Ok. Someone at a cruise I attended, told me that there is a way to tell if my hood is a fake or authentic. Does anyone know? My car is a 1972 W-30 442. Thanks for any info. Brian

 

Brian,

Ya got the "X" VIN. You really need to be a little more secure in yourself and your car.

 

Hi Joe
I don't follow what you mean. Can you explain?

 

he's half joking. You have the one and only year of W30 production that can be verified by the VIN, the X in a 1972 Cutlass VIN tag verifies that the car game with a W30 engine. Every other year before that the only way to tell is with documentation that is rarely found on a Lansing built car. So whether your hood is real or a reproduction it doesn't matter as your car is a real W30.

I don't know how to tell the difference between a real hood and the newer better reproductions. It used to be the repos were all fiberglass and the real ones had a metal frame, but there are now great reproductions. I'd do a search, I remember reading somewhere there is a bit of a difference in the stamping of the steel frame on the new repos but who knows if that is true

 

i've noticed that the factory hoods tend not to fit so well. as if they were made slightly shorter and thus hang a little lower than the front fenders. this is the case in the 1970 model year. perhaps someone can verify this.

 

I'm pulling your chain.

You've got the only W-30 that can be documented with the VIN, yet you're asking questions about validating that it's real. Sorry, I didn't mean anything by it.

 

Agree, for 70, a real W25 factory hood will not fit as well as the steel or repo. A good indication is to look how the chrome trim pice on the hood lines up to the trim piece on the fender (driver's side) it will be lower, when all other areas of the hood, fender are aligned as best thay can be. Perhaps there is a way to cheat this and set the fender to line up .I will not adust mine or care to, it is a lttle thing these hoods have, and Olds had on the cutlass, that gives it that orrigial look. (check factory photes for proof).

 

I've been told by very knowledgeable sources that the only difference is that the factory hoods have one small hole in the side-facing wall of each scoop toward the front...and in the hoods I've seen, this proves true.

The walls closest to the center of the hood...one hole per scoop.

I suppose it's possible for an owner to drill those holes in a repro hood, but he may not get the placement right....other than that...good luck.

 

Mine sits a bit lower especially on the drivers side, another way to tell is if you put water on the hood it should form puddles everywhere as they were quite uneven, I fixed that but as Del70 said, I'm leaving the alignment as is, I see that all the time too in original pics

 

Thanks for the info. I was not questioning my car being a real W-30 or 442, My question was about AOI hood. I got the answer I was looking for from VikingBlue.

I was told about the holes and wanted to get validation from anyone who would mention that fact without me stating it first. Thanks VikingBlue. As for someone drilling them in a repro, they'd have to have very, very tiny hands.

 

interesting, you mean inside the scoop near the fron towards the center. So you would have to look into the scoop from above the hood towards the middle. THis you can't see from under the hood correct?

 

this is interesting, i just went out to the garage to look at my car. there they were about two inches in. shine a light in to help see

 

I've also been told at a cruise night that an original OAI hood will have rough edges underneath where the fiberglass meets the metal frame. The aftermarket hoods are molded with much more precision and have no rough edges. Not sure if this is true.