Hello all. I am a new member looking for some guidance on selection of a W25 hood for my 72 S. I am kicking myself for not buying a Thornton hood about 3-4 years ago when the price was "not bad" but unfortunately that did not happen. I know Thornton is making them again, but the price..."OUCH". I have contacted a place called Show Car Body Parts from our neighbors to the north. I was wondering if anyone has had any dealings with them and what the product is like. Also any experiences with the "all glass" hoods would be appreciated. Any replies are greatly appreciated. I have owned the 72 for roughly 7 years and through the birth of the second half of my family of four. Thankfully, I have a wonderfully understanding lady that has put up with all the BS for 22 years associated with raising a family and a husband who is a "motorhead". I have done a complete body off restoration in my garage with the help of my father-in-law (another "car freak") and really enjoyed the whole process. This hood is the last thing on my list to make the car right in my eyes. Thanks again for any guidance. Hope to be an active part of this group.

 

Welcome. While I don't have direct experience with that vendor, be aware that there are a wide spectrum of all-fiberglass hoods. Some do not even have the air box to mate with the air cleaner. Most do not fit that well. Some are too weak to allow the use of hood springs (you need a prop rod). Thornton hoods are priced for the quality. Others, less so.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I have read horror stories about some of the all glass hoods. This vendor in Canada tells me that they use an original steel hood frame and bond a new glass skin to it. I asked if there were any pictures available but haven't recieved any to this date. Only saw the ones listed on their site.They were very quick with a response and all the questions I asked were answered. My problem is I'm not the kind of person who will buy something without seeing it first or getting a good feeling from other people. I know the Thornton hood is supposed to be the best. I only live about 10 miles from the shop in Quakertown. I guess I'll just have to shmooze the wife and tell the yunguns to grow straight teeth, don't get sick and get a job!!! Otta work right????

 

I am also going to buy a hood maybe next month and have been looking at my options.. i am leaning towards a hood from glasstek. Ive read of people who have bought from galsstek and is mostly good feedback. i would love to get one from thornton's with the steel frame but its too much money, at least for me.. has anyone here bought a glasstek hood? i have a 72 cutlass

 

Be aware that the steel frames used on the factory W-25 hoods are not exactly the same as the ones used on steel hoods.

 

I got a glasstek, I am pretty happy with it, you just have to realize it will never be PERFECT...

 

Thanks for the reply. If I can ask, what weren't you happy with on the glasstek? How much additional prep was involved to install it? I am wondering also if The Parts Place will be offering a 71-72 W25 hood. Has anybody out there bought one of their 70 versions, and if so, how do you feel about it. Has anyone heard anything about them offering the 71-72 version and when it might be available. Thanks again for all the great advice.

 

Hood sits about half an inch up on all sides, holes up front for latches weren't perfect, had to play around with that for a while to get it latching correctly...

heres a pic of it on, paint comes later when cash says so

 

May I ask what's wrong with everyone's steel hoods?! Fiberglass jobbies are all the rave at the moment
They're not THAT heavy, I've taken them off myself and I weigh a whopping 160 lbs.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/sox/pts/726235412.html

 

Well, you'll be hard-pressed to find a steel O.A.I. hood...

 

So, just fabricate up you own O.A.I. I have seen lots of people do it and some on the real cheap! In my opinion, if you buy an after market fiberglass O.A.I. hood for looks and it doesn't fit well then you are defeating your original intent. (remember the post title asked for opinions....).

 

IMHO you should just drive around without the hood. Then you can put a 15 inch tall air cleaner on it and it will look COOL!

 

I am thinking about getting one of these hoods also. Tamraz has them for about 600.00 but I am not sure how they fit. I found another vendor http://www.carhoods.com/ that also has the hood for 649.00 but I havent used them. I fear buying one of these hoods for improper fit. I am leaning towards getting one from Thornton even though they are about 2300.00

 

I checked out carhoods.com and they refer to the O.A.I. hood as the "W-30 style." I might think twice before buying a hood the manufacture labels incorrectly...caveat emptor, my friends.

As for Thornton hoods, he advertises original GM specs...but how many of our cars are still "in spec" after 36-38 years of potholes, etc. If they fit perfectly, I would be ecstatic. If a Thornton hood was close and needed just a few adjustments, I'd say that's a good deal.

 

Know how you feel about pricing. For a while Fusicks was selling Thornton hoods for about 1300.00. Seemed like a high price until this June when Thornton started selling them again for 2200. A New OEM OAI hood was offered on ebay about 3 weeks ago. It was, well,... damn nice!!! but starting bid was 3000.00. Makes Thorntons seem cheap huh? Anyway, it never sold. You just have to be willing or desperate enough to part with that kind of money to get piece of the pie.

There are OEM used OAI hoods on the market that you could probably get for a reasonable price, but likely have to do some fibreglass or sheet metal repair. Also don't forget, if you're going to replace your hood with OAI, you've got to get the hood lockdown package and body mounts, the OAI breather tubes and the OAI special air can and vacuum lid. It's a lot of money (around 650.00 I think) to replace something that's not broken on your existing car.

If you just want the 442 look for your car, why not keep the original hood and put on the W29 appearance package. After all, in 1972 the 442 was basically just a Cutlass S with look good options, an FE2 suspension and a 3:42 posi.

I know that Fusick, Tamraz and Parts Place have a restyled complete fibreglass job with a functional air box. But it doesn't have a steel liner. They claim you can't tell it from the original from more than 5 feet away. Ok, but how do you install the T44 hood lock? (need the metal liner).

Anyway, if the w25 hood is all that's left to "make it right" do it. It's your car and you'll probably not be happy until it's the way you want it. Are you also putting on the rear deck wing to finish it off? They're about 250 aftermarket and most all the OAI cars I've seen have them.

Good luck on your project. If I figure out how to attach a jpg, I'll post a picture of my 1972 Cutlass S for ya. (All the rest of you, that's a hint that i need help doing this)

Allan R.

 

I know I've said this before, but don't confuse asking price with selling price (or real value). Ebay has a search function for completed auctions - you can review auctions that have ended in the last 30 days. I check this periodically just for grins. In my very unscientific survey, the high dollar cars and parts almost never sell. I find it amusing when the bidding ends but the ad says "next bid meets reserve". Can you say "shill"?

I have also noticed that cars that supposedly are sold for high dollars mysteriously appear for sale again a few weeks later.

Bottom line is that auction asking prices are not a valid measure of value.