Cold Air Hood Mod

[MIKE80]

I started this thread on another forum and wanted to see what you guys think of this mod I'm working on.

I marked off my stock 80' hood and made a cardboard template.



Next I used the template to cut out the piece I need out of a fiberglass panel. The panel is a roof wind deflector from a tractor trail, new/ unused that work was throwing out, so it didn't cost me anything.



I removed the hood and prepped it for attaching the fiberglass panel.



I used Norton's Speedgrip Adhesive to attach the panel to the hood. I already had the applicator gun, so the adhesive was about $35.



I now have the air chamber done. The front will seal against the radiator support when closed. I still need to cut out the opening for the air cleaner.





Next I will modify my air cleaner base to create a pan that will seal my existing air cleaner assembly to the new cold air chamber.

This was my existing air cleaner assembly. The plan is to seal around it so it can still draw air in from the sides and also the XStream Air Flow Top.



I ran into some clearance issues with the hood and had to take a hole saw and drill a couple areas to clear the ac line from the compressor, and serpentine tensioner. Also the upper rad hose hits, but I don't think its too bad since I have it rapped with a plastic shielding. I'll glass those areas later.



Here's some pics of the air cleaner that I came up with to seal to the hood.









There is a 16 gauge aluminum "cake pan" 16" x 3" deep, that is cut in the center and the air cleaner base is attached/ sealed to. The sides of the pan are cut/ tapered front to back for hood clearance as that is the way the hood is angled when closed. The foam is Moroso flame resistant hood seal foam designed to seal the air cleaner to the hood and is 1.5" x 4". The foam seal is cut and fit over the side walls of the pan except for the top that seals against the hood. Cost was $20 for the cake pan and $20 for the Moroso foam seal. I used my existing base plate and K&N air filter, so $40 total and is basically the same thing as the $250 aftermarket one I was going to order and have to taper cut to clear the hood and add the foam seal to.





Another option is to use top bulb mount weatherstrip seal (trunk type seal), but I'm sticking with the foam seal for now.

Also, when I go to do the body and paint, I may change the air intake to a vent something like this one.



I still need to cut the opening in the air chamber for the air cleaner and glass the holes I made for extra clearance. I have a total of about $75 into it. I'll post more picks when I'm finished with the hood.

[AirbornSilva]

Was following this on "the other corvette forum" and will follow it here to just in case you add anything different.... hey, you wouldn't want to come on over and do mine would ya, you have better skills then I do from what I'm seeing

[MIKE80]

Originally Posted by AirbornSilva

Was following this on "the other corvette forum" and will follow it here to just in case you add anything different.... hey, you wouldn't want to come on over and do mine would ya, you have better skills then I do from what I'm seeing

Thanks! I used to have 2 80' vettes, but I sold one of them. Working on 1 vette is enough for me. What I've done here so far really is not difficult to do. Just mostly a lot of measuring. I was just looking for a low cost way of getting cool air to the engine and thought this would be a good idea.

[AirbornSilva]

Originally Posted by MIKE80

Thanks! I used to have 2 80' vettes, but I sold one of them. Working on 1 vette is enough for me. What I've done here so far really is not difficult to do. Just mostly a lot of measuring. I was just looking for a low cost way of getting cool air to the engine and thought this would be a good idea.

I agree, it is a great idea and incorporates the original idea behind the cowl hood

[Moonsteel]

I've always wondered why there was no aftermarket hood with an opening there...

[PNHNDLE96CE]

Very Cool! Can't wait to see the end result!

[CFD E59]

Scene that on the other forum. Nice job with the mod.

[tektrans]

Love the home-made stuff!! Nice job!

[Turbo84]

My compliments on the use of the aluminum cake pan. Looks very good there (and the price was reasonable).

Very creative!

[MIKE80]

Originally Posted by Turbo84

My compliments on the use of the aluminum cake pan. Looks very good there (and the price was reasonable).

Very creative!

Thanks Guys! Actually, I saw the cake pan idea on some of the other muscle car forums Camaro, etc. and figured it should work out pretty good for what I'm doing. Could probably even go with a 17" pan, but would need to mod the back to clear the distributor. Another option, instead of the foam seal, could use a weatherstrip type seal like a trunk seal. I looked at some aftermarket cold air intakes, they weren't cheap and most likely needed some kind of mods to work. I like the cowl induction and thought that having it forward facing to the front air dam should work pretty good to supply fresh cool air. And if I decide to add a ram air vent to the top of the hood, most of the work is already done. At a later time, I might do some kind of splitter for the lower front bumper to see if it helps draw air into the air dam.

I blew my back out pretty bad last Sunday, couldn't move and had an ambulance take me out on a backboard, so I've just been home resting and hopefully can get the hood completed soon. I'm looking forward to taking the vette out for a test run. Sucks being home and not able to do much, but at least I'm starting to feel better.

[tektrans]

I like the idea of an additional vent-I was thinking the vent on your hood is kinda tight-may not let enough air in for the motor and choke it a bit-especially on hotter days but still a great starting point and very original.
Maybe you should stuff those extra holes you had to make with more foam so you dont lose any pressure you build at speed as well.

[raidmagic]

Nice work under the hood but I gotta say the top side of that hood is killer!!

[MIKE80]

Originally Posted by tektrans

I like the idea of an additional vent-I was thinking the vent on your hood is kinda tight-may not let enough air in for the motor and choke it a bit-especially on hotter days but still a great starting point and very original.
Maybe you should stuff those extra holes you had to make with more foam so you dont lose any pressure you build at speed as well.

The opening is a decent size so I don't think it will restrict the airflow. I'll have to measure it, can't remember what the measurement was. The holes that I made for clearance will be fiberglassed closed with indents for the clearance needed and the air chamber will be totally sealed to the air cleaner.

[MIKE80]

Originally Posted by raidmagic

Nice work under the hood but I gotta say the top side of that hood is killer!!

Thanks. Yeah, came across a pic of that hood someone modded and liked what they did. I'll probably do something like that when I do the body and paint. Maybe put the vent back a bit more for a larger opening.

[The Torch]

That is crazy cool. I think it is great when someone uses ingenuity and some free stuff to mod a car. Killer mod at a reasonable price