New Plenum Cover - What do you think?
06-04-2010, 10:54 PM
#14
6th Gear Member
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: MO/ Born and raised in Louisiana
Posts: 10,696
Man not trying to knock you down but when I first saw the cover I thought about the Predators head.. Unless the pics that you sent out are deceiving I would take it off and chalk it up as a loss, or maybe try and sell it on ebay or something. Just my two cents. Other than that you got a kick *** ride.
06-05-2010, 10:39 AM
#15
3rd Gear Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: WI
Posts: 773
Not to worry Johnspony, I do not offend so easily. I put up this thread with the intend of sharing, not seeking approval. I am way past the stage in life where I need approval from others for what I do. Whether this baby be homely or not, it's my baby and I love it nonetheless. When I do things, it is to make myself happy and to learn something new, not to make others happy, gain recognition or praises. I experimented with a few techniques here that I had not tried before. It was fun making mistakes and gaining knowledge in the process. Some times the journey can be more enjoyable than the destination. Now that it's done, I will move on to some other project I may dream up. If anyone else gains some inspiration from this, then the share was worth it. If not, c'est la vie.
BTW Torch, I know it is not symmetrical. I struggled with that for a long time. The engine design is not symmetrical so there was nothing I could do. It was either attempt to come up with a shape that would cover the EGR and the distributor, or have a design full of holes to accommodate the tubes passing trough to them. I wanted one smooth shell, not like the box plenum cover which has more holes in it than Swiss cheese. There is always a method to my madness.
BTW Torch, I know it is not symmetrical. I struggled with that for a long time. The engine design is not symmetrical so there was nothing I could do. It was either attempt to come up with a shape that would cover the EGR and the distributor, or have a design full of holes to accommodate the tubes passing trough to them. I wanted one smooth shell, not like the box plenum cover which has more holes in it than Swiss cheese. There is always a method to my madness.
06-05-2010, 06:46 PM
#16
3rd Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: CA
Posts: 750
Actually didn't have a need for a bracket. The way I made it, it is arched and has a bit of a spring to it. The two side pieces curl up towards the inside at the bottom. Like a hem lets say. It's just a small notch, not something huge. So it locks on by grabbing on to the sensor on the passenger side of the plenum, and to the distributor on the drivers side. From front to back it locks in place by wedging between the firewall and the little notch that the intake has. Once positioned, it doesn't move.
Last edited by chronos; 06-05-2010 at 06:51 PM.
06-06-2010, 01:26 AM
#17
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 435
Chronos, it looks like you did a nice job fabricating it and I like the idea of it more than the actual design. I wonder if you could walk us through how you did it and the materials you used. I'd like a plenum cover for my V6, but all the aftermarket ones look like a shoebox stuck on top of the engine. Maybe some of us who feel that way could try our hand at our own designs. Thanks.
06-06-2010, 10:21 AM
#18
3rd Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: CA
Posts: 750
Charlie, I would be happy to give you any pointers I can. The entire purpose of my posting this was to inspire others who may be as frustrated as I was with the "Shoe box" plenum cover. I didn't expect everyone to like my design. A design is a very personal thing and should be modified to each individuals personal taste. Just like our cars have personal touches, so should each plenum design. I may not like whatever design you come up with, (or I may) but I will certainly applaud your efforts and ingenuity. It takes guts to go out on a limb and be different. You may choose not to cover the distributor as I did, who knows.
I'll tell you what I did, and you can take from it what will work best for you. I certainly wouldn't expect you to follow my recipe to the letter. A couple of months my wife was rear ended. The rear bumper cover had to be replaced. To keep the body shop honest I always make sure to get my old parts back. One day I had the old rear bumper lying around my yard and I was going to cut it up to fit it in the garbage can. I loved the beautiful finish on the paint and was struck as to what a waste it was to just throw this away. When in life I am given lemons, I always try to make lemon aid. Unfortunately in making the project you have to destroy the finish to get a good bond and make it seamless. So as I was cutting, I took the parts and started analyzing the shapes and contours. It was like putting a puzzle together. No one shape, side, corner or anything would fit properly on top of the motor without looking like crap. So I started cutting and shaping as to what I thought looked descent to my taste. Then I epoxied the parts together, sanded everything very carefully to feather all the joints. Then you put a few coats of primer to fill the imperfections, then paint and clear coat. I used a rattle can for all the paints and it came out really good. The clear is really necessary to get that hard finish that the color coat alone wont give you.
If you want to try something similar, I would call any local body shop and ask them if they have any bumper covers they want to toss out and could you have it. Tell them you have a hobby creating stuff with plastics. I don't think they would really care and would be happy to get it off their hands.
I'll tell you what I did, and you can take from it what will work best for you. I certainly wouldn't expect you to follow my recipe to the letter. A couple of months my wife was rear ended. The rear bumper cover had to be replaced. To keep the body shop honest I always make sure to get my old parts back. One day I had the old rear bumper lying around my yard and I was going to cut it up to fit it in the garbage can. I loved the beautiful finish on the paint and was struck as to what a waste it was to just throw this away. When in life I am given lemons, I always try to make lemon aid. Unfortunately in making the project you have to destroy the finish to get a good bond and make it seamless. So as I was cutting, I took the parts and started analyzing the shapes and contours. It was like putting a puzzle together. No one shape, side, corner or anything would fit properly on top of the motor without looking like crap. So I started cutting and shaping as to what I thought looked descent to my taste. Then I epoxied the parts together, sanded everything very carefully to feather all the joints. Then you put a few coats of primer to fill the imperfections, then paint and clear coat. I used a rattle can for all the paints and it came out really good. The clear is really necessary to get that hard finish that the color coat alone wont give you.
If you want to try something similar, I would call any local body shop and ask them if they have any bumper covers they want to toss out and could you have it. Tell them you have a hobby creating stuff with plastics. I don't think they would really care and would be happy to get it off their hands.
