I got a bolt-on ls1 firebird (no ws6) hood from VFN, and I dropped it off to my mechanic to fit it. He calls me up and asks me what's the point. I say weight, he says my stock hood IS fiberglass already and there's no point to replace it, unless I'm going to ram air hood.

Is this true? What's the weight of the stock one? the VFN hood i got is very light (13lbs) and while the stock hood doesn't feel heavy, but it doesn't feel like it's 13lbs either.
Confused and aggrevated,

Marcin

I am curious as well. I have been thinking about a 'glass hood lately for the same reason.

I don't have the weights in front of me, but I believe the stock hood is above 30 lbs. , so at 14 lbs you are saving 15-20 lbs.

I would go for a more "agressive" looking hood if it was me though...

I don't have the weights in front of me, but I believe the stock hood is above 30 lbs. , so at 14 lbs you are saving 15-20 lbs.

I would go for a more "agressive" looking hood if it was me though...



...OK....I looked it up....it says stock hood with insulation etc. is 44 lbs....

I looked it up too on ls1tech someone compiled a big list of weight savings, and it says 30lbs for going stock->fiberglass, which sounds about right. Can anyone actually weight it?

the stock non ram air hood is metal, the SS, WS6, and firehawk hoods are all fiberglass

On my old car (T/A) I got hail damage on the three metal pieces on my car: 2 dents on hood and 1 on each rear fender

all the gm hoods are steel

slp hoods are not steel

Do we have any part numbers, or option codes, so I could tell my mechanic he's an idiot and just do as he's told?

I suggest bringing a magnet to your mechanic’s shop. When it sticks to the OEM hood, he should be convinced that it is not fiberglass. If he feels the magnet clinging to the hood and still says that it is fiberglass, I would consider getting another mechanic.

I have stuck magnets to the flat hood on my T/A.

Marcin, it sounds like you and your mechanic could very easily solve this disagreement if he has a scale. If you have a stock metal hood you should save at least 30 lbs. I got a pin-on VFN hood for my '94 but haven't installed it yet. Heck, I can fling this hood around with one hand. All you have to do is lift your stock hood with the help of the struts and you know it's a LOT heavier.

Wonder if there's a savings with my WS-6 hood. Only way that an aftermarket fiberglass one would be lighter is if it was thinner fiberglass. But, then I'd worry about stone strikes, strength at attachment points, etc.

Oh, I guarantee you the VFN hood is thinner and lighter than your stock WS6 hood, especially if you go with the pin-on version of the VFN hood. No OE would put this hood on their car to sell to the general public. They also sell a bolt-on hood which is heavier, but I bet it's only different where reinforcements are needed for the strut mountings and the front hook point.

I got the flat bolt on version, it's only 2 lbs heavier than the pin-on, so not much difference there. Since this is just a hood, vs stock hood (whether it's fibercarbon or metal), could there potentially be 30 lbs difference in sound dampening material + mounts + struts alone? ( since we don't know what does the 44lbs for the stock setup truly entails)

If all SS/WS6/Firehawk people have non-steel, would you have some sort of different codes/part numbers for it?
Could anyone with a 99 Formula (or equivalent) try to stick your fridge magnets to your hood really quick?
I really wanna stick it to my mechanic at this point, as my car been sitting in his shop for few days now.
Thanks for all the info so far, it's good to have all this 'ammunition'!

Would you settle for a photo of my car with a magnet on the hood? I promise I would not put a sticker on my hood.

Interesting. For a '93-'97 Firebird the bolt-on hood is 23 lbs. vs. 11 lbs. for the pin-on hood. For a LS1 Firebird they show the same weight for both bolt-on and pin-on in their online catalog. Can't figure that one out. I'm suspecting a typo. You might want to weigh your glass hood Marcin.

Good Pic!

Stock metal to stock composite delta is very close to 30 pounds. I have read several times over the last 7 years they weighed the two parts, and the difference they quote is consistent.

As others have said, if it is stock 4th gen hood and the car is not a SS or WS6 it is steel.

Sigh, you can tap on it and tell by the sound if the hood is steel or composite. The guy is a mech-what?

I would sure like to have a fiberglass hood on my 3rd gen CMC car. Does anyone know of a manufacturer who makes one that looks stock and not like something out of Knight Rider?

I was sure that Harwood did one, but it looks like "did" is the word. They only show a couple cowl style hoods (I had a lift off on my '89 formula and it was not too bad looking, not that I'm a cowl hood fan, but there was a super victor under it and I needed the room).

http://shop.eharwood.com/cgi-bin/harwood/s...ANS+AM&x=27&y=8

Julie, try http://www.vfnfiberglass.com/8292firebird.htm .

I don't know why you are allowing this to go on anymore. It seems a little ?? to be in a pissin match with this guy over something so trivial.You hired the guy to put the hood on,and thats what he should have done,a long time ago. He's jerkin you around on this and you are hooked into his bs,line and sinker.I would tell him to just put the hood on or I come get it,GET IT.
Heck by this point my car would be home I get a bad feeling about this. Like hes stalling so he can drive your baby around kiddin
Why not do it yourself.It is pretty easy with a friend.Bolt ons are way easier then pin ons. I say tackle it yourself. No problem tell him to shove it !
BTW no flame intended buddy its just not supposed to be like this,what you are going through good luck.

Tony

Thanks guys for all the help, now, I think, he's gonna stop questioning my car knowledge, finally.

I get to his shop, we start arguing first thing as I show up in the door, I tell him to get a magnet, so we grab one and go play with it. He doesn't like the magnet idea, because it might lead us to a wrong conclusion if it's alumnium. We get to the car, and low and behold, the magnet sticks! Not fiber, not even aluminum, but good old metal! Oh you should see the face.

So it's been few days, I'm right, but the hood still isn't on, as I need to take my car out of the shop. The car needed few other little things to be adjusted, so at least I'm happy to have AC back, as Chicago summer been slowly creeping up on us.
To add insult to the injury, as i'm driving back home, the 'oil change' light goes on for a while then disappears, and the AC system makes new and different noises this time.
I am so having him to paint and install this hood for free...

I'm so frustrated by this point, but at least we estabilished I'm not the 'mechanical retard' that he thinks I am, and he's not that good of car guy, as I thought. I really didn't wanna go down the "I pay you, you shovel my shit any way I want you to" road, but I probably should have.

Live. Learn. Pay some more.

Screw all this, at least next week I'm putting in a new cam (in a different shop, that provides good work, not just 'color commentary' about what makes sense to do to my car and what doesn't), that oughtta keep me happy.

Thanks guys for keeping me informed and entertained. I wish I had some pics to post, but no hood, no pics.

So are the fiberglass SLP hoods close in weight to the VNF bolt-ons? Although I've never liked the looks much, the function of the "Ultra Z" hood is starting to win me over after having to re-do my CAI....

One more.

http://www.usbodysource.com/

We use those on the AIX car. They are a little "heavy" compared to the Harwood stuff I've used in the past, but they work well, fit well and are durable. They do a stock 82-92 Camaro hood (smooth/flat) and a Firebird hood as well. I forgot about these guys.

Kevin

Oh cool! Thanks for that US Body Source Reference! Next season I'll be sportin' one of their hoods!

Glad to help. I had almost forgotten those guys (and the race car is almost all their stuff, it is the Mach one on their customers page).

Mike, how durable is the hood itself? The pin-on version is roughly $100 less than the 18lb bolt-on version, and weighs less by a few pounds... seems like a win-win situation. Is it durable enough for one person to remove it, or do you think it would warp if it wasn't held at all four corners when taking it off? (I hope that question made sense).

Pete, I'm starting to notice some various weights for VFN hoods on their website between pin-on and bolt-on. I'd call them to verify weight differences.

Anyway, to your question, the hood is pretty sturdy. I don't think it would be very hard for one person to lift it off. It's not that flexible.

Just weighed my stock '94 Formula hood without the struts, etc. It weighs 45.5 lbs. Insulation was stripped off long ago, but didn't weigh anything anyway. That means my VFN liftoff hood will save me 34.5 lbs. I'm estimating that the dzus fasteners and brackets for the liftoff will weigh about as much as my hood struts and brackets. I'll weigh them later.

OK Mike....just ordered my VFN today...

You're going curazyyyyyyyyyyy buying stuff lately Randy. Did you recently inherit some money or something, or is it just that you're not racing for now and that makes your disposable income much more?

Did you get the liftoff hood or hinged style? Cowl induction or flat top?

2 inch cowl pin on!



no racing has made wifey happier...but when the CC bill comes she will be....

Well, knowing you you'll have the pin-on hood painted and mounted in less than a month. When you do please post pics. It's engine first for me, so I'm not working on physically installing the hood yet.

will do.....although 1/2 my cowl may be gone
....

we are looking to remove this regardless of the 180 headers to (1) free up space so my fat arms can reach down in there....(2) get some heat out of there....(3) bye bye weight.....

Gonna cut up the front pretty good too.....bare minimum all the way!