Carbon Fiber Hood

[JohnC]

Has anyone purchased a CF hood from American International Racing?

http://www.americaninternationalracing.com/custom.asp?id=259246&page=56

I read Coop's post about a possible group buy that was posted a couple of months ago, it appears that this may be the supplier. They're a division of Hanenmann fiberglass in Azusa, CA.

I'm considering one of these because it appears to be very difficult to get a new hood.

My car is still in the shop from my collision five weeks ago. A new hood was shipped from Germany, but my guy says it's unusable, wavy, with dimples and dings. He's trying to get another one, but as of a couple of days ago, no commitments on delivery. Of course, a used one is a possibility, but like a lot of guys that do mostly insurance work, he doesn't like to mess with used stuff unless it's absolutely necessary. I suggested a fiberglass or CF hood after seeing this website, but he was less than enthusiastic, saying that generally the fit and finish wouldn't be as good.

Any thoughts or opinions? I'd be willing to sacrifice a little on the fit and finish for the reduced weight. Just want to gather some opinions.

Thanks!

[Guest]

You also need the trunk lid to balance the weight.

[Guest Anonymous]

hahahaha that's a good one...

[BLUNT]

coop told me that even with his group buy pieces many hours of bodywork were needed for glass like panels. i commented on his at palo alto and he told me this. i wouldnt mind having a set for my 69 but i just cant swing it till juniors out of college in 6 months

[punchesdfw]

I can't speak fpr the company you mentioned, but I have a CF CSL trunk lid on my e46 330ci and the fit & finish were perfect.

[InkaSteve]

They are practically local for you. You could go over and check them out. I think AIR has been around quite a while. No personal experience though.

[dubois]

We usually repair 50% of the new panels we get, due to imperfections or handling damage. If it is too bad we request a new part (more than 1 hour). Regarding the carbon fiber hood, I didn't see the point of making it pretty by adding more weight on it, doing body work and bondo, so we left it alone and if you look closely, you will see a lot imperfections. Somebody told me that is the case with some exotic cars made entirely with CF. Having said that, if you opt for one, it will save you a lot of weight, but the body shop has to be willing to put in a couple hours to make it smooth. No matter what route you choose, it is a couple hours to bring new, used, or CF to acceptable condition.

[Harv]

The place that did all the finish and paint work on my car wouldn't touch em at all. I may still do something with them in the future, but if I do, it's just going to be clear and let em fly.

John

[AndyS]

2 sets from the group buy. I loved em. That being said the M2 had it set up to lock down like stock and it stressed em pretty good. I did love watching people check to see if it was real C/F.

[JohnC]

We usually repair 50% of the new panels we get, due to imperfections or handling damage. If it is too bad we request a new part (more than 1 hour). Regarding the carbon fiber hood, I didn't see the point of making it pretty by adding more weight on it, doing body work and bondo, so we left it alone and if you look closely, you will see a lot imperfections. Somebody told me that is the case with some exotic cars made entirely with CF. Having said that, if you opt for one, it will save you a lot of weight, but the body shop has to be willing to put in a couple hours to make it smooth. No matter what route you choose, it is a couple hours to bring new, used, or CF to acceptable condition.

Thanks Mike, sounds like there's no easy answer here. I may go with the CF option, and I'll just accept that it may not look as good as the original one, but that's OK, this car is my "toy" anyway.

[ray_]

My car has one, John. I'll try to find out... where the car is now (heheheh), if you want to go take a closer look.

Cheers,

Ray

[JohnC]

2 sets from the group buy. I loved em. That being said the M2 had it set up to lock down like stock and it stressed em pretty good. I did love watching people check to see if it was real C/F.

The yellow one looks really good! I don't understand what you mean by "stressing them good". Is there a problem with using the stock hardware? I'd like to do that.

That says a lot if people had to look close to see if it was CF.

[JohnC]

They are practically local for you. You could go over and check them out. I think AIR has been around quite a while. No personal experience though.

Yeah Steve, they're close but they only make them to order. They seem to have a lot of Porsche stuff. Maybe they're just starting to get into BMW stuff?

I've heard only good stuff about the group buy. Can anyone verify it's the same company? Again, Coop's thread indicated that it was Hannemann, and this is a division of that company.

[ray_]

Hannemann did produce theones for the GB, including mine.

Cheers,

Ray

They are practically local for you. You could go over and check them out. I think AIR has been around quite a while. No personal experience though.

Yeah Steve, they're close but they only make them to order. They seem to have a lot of Porsche stuff. Maybe they're just starting to get into BMW stuff?

I've heard only good stuff about the group buy. Can anyone verify it's the same company? Again, Coop's thread indicated that it was Hannemann, and this is a division of that company.

[JohnC]

My car has one, John. I'll try to find out... where the car is now (heheheh), if you want to go take a closer look.

Yes Ray, I'd like to take a look if that's possible. Let me know when you find it!