Pontiac identity. I imagine the Regal guys prefer turbo hoods, as how the Cutlass guys prefer a Hurst scoop or W30 hood.

Or....you could go out on a limb and try something similar to a '73 GA with the naca ducts incorporated. The only downside is that a lot of people probably wouldn't recognize the Poncho lineage and just think you did some weird sh*t to your car :lol:

 

[tdvick]

Still like to find a raised hood option. Looks like it's going to be a struggle finding something that a handful of people could agree on...

 

[RegalBegal]

I think the '81 LeMans is probably the best front end to go with a shaker. It reminds me of the '77-78 TA in a way.

X2!! Love the shaker!!