CARBON FIBER HOOD... help!!

[mlswoosh]

okay... couple months ago my mechanic made an outward dent on my 1998 Hood... errr!.. so end up they can either get their friends at body shop to replace a new (non factory) hood or they can give me $250 Cash... so i took the cash and want a carbon fiber hood (not much a carbon fiber person, but mind as well... since i can't get the OEM hood and my original hood w/ VIN number is gond....

so please help me if you know ANYTHING about CF hoods... i heard they turn yellow after couple months if the quality is not good, also the rolled edges are more expensive than just "cut" edges... is it worth the price?... i heard good things about VIS but that is going for $450... anything would help... thanks


Thanks,
Mike

[Driftin_240sx]

you get what you pay for my friend. thats the bottom line.

david

[s14white240]

VIS is $450 but it is well worth the money. A friend has had one on his prelude for about a year and there is no sign of yellowing. Has rolled edges, high gloss, and is very smooth. Weighs about half as much as the stock hood.

[Dream240]

I got mine from a guy in L.A. he bought it new but never used it. Fiberimages is the brand. I've had it on for about 8 months, no fading at all. Just remember CF hoods scratch VERY easily, also after the first time I took it on the freeway, the hood developed dimples and such. Not really noticeable unless you look at it from the side VERY closely. Shine is great, even greater with a good wax and buff job. I paid 425 with pick up, but I think they go for about 600 new from Fiberimages.

I say go with CF for your new hood, also check into the different color tint you can get in the CF. Red, blue, green, black to fit your dress up desires. I'm wishing now that I had gotten red tint now that my car is taking on a red trimmed exterior on stock Super Black paint.

Good Luck!!

[Carisma•FR]

Don't forget hood-pins!

[brokenben]

i believe fiberimages is a shop in palmdale.. near LACR... they make custom hoods.. i remember them from my high school days..

[wingsnthangs]

I would go factory replacement OEM hood. OEM quality is much better, more reliable, its usually less expensive, and it matches the rest of the car.

IN MY OPINION....
CF hoods are hyped rip offs.

Bang for buck: Yeah right. $400+ for a blingy hood. I'd rather spend it on tires. Read on for reasons why $400 is a rip off.

Performance: Sure it saves weight, but is that weight reduction that significant for your needs? Are you a track junkie with a gutted interior? Are you willing to pay $400+ for a 30lb reduction? You will NOT notice any difference in performance. Ridiculous in my opinion.

Appearance: Unless you are a track junkie or an import car show contestant, I think it looks ghetto if you do not paint to match. Mismatched panels do not look clean to me. If you are a daily driver who just loves his car, it just looks like you bought something to present the image that you are a track driving car-tuner. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and unpainted CF hoods are attention whores.

Warning: CF hoods tend to warp. It may not be with all cases, but in some cases it does, and thats an expensive risk I would rather not take. And chances are, there is no warranty on your CF hood. Again, its a risk where you have nothing to gain from.

First hand observances with CF hoods
1. Met a 240 guy with a CF hood. The hood looked pretty cool and matched with the fenders, etc. A year later, I see it again, it is warped to create 1" panel gaps.
2. My RSX friend got a VIS hood this summer. A few weeks later, after getting new JDM OEM headlights, we noticed that the gaps seemed to be bigger. Never really noticed it thorugh those few weeks. It may be because of the OEM headlights, or the aftermarket hood, but I'm gonna trust OEM if I had to side.

Originally posted by mlswoosh
since i can't get the OEM hood and my original hood w/ VIN number is gond....

You can always get an OEM hood. Be it from the junkyard, another 240 owner parting out, another 240 owner who wants CF, or the dealership, although dealership prices are high. But if an new OEM hood from the dealer cost as much as a CF hood, I would get the OEM hood. It might have warranty and it is pretty much satisfaction guaranteed. It is very important for Nissan, an international corporation, to make quality parts.

On a last note, it is your money, and your taste in appearance, and I have no idea what your plans are for your car. Notice I am not telling anyone to buy or not buy anything, just stating what I would do. In my opinion, CF hoods only appeal to the import scene and that is why much hype has generated. In general, I must admit I am biased in favor for stock OEM factory parts, mostly because I trust Nissan engineers over aftermarket engineers/salesmen-living-off-hype, and I firmly believe that OEM parts will give you the quality you need for a good price.

[driftstyre]

just buy a cheap one and paint it your factory color. You'll save 20-30 lbs over the factory one.

[jenne313]

Acutally, I like my carbon fiber hood, and if you want one, I reccommend VIS, I just got mine from them on Monday.

AND I'm not painting it body color, because it's beautiful like it is. Carbon fiber is played out for the same reasons that it was brought into mainstream production - because on top of being SOOOO strong and so light, it's a very aestetic improvement and makes a car look great. People recognize that.

If you need an OEM hood and decide to go that route, I have two of them in my garage. PM me.

But I say go carbon fiber, and don't paint it! Invest in good hood pins and call it a day.

Jenne

[Var]

You can buy this hood for less than 300 bucks. I dont know about the quality but im sure it has some kind of warranty. I heard stock 240 hoods are 75 pounds and CF weighs only 10 pounds. If you lose the ac unit you saved around 100 pounds and all off your front end. I think its worth it especially if you already have a damaged hood.

If it aint broke dont fix it.
If it's broke upgrade.

anyhoo here is the link if you care

http://www.adventon.com/acb/showprod...ctGroup_ID=513

[mlswoosh]

thanks for all ur suggestions, i just bought my VIS hood, havn't put it on yet... looks very good, quality is there around the edges...
again thanks for all ur suggestions and replies

Mike