Nice and clen . like the offy valve covers. Your avatar photo. That Skylark sign , what is that store ? thanks
Forgot that I posted here...It's an east indian restaurant located in little India Gerrard and Coxwell in Toronto. I always liked the old school look of those finned offy's.
Heres my take on making an engine compartment look clean and new. Bottom line up front: the engine accounts for only 50% to 60% of the wow factor. In no particular order: The fire wall, inner fenders and radiator cover should be the same. Whether you chrome them, paint them flat black or gloss black, or paint them body color -- these four items form the frame of your engine bay picture. The single biggest wart on any engine compartment, IMHO, is the brake cylinder and brake pieces. Make them look new and then keep them that way. The windshield washer reservoir and radiator overflow, IMHO, should be the clean/new white bodies with black covers. I know this is not always year-correct but you asked for good looking engine bay tips. The hood hinges should appear clean and new. Whether that is gloss black or flat black or chrome or other is your call. The radiator shroud is one item that you cant really do much about since it is a dull black plastic. Clean it. Now we get down the nit-picky level: ... o The first thing that catches my eyes is how the plug wires are run. It will take some doing and patience but the wires should NOT have excess loops or slack in them; they should look custom made. The potential problem here that by doing so, you will have the wires running parallel for long stretches and therefore run the risk of spark cross over. ... o Same applies to all the other wires and cables clean them up and made them look custom cut to fit your engine. ... o Any aluminum pieces should appear newly installed. ACF-50 is a spray on that keeps aluminum looking as it did when you installed the piece on your engine: polished, brushed, etc. It doesnt yellow over time. The intake manifold is potentially the most obvious aluminum piece in the engine bay do NOT let fuel pool in the recesses. It discolors the surface quickly and makes the entire engine look grimy. ... o The biggest challenges will be the accessories on the fire wall. You need them all but they present a cluttered appearance. Look at the photos others have posted for ideas on making this area look neat and organized. See comment on running the wires and cables above. ... o Suspension pieces need to be painted and kept new looking. ... o Hose clamps: what I think looks particularly neat and clean is to insure each is attached to the hose with the same amount of hose showing. Also, invest in the style of worm screw hose clamp that does NOT have the slots cut all the way through. ... o It will be a PIA later, but when installing the hose clamps with the screw piece NOT showing (compare Pro Tour GSX to RedmanF1). ... o Hoses: get the correct application. Do NOT use the universal hose that looks like a snake swallowed an accordion. ... o Exhaust manifolds: if you are keeping them, make them look presentable and keep them looking that way. If going with headers, coat them or chrome now and keep them looking that way ... o Color scheme: keep it simple. Two maybe three colors max: Black, red and aluminum seems to be a favorite I think Pro Tour GSX has demonstrated all these facets remarkably well. That is my 2 worth. Craig
Love the modified rail covers...looks like you just used regular emblems but where did you get the plain covers? Mine have "CORVETTE" embossed on them which I'm not crazy about.