Bodykit = w00t!

[SimonTuffGuy]

Well - I got home from work and saw that there was no line to get a haircut... Because I've held off an extra 2 weeks than normal, I decided I was going to go and do that first.

Once I got home, I started in on Casper... The front end is off and the front bumper is mounted. I have to drill a few holes to tighten it up in the front, but then that's finished...

Tomorrows project is to finish the front bumper, put the lights and everything back in... Mount the skirts and get them on... And possibly attempt the hood. I'm not sure how I want to handle the hood yet... I know that I don't want to use the hinge setup anymore, so I think I'll just drill the 4 holes and run 4 pins. I've got a locking set to put on, but I think I want to run similar to the last ones.

Rear bumper could be on Friday... but I want to get my new muffler first and that probably won't be in until next week. I picked up a cheapo muffler off EBay with a silencer to run and hold me over until I can get something else that I want... This dual exhaust thing is ricey and sounds really bad (thus why I want to run with a silencer at some points)... Plus, I want a single outlet to fit the rear bumper.

More to come tomorrow - I'll get pics up then.

[25Horseplay]

I think 4 pinning the hood could turn out to be a PITA. I know the FMS hood is light, but I would be afraid of scatching it setting on the car or putting down somewhere when its not on the car. I wanted to do something different but went with 2 hood pins for now. I used the hood pins that stay in the keepers on the hood so they don't get lost and hopefully don't forget to latch them.

Oh PS post some pics when your done!

[SimonTuffGuy]

Well... I've had 2 bad experiences with the hinges and forgetting to latch my hood... It might be a PITA to get on and off, but at least I won't forget to latch it... I mean, if the hood is unlocked, it will be off... When it goes back on, they'll be locked.

As for the pins that you're running - I used the same ones... Just keep them UP and you should be ok... I always put mine down for shows, then when I dropped the hood to go listen for awards, I'd put the hood down and not latch them... Take off without latching and BAM, your cowl is done for.

We'll see I guess... I've got the 4 locking pins in already from a buddy... I didn't have to pay anything for them and they all use 1 key... If anything, I would swap them up for a similar set to what you're running... But I know that DJ ran similar pins to what I'm going to be running and he did so without any problems:


I thought of a way to install my rear bumper awhile too... I'm thinking of taking my sawzall and just cutting the tips off so that the bumper will still fit on even though the exhaust isn't through... I'm only going to be driving it 1 day (for autoX) like that until my new muffler would come in. I think it'll look stupid having the front, sides and hood on without the rear... and since it's only 1 day, I can't imagine it hurting anything... I might get some cabron buildup on the rear bumper, but that's minor.

Thoughts or suggestions?

[SimonTuffGuy]

Here were the other threads from DJ about running 4 pins on Zippy:

http://fordfestiva.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2205&highlight=pins

http://fordfestiva.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2410&highlight=pins

It seems easy enough... I know he had them installed on Casper because the holes are all drilled. It should be easy enough to put them on that way... if it doesn't work, I can always put the hinges back on and fiberglass over the holes that I had to drill for them.

My thought it that... at shows, it'll be easy enough to remove the hood and set it under the front of the car without any problems... And I can't see myself being careless enough to scratch anything while putting it back on (at this point, I don't even care really what the car looks like).

We'll see... my major concern is the pins that I have SAFELY keeping the hood down and locked at 65+ MPH (especially up to 100+)... I'd hate to hit those speeds only to have my hood fly off because the pins didn't keep it down tight.

[packrat427]

I am looking at that lic. plate and thinking if it said 420PTL , people would prolly be crackin up :lol: :lol:

Looks like it will be awesome when it is all together Simon .

[quaddawg]

I am looking at that lic. plate and thinking if it said 420PTL , people would prolly be crackin up :lol: :lol:

Looks like it will be awesome when it is all together Simon .

would that be "it's 4:20, Pass The Lighter" or "it's 4:20, Praise The Lord" ???

Heck, at 3:20, it's still 4:20 somewhere... 8)

[SimonTuffGuy]

Side shot of the kit installed


Front bumper


The other side


Rear Bumper

It all went on pretty well... The side skirts will need a little work at some point. I think that I need a new fender to make the drivers side work right (it's all bent up)... Plus, the sides have a bolt that was needed up front to hold it down tight. At some point, I'll get it fixed properly, but I'm just not sure how to get it done right (88GTR had them installed the same way from what I can tell - on the last car, the side skirts were molded on)

The rear bumper was a little tricky... The exhaust that was on the car had 2 tips on it... My solution? I took my sawzall and cut them off so that the bumper sits in front of them. I think I knocked a bunch of the insides out of the bumper, because it's 10x louder than it was before! A new muffler is on the way, a single tip one with a silencer so that it's bearable to drive this car.

The hood will go on Monday. I was a little scared to drill through it myself, so I'm going to run up to the bodyshop for help on Monday. More pictures after that! (Except for ones that go up of theAutoX event on Sunday)

-Simon

[25Horseplay]

What a difference! Its looking good!

[SimonTuffGuy]

Thanks Brian! I can't wait for Ohiostiva!

[25Horseplay]

I have to get a kit for one of the cars!

[packrat427]

Waaayyyy cool Simon , that looks awesome

[geezerstiva]

very nice! is that a fms bodykit? and what kind of rims are those?

[SimonTuffGuy]

It's the ATH style kit from FMS, yes. The wheels are 15" ICW Kobe wheels - gunmetal with a polished lip (15 x 6).

[glacius182]

What's the other kit that FMS has and what's the difference? I've got a real ATH bodykit and I can see at least one big difference.

[SimonTuffGuy]

FMS also has a GTX kit. What's the difference that you see?