Havnt posted in awhile but through I would start a new thread.

After 15 years I finally got tired of fixing the rust under my hood and put in an order at thortons.

they are going to paint it to match my car when I drive down, bolt it on and drive home.

lead time in 6 months, I’m pretty stoked!!! The old girl needs a good spruce up!

cheers

Tony

 

Congratulations! Those hoods fit really good. It took me over a year for me to get my hood from them many years ago.

 

What is the current cost? About a year ago I think it was $3000. Also, what is the additional charge for painting it to match you car? Pretty cool that they offer a paint matching service.

 

I've looked into buying one of their induction hoods for my '72 - approximately $3k price unpainted, not including shipping or sales tax (if they charge it for out-of-state purchases).

So after figuring I'd be in > $5k by the time ready for install, the economics didn't make sense for my car. But from what I've seen/heard, damn nice piece.

 

When I restored my Vista Cruiser 4 years ago, the painter said it would take him about 70 hours to match the contours of my factory W-25 hood to the fenders.

I sent him a Thornton hood ($2500 at the time). He said it fit great and only needed light sanding before he painted it. I sold my factory W-25 for $1700.

He was right--the Thornton surface finish is beautiful and the contours match the sheet metal well.

The reflection in the first photo shows the surface finish. The second photo shows the maximum contour mismatch. It stays within 0.060" of the sheet metal at the front and within 0.030" at the fender top.

 

I can and will vouch for those Thornton OAI hoods. They are amazing and fit well. I installed one on my latest resto mod.....and love it!

 

The base price for the hood is still 3 grand but i'm sure it'll be an extra grand for the paint (price only confirmed when you go into production).

The way it works is you get on the wait list, they call you when they are ready to go into production and then you pay for it. I justified the purchase by seeing all the crazy prices for anything pre-90's in my neighborhood

 

I ordered mine over 2.5 years ago and the price was the same. Shipping was then another $300. It's funny as I called them to see when I could buy one. I was informed that they only had enough supplies for a handful more hoods .....EVER and would not be producing them any longer. I thought I had time while I was doing other parts of the restoration. Once I heard that...I made an immediate decision to order one of these "last" ones. It was built and shipped in less than six weeks. Now...they have still been producing them for the last two plus years with no end in sight...which is good for people like us who still need a GM looking OAI hood.

You won't be disappointed. I had little prep work to do to mine before I painted it. The quality and fit is outstanding. I would totally buy another one again if need be.

Good luck!

 

That's awesome! Man i'm glad i'm able to get my hands on one! I havn't been fast at building this car (15 years plus) but so far i've done everything correctly. So why skimp on the good stuff!

Not to mention i have boxes of unopened parts i still need to install

 

From what I understand, the problem was the metal underhood structure. They had gotten a limited supply from the vendor stamping them and they were unsure if they could get anymore after that. It was only recently that they started getting more stamped. I believe they may have also re-designed the mold for the top. I bought one for my holiday coupe from a guy who never touched it because he decided to fo with an aftermarket raised scoop hood (2"?) to clear his air cleaner. I had been looking on and off since I got the car in 2014. I finally talked myself in to paying $2600 for this one on craigslist. I was just curios about the paint matching service which is pretty cool and the current price.

 

They have not quoted me the paint yet, i was just going to send them an email and see what hardware is included with the hood. I am thinking if nothing is included i will pre-order the hood lock brackets and chrome spinners from Fusick.

 

Question for you, how high does the foam on top of the air cleaner sit in your engine bay? is it right about even with the cowl if you are looking from front to back?

 

So are they keeping your stock hood or are you planning to strap it to the roof for the drive home? Or driving down with no hood?

 

the front underside of the hood is pretty rusted out I’ve fixed it numerous times over the years and I think I’ll just leave it there and let them get the scrap value, even the chrome louvers have holes in them.

needless to say the old girl deserves a new hood after all she’s turning 50 on November 6th!