Hood/Nose
Mounting the hood/nose piece
Install your mounts first. They are riveted in. We used hardware store rubber grommets (1/4″ ID) to protect the bodywork from the hardware.
Next is positioning the bodywork on the mounts.
The hood does not sit on the tubes – it stands off a little to prevent scratches and increase airflow. The hood is also positioned forward on the main round 1.75″ OD “dash” tube. You want to place the hood just back enough to overlap the front of the tube from the top view. We recommend using trim to cover the edges, but it is not required.
The front hood mounts are shorter than most customers will mount their hood. Theoretically, a 1.6 hood could be mounted that low, but you’ll need to space it if using a later NA or NB (intake manifold and idle adjuster screw). We used 1/4″-20 button head screws for maximum adjustability. You can use two jam nuts to hold them in place or hardware-store clip nuts like we did. We used a hardware store rubber spacer with a washer on top for the hood to sit on. The bodywork mounts are also designed to use Dzus or quarter-turn fasteners if you wish to go that route. The front and rear bodywork mounts are pre-lased for 5/8″ and 3/4″ spring fasteners if you want to go that route.
Panelfast.com (part of Behrents Performance Warehouse) Panel Spring Adjusters
5/8″ Stainless Steel (use with 3/32″ rivets and 3000 series buttons)
PAN SSS2175 – 5/8″ spring, .175 total grip
PAN SSS3225 – 5/8″ spring, .225 total grip
3/4″ Stainless Steel (use with 3/32″ rivets and 4000 series buttons)
PAN SSS4200 – 3/4″ spring, .200 total grip
PAN SSS4250 – 3/4″ spring, .250 total grip
Alternative options
-S/S 1/4-20 bolts with nut clip on mount
-S/S 1/4-20 bolts with rivnut on mount
-Quik-latch 1/4-20 sized pop-fastener
Mount the nose after the hood, and be sure the hood is pushed all the way back on the aerocatches (they have a little slop). To mark the holes for the bodywork fasteners, we used a little bit of grease on the center of each mount and tapped the bodywork against the grease when positioned correctly. The grease marks your pilot hole, which you can drill normally. Drill your final hole with a sharp undamaged drill bit and tape the gelcoat to reduce chipping.
Trimming the Nose for Proper Fit
Different radiators will have different heights and mounting positions. Place some painters tape along the bottom of the nose. Mark out your cut lines in pencil, then go over with a sharpie. To prevent future fatigue cracks, drill holes at the intersections. A 3/8″ drill bit will work nicely. Just to further explain the stress relief holes, I made a quick drawing. The left drawing is what you want to avoid. The middle one is perfectly acceptable and will last a long time. Be sure to drill the holes first, as it is quite difficult to drill anything but a full hole in something.
The right one just simply looks a little better and more finished. You can accomplish the rounding by placing some 80-180 grit sandpaper on a thin, hard block of material. Even a ruler would work. Sand before you take off the tape, and be careful not to scratch the gelcoat. It’s good practice, as, this is a part of the car that will hopefully never see the light of day.
You can then cut the fiberglass with a metal blade. Do not use a wood blade, as you want a high tooth density to resist the chance of cracking the gelcoat. Hand saws, hack saws, jig saws, dremels, angle grinders with cutoff wheels, and pneumatic cutoff wheels all work great.
When you cut the fiberglass, wear some latex gloves and a dust mask. If you’re heating the fiberglass with your cutting tool (rotary cutoff wheels), wear a respirator. Before you take your gloves and mask off, take off the protective tape. Wet a disposable cloth and wipe down the nose to clean up the fiberglass dust. Do not use a paper towel, paper towels will scratch paint and gelcoat.
Fiberglass dust can be itchy, if you get some on your wrists or anywhere else, rinse the area in cold water. If you got some in skin folds (like inside your elbow or between your fingers), press duct tape on the affected area and pull it off. It will get the fibers out.
