Bonnet vents

Excellent stuff.

I also would show up, but in an effort to not look chav, I would have gone out and bought a whole new outfit and accessories for my car - from lidl.

I would have a fire extinguisher velcroed to the rear window, bizarrely coloured light bulbs both front and rear, and a paint job which involved plastering first.

There would be no need to pick fights with other attendees, whatever their misdemeanours in the newsgroups (after all, my skinny but screechingly aggressive verging-on-lesbian girlfriend would pick the fights for me) however I would have brought a baseball bat in the back footwell, for the sole purpose of finding and sorting out that complete bastard %include %user_email_address

The exhaust pipe on my car would be 5 inches in diameter, despite the car having a three-cylinder, 850cc engine which buzzes rather than revs and can't get gas speed up to extract the exhaust so burbles uncertainly at tickover and tends to stall.

I'd also have painted the discs at the front, and would use the bat on anyone who pointed out that the pads were scraping off the lurid orange paint that was clashing horribly with the stuck on plastic "alloy" wheel covers.

And of course my car would be italian. ;)

Just remove the damn bonnet for maximum cooling and serious 'racer' look. (banger racer that is)

Let me give you some advice, to heed you well in here :)

Although its a free country and anyone can say as they please, I would refrain from using the words, bonnet vents, LED washers, neons, nova, halfords, exhaust flamers, surbo's, saxo and peco, unless you have appropriate clothing, then feel free to talk about what you like :)

This list is not exhaustive

Ronny

Yes I think i'll shut up about vents in future, seems to bring out the worst in the regulars. But it sucks that people get put down just for bringing up the subject's : / if you don't like it, then dont read it? And it quite clearly states "bonnet vents" as the subject so erm, I don't know what they expected.

Thats not the point though!

Have you considered just raising the rear of the bonnet? I remember reading in CCC that this significantly lowered the under bonnet temperatures for some of the competitors in hot hatch.

James

You will get to know the people who are kind and helping, and the ones that arnt, some of us older folk foget we used to be young once :)

good luck

Ronny oh and before i forget..... if ever you need webhosting :)

I dont discriminate lol

:)

-- Chet

HF Integrale 16v - Gettin there!1993 Renault 19 16v - Subtle extras like a T3 - But soon a fancy T28!1998 Audi A4 - I don't know why, but i did.

I'e got no problem with them, but the thing is, most people try to fit them, themselves becuase they don't want to pay. And if it isn't obvious immediatley, it ends to be after the first speedbump cracks the filler.

Adding panels and vents is a tricky business. First you have to be able to accuratley cut out the shape (and make sure you aren't going to be removing any of the bracing).

Then you need to attach the vent. That means using fibreglass resin or epoxy, and using self tappers or rivets to hold it while the adhesive dries, then reving the self tappers, or grinding back the visible parts of the rivets, then adding fibreglass and more resin both inside and out and making sure it is fairly smooth, and blends into the shape of the bonnet. Then once that is fully cured, you start sanding, and keep sanding until the GRP is totally smooth and almost perfectly feathered in, then you apply the filler, and start sanding again, until you get an almost flawless finish. then it is body stopper or filler primer to get rid of any tiny high or low spots. Then you need to paint, and get the colour matched not only to the surrounding paint but also the rest of the car. It needs to look aged in the same way as the rest of the car has. Then after all that, it will probably need flatting before laquering.

And all that really has to be done in a very clean grease and oil free environment to avoid contamination of adhesives or resins from dirt/grease/insects and dust/hairs.

That is why DIY vents look poop generally, and pro jobs cost money (big money), because body shop work takes time, patience and skill.

MeatballTurbo wrote: :: In article , snipped-for-privacy@itspambot.com :: says... ::: Yes I think i'll shut up about vents in future, seems to bring out ::: the worst in the regulars. But it sucks that people get put down ::: just for bringing up the subject's : / if you don't like it, then ::: dont read it? And it quite clearly states "bonnet vents" as the ::: subject so erm, I don't know what they expected. ::: :: I'e got no problem with them, but the thing is, most people try to :: fit :: them, themselves becuase they don't want to pay. And if it isn't :: obvious immediatley, it ends to be after the first speedbump cracks :: the filler. :: :: Adding panels and vents is a tricky business. First you have to be :: able :: to accuratley cut out the shape (and make sure you aren't going to be :: removing any of the bracing). :: :: Then you need to attach the vent. That means using fibreglass resin :: or :: epoxy, and using self tappers or rivets to hold it while the adhesive :: dries, then reving the self tappers, or grinding back the visible :: parts :: of the rivets, then adding fibreglass and more resin both inside and :: out :: and making sure it is fairly smooth, and blends into the shape of the :: bonnet. Then once that is fully cured, you start sanding, and keep :: sanding until the GRP is totally smooth and almost perfectly :: feathered :: in, then you apply the filler, and start sanding again, until you :: get an almost flawless finish. then it is body stopper or filler :: primer to get :: rid of any tiny high or low spots. Then you need to paint, and get :: the :: colour matched not only to the surrounding paint but also the rest of :: the car. It needs to look aged in the same way as the rest of the car :: has. Then after all that, it will probably need flatting before :: laquering. :: :: And all that really has to be done in a very clean grease and oil :: free environment to avoid contamination of adhesives or resins from :: dirt/grease/insects and dust/hairs. :: :: That is why DIY vents look poop generally, and pro jobs cost money :: (big money), because body shop work takes time, patience and skill.

I can attest to that. My Nova GSi had bonnet vents put in by the previous owner (Astra 3 GSi ones) at the cost of £300 odd. That's for cutting, fitting, smoothing, sanding and respraying the bonnet.

Good job and all but it looks like the car's got nostrils.

:: -- :: The poster formerly known as Skodapilot. ::

-- Snapper

Top plan.

Yep :)

What we expect, is people to talk about modifications that are actually worthwhile.

If you want more power, better brakes, more grip, etc. etc. then we'll all happily give our input.

If you want Jap-style bumpers, ugly bonnet vents, and a nasty paintjob, then we'll all rightfully take the piss.

Basically, the Max Power brigade aren't welcome here. They give us "real" modifiers a bad name.

And that was basically to add a =A320-40 vent into a bonnet. But like you say, it works because it cost.

If you had tried it yourself, no matter how hard you tried something=20 wouldn't have looked quite right, or not have lasted.

--=20 The poster formerly known as Skodapilot.

In fairness, it doesn't say uk.rec.cars.modifications.worthwhile in the newsgroup title.

Much as I personally hate the "Max Power Brigade" style modifications, I think everyone should be welcome here, like one big happy family.

Peter

-- "The truth is working in television is not very glamorous at all. I just go home on my own at night and sit alone and eat crisps."

Welcome, yes, but immune from piss-taking when they propose a bodge, definitely not.

OK so in th espirit of friendliness, what modifications could we suggest for to Uncle Remus and Brer Rabbit[1]? The bonnet vent idea is pathetic, been done, rarely looks good. No point for a 1.3 engine and it would only scream "pathetic loser" at the world. So where do you go with a Golf?

I'm stuck, it's a car shape that I've never really like much. The Delta HF was a better take on the sam basic box, but even the Italians couldn't give it much in the line of looks even if they could make it go like cesso dall' una palla. There are some forms that seem ovrdue for a revival, I like Frenched in rear lights for example but whereas they look good on a Fiat Coupe or even a Golf Pickup I don't think they would suit a hatchback.

The aim, Remus is to make your car look good, but also to avoid cheap shit pikey addons and also the other extreme of trying too hard. Big rear spoilers, out. Bonnet vents, out. Wrinkled stainless mesh, out. Anything bought from Halfords/Ripspeed, out. Exhaust like a stack of baked bean cans, out.

If it's the circular headlamp Golf, I'f quite like to see two vertically aligned projector driving lamps inboard of the main headlight (both sides of course). Don't use them, or at least don't use them on the road. Best wired via a relay so that they only come on with main beam. (I don't even know if two lamps is legal, I just think it would look good if they were very, very small). That means you would also have to redesign the front grille.

Oh buggrit, someone else, sensibel suggestions for a Golf. Maybe we need a sketch a Golf website?

[1] We all know that the Golf is a Rabbit in the US, right?

bonnet vents done right actually have a use though sometimes.

On my GT4, the big scoop forces air over the interheater. The small louvred vents facing backwards are to create negative pressure to suck heat out of the engine bay.

If you are seriously tuning/uprating or swapping much bigger lumps in the engine bay, such modifications may be worthwhile to make it work.

What's wrong with 1.3s?

Things to do with a Golf:

3 bar grille without inner driving lamps. Grille spoiler. Crystal clear headlamp lenses. Thin early bumpers in black plastic. De-trim and smooth the body, but leave the rear plate where it is. Smoked rear lamps. Slam to the deck. Fit deep dish, 14" alloys.

Yeh, done right they create front end downforce. Not much use otherwise, except as an admission that the designer was a f****it who couldn't get the airflow under the bonnet right.

Or a Jetta front end unless you have the cash for rallye lights that is.

I would say that the Mk2 golf is one of very few cars that M3 style lights look good on (only on white cars though)