Who makes the nicest steel cowl induction hood for the Malibu and El Caminos

[gnvair]

I have been thinking about pulling the trigger on a steel cowl induction hood to gain some much needed clearance for a new engine combination.
It seem there are a bunch of hoods being marketed but I am not sure if they are the same and just being marketed with different branding. Does anyone on here
have any experience and insight into them?

 

[SS_Malibu]

I’m pretty happy with my Goodmark steel Cowl Hood.

 

[Longroof79]

I guess you can't go wrong with a Goodmark hood. I'm guessing one manufacturer makes the steel cowl hoods for Goodmark, etc. .

 

[gnvair]

I’m pretty happy with my Goodmark steel Cowl Hood.

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Who did you end up purchasing it from. Was shipping included?

 

[mikester]

When my car was in the body shop I tried to order a Goodmark hood. Couldnt find one anywhere so I called Goodmark and was told there was an issue with the die in the factory. They had no idea when the hoods would be back in stock. The guy at Goodmark told me all the steel hoods were made by the same manufacturer and boxed for different vendors so I should try to find a different brand. In the end I wound up with an Auto Metal Direct. Is it the same ? I have no idea. I think its made well. The only issue I had was the scoop to windshield clearance due to the angle of the A pillars on the wagon. Finally fixed that by modifying the hinges.
My advice is try to find a local place that will order the hood for you. This way if it comes in damaged you dont have to take it and they have to deal with the trucking company. It gets you off the hook. Ive been told that can be a gigantic pain in the butt.

 

[Longroof79]

When my car was in the body shop I tried to order a Goodmark hood. Couldnt find one anywhere so I called Goodmark and was told there was an issue with the die in the factory. They had no idea when the hoods would be back in stock. The guy at Goodmark told me all the steel hoods were made by the same manufacturer and boxed for different vendors so I should try to find a different brand. In the end I wound up with an Auto Metal Direct. Is it the same ? I have no idea. I think its made well. The only issue I had was the scoop to windshield clearance due to the angle of the A pillars on the wagon. Finally fixed that by modifying the hinges.
My advice is try to find a local place that will order the hood for you. This way if it comes in damaged you dont have to take it and they have to deal with the trucking company. It gets you off the hook. Ive been told that can be a gigantic pain in the butt.

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Mich,
I remember you mentioning about the lack of clearance between the edge of the cowl and windshield. Fortunately I didn't have that problem.
My hood was a blem that I purchased years back at the Super Chevy Show at the dragstrip.

 

[SS_Malibu]

I ordered mine through Parts Geek almost two years ago. Dec. 2021. I had to pay shipping. The hood was just under $400, shipping was a little over $150 plus some tax. About $600 total.

 

[abbey castro]

This is Goodmark. Fit is pretty good considering that most metal panels are a poor fit at best. I got a glass trunk lid that is a really bad fit with gaps that are fixable only by adding glass and grinding away.

 

[BlairC_789]

When my car was in the body shop I tried to order a Goodmark hood. Couldnt find one anywhere so I called Goodmark and was told there was an issue with the die in the factory. They had no idea when the hoods would be back in stock. The guy at Goodmark told me all the steel hoods were made by the same manufacturer and boxed for different vendors so I should try to find a different brand. In the end I wound up with an Auto Metal Direct. Is it the same ? I have no idea. I think its made well. The only issue I had was the scoop to windshield clearance due to the angle of the A pillars on the wagon. Finally fixed that by modifying the hinges.
My advice is try to find a local place that will order the hood for you. This way if it comes in damaged you dont have to take it and they have to deal with the trucking company. It gets you off the hook. Ive been told that can be a gigantic pain in the butt.

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thats weird. I also have an auto metal direct hood on my wagon and never had any clearance issues.

 

[mikester]

Does your hood look like this ? The guy in the shop told me about the issue after it was painted in the first coat of base. He suggested drilling the hinge and putting in a small screw as a stop. Not something I would consider. In the end I figured out a way to solve the problem and it gives me over 1/2" of space.