Hood clearance ideas?

[bobcat]

Just picked up my first G-body, an '86 GP. I plan to swap in a 5.3 Vortec, and eventually turbocharge it. If it pans out, I WILL need to raise the hood for clearance. What have other people done? I've seen a few pics of cars with Chevy style cowl-induction hoods, but I don't think they suit the Pontiac styling. Twin scoops like the GTO or first gen Firebird might look good, but won't help for clearance.... Any ideas? Pics are appreciated.

 

[bobcat]

Found a link- http://www.up22.com/scoopw3.htm#SC-555

I like the PR1 and PR8 for clearance and looks, but I'm not sure if I want to look around them all the time.....I really hope to stumble onto something Pontiac-ish to meet my needs. I really like the PR82E Eleanor hood , but the line down the middle is too pronounced for a GP IMO.

 

[v8power]

dont waste your time and money on a scoop like that, it will always peel away from the hood. better off getting a whole hood. i know glass tech makes some good stuff.

 

[v8power]

or maybe get a stock fiberglass hood and put one of the fiberglass cowls that you want on, that would work too, but im sure it would be expensive by the time you buy the two parts and glass them together.

 

[bobcat]

dont waste your time and money on a scoop like that, it will always peel away from the hood. better off getting a whole hood. i know glass tech makes some good stuff.

Yeah, I hear ya. Just brainstorming a little. I found this link- http://www.artfiberglass.com/auto/6587grandprix.html Nice stuff, very light, but there it is again, the Chevy cowl-induction scoop. Ugh, on the GP at least. I might have to learn to like it though.

 

[jrm81bu]

If you were to get rid of the truck intake for an ls1 intake that may solve your hood clearance issues.

 

[bobcat]

If you were to get rid of the truck intake for an ls1 intake that may solve your hood clearance issues.

True dat. Problem is budget, and also consideration for turbo plumbing.

Going with LS parts on the engine for the lower profile would be awesome, but if I don't find the parts cheap, the hood will be the more cost effective option. I see these parts advertised for sale, but I don't know if, for example, the truck fuel rails would swap onto the LS manifold. I'm afraid it might start a domino effect of parts I need to buy. Unless I can stumble across a package deal, the truck intake it'll be.

The turbo install plan is to flip the manifolds, join them at the front of the engine with a Y pipe, and mount the turbo at the front of the engine, off to one side. I haven't actually had my hands on it yet for fitting, but I'm guessing that all of that, along with intake and intercooler piping, will take some space to install.

I want to make this car (real) fast for less than 10k, and I think I can do it. I know that real money will have to go into the driveline, and a good ball-bearing turbo is also a priority for me. In order to finish this project instead of having it drag on forever I might have to forgo some of the pretty stuff. If it makes 500+ hp like it should, I can live with the truck intake.

 

[Blake442]

If you're worried about hood clearance, the cheapest option is to just go with no hood. Problem solved.

 

[bobcat]

If you're worried about hood clearance, the cheapest option is to just go with no hood. Problem solved.

That's definitely how it'll start. Don't want to buy the hood first, then have to fit everything into it.....there's a guy in town running a centrifugal supercharged 1100hp BBC (!), he's got a big cowl hood and there are still cutouts for some pipe clearance.

Check out the dyno run in this thread. Awesome!- http://www.performance-shop.com/yabbse/ ... ic=54527.0

I saw this car run 8.80 in the quarter, I couldn't believe my eyes. This is a big heavy car, and it flies.

 

[RegalBegal]

Depending on how much clearance you need, you could cut the center section of the hood along the body lines and raise it up. Then, mold in a pair of GTO looking scoops like the ones from Lund.