'78-'81 Lemans/GA Hood Option

[SafariWagon]

Hey Troy,

I am digging this topic up. As you know I put a T/A shaker on my wagon, love the look but the hood is wavy. I have tried 3 different hoods, and they all have a wavy appearance to them. I think the factory sheet metal was just so thin that after 30 years most of them are a bit wavy. If you try to skim coat it and sand it it "oil cans" and pops back and forth. Like I said 3 hoods and they are all trash IMO. So anyway if you ever figure out a fiberglass one let me know. I am not sure who your contact is but if they manufacture a hood to install a factory T/A shaker that would be great too. I am afraid to try and modify their stock flat hood by cutting a hole in it. I think the corners back by the cowl side of the hood will want to crack. it would have to be heavily reinforced around the opening.

Either way I may be interested if you figure something out that looks more pontiac-ish.

Lindsay

 

[Longroof79]

I always thought that the shaker hood was a natural for these cars, and to also be able to retain a purely Pontiac identity.
However, I could see where the Firebird style raised hood would be a viable option over a Chevy style cowl induction hood.

 

[SafariWagon]

What if they raised the "spear portion" of this hood as seen in the maroon car TDvick posted only say 2" taller fitting like a cowl hood to the windshield and still had the option to have the shaker opening. Then it would seem to me everyone would be happy. Any others interested?

 

[Bonnewagon]

I love the shaker too, but another problem with the shaker is- which scoop and base would fit? As you know, the bases were different on the 301, 400-455, and 403. The scoops were also changed a few times. '70-'72, '73-'76, and '77-'81 I think. Not to mention how hard it is to find them, although JC Whitney had a '73-'76 knockoff for sale.

But what would be really cool is what Stoopud did with his car.

http://gbodyforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=13135&p=97943&hilit=hood+scoops#p97943

 

[SafariWagon]

I was trying to find something that may work for everyone. Some guys need more hood clearance than what a stock Firebird 400 type hood would offer. Going with a 4" cowl type hood kind of looks overkill on a street car IMO. If you kept the raised portion to 2" or so I bet that would offer enough room for a taller intake. Shakers are reproduced and available at Fbody warehouse........cost is about $350 though. Ebay is still fairly plentiful with shaker scoops. I think they could be fastened to just about any aftermarket air cleaner with a little engine-uity. Or who knows if there is enough interest maybe VFN could come up with something more universal for the scoop as well.

 

[adam6640]

I would like to see them make a ram air style,it would be a no brainer for a Pontiac JMO, I like the 71 72 GTO hood the best

 

[Longroof79]

I also like the GTO ram air design. It's a nice clean look. However, the area may need to be raised or bumped up to alleviate any carb clearance issues.

 

[SafariWagon]

I have been in contact with VFN Fiberglass. They are trying to cut back on custom work. No plans to come out with any new hoods in the near future. They will take their stock replacement style hood and cut a hole in it for a shaker and reinforce the back for an additional cost of $20. I am going that route. More clearance for a taller intake would have been nice, but this will work for me.

 

[tdvick]

I just emailed the person that I had been in contact with at VFN today too. I probably asked similar questions to what you did. I asked for pictures of the backside of their stock replacement hood to see what they have to work with. I expect that I'll hear back tomorrow.

I like the 71-72 and Formula style hoods too, I just don't think they would look right on a boxy car like the g body Lemans. I think the 64-65 GTO probably has the most similar body lines, but neither of those hoods give any extra clearance either.

I guess I'm still unsure of what I'll do...

 

[tdvick]

Well,

As expected, I got pretty much the same response as you did Lindsay. No raised hood as part of their standard line for now. They can custom make pretty much anything you want, but it's about twice as expensive, ~$800. If 10 people can agree on a design, they'll tool up for it a make it a standard offering at their standard price. That doesn't seem too likely at this point.

Lindsay, let us know how your hood turns out.

Thanks,
Troy