chronos

Hey boys and girls. Check out my new plenum cover. What do you think? It's a custom made project created from my own imagination. Took some plastic parts, cut and shaped them, bonded them together, sanded, primered, painted, clear coated it, and this is the final product. I know there is a mass produced, box like plenum cover for the V6 out there but I hate it. I wanted something slick and original. It was just a fun project to satisfy my artistic imagination. I know the pics are crappy, but I don't have a good camera. Trust me it looks better in person. The gloss is like the outside of a black car. I put a loot of effort into sanding and prepping to get that body shop clear coat look. If you are wondering why I did this, it's because I never liked the look of the V6 plenum. My wife thinks I'm crazy (as I'm sure some of you will also) but I had fun making it. Never really had much experience making plastic parts before.

Sancho805

A+ for your creativeness and craftsmanship.

However, not sold on the look. maybe it does look better in person but from the photos, it just looks like an un-orthodox shaped flat piece layed on top. JMO. maybe take better photos and post those?

Soldier GT

Gotta agree. Didn't really care for the look.

chronos

Its not on flat piece, it's actually 4 separate pieces epoxied together and it is very contoured. The hard part was that I wanted something that would cover the sides of the plenum, and cover the distributor also. It also had to swoop down at the front to go from the high point of the plenum, to the much lower and further forward inlet. It took quite a bit of monkeying around with different shapes and pieces to get a descent marriage of contours. The hard part is that I decided to go with black. I was going to go with red (body color) but I didn't know if I could do a good enough job of it, and I didn't think I could match the Candy Apple Red, so black it became. Black, even gloss black is very stealthy and hides the contours in a picture. To make matters worse, I am not much of a photographer. I took it outside and placed it on a paint bucket so you can get a better idea of the shape. When I look at it, to me it gives the impression of a stealth fighter. That same general shape. I was going for the aerodynamic look instead of the mass produced boxy look. I also didn't want to have cut outs for all the tubings and such because I thought it would detract from the shape. One of the things I like about the V8 cover is that it covers the plenum much more evenly than the V6 box cover does.

Torch_Vert

Unfortunately there really is no tactful way to tell somebody their child is homely

First off even by your own goals (aerodynamic, stealth fighter look) this doesn't match up. It's totally asymmetrical. What aircraft (other than a few funky WWII German contraptions) is not symmetrical?. Also for the record the Stealth Fighter is made up entirely of flat planes, not off center, inexplicable curves.

It really looks like you just took a random part from another car (and not a random engine cover) and just tossed it atop your engine.

I realize you've put significant effort into this, and I'm trying not to be "mean", really I'm trying hard, but this comes nowhere close to working visually or enhancing your car in any way.

Joshspony

A+ for the effort, but I'm not feeling it.

Torch: kinda harsh?

Torch_Vert

I realize it might come off that way, but it was a choice between honest and diplomatic, and I guess diplomatic somewhat lost out. I really don't mean to be unkind, I know the guy put some work into this.

Joshspony

ok, just checking

chronos

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.

AU2BOT

Sorry not feeling that modification at all but if you like it that all that matters