Carbon fiber XB hood - what do you think?

I just took a bunch of pics of a pretty sweet looking carbon fiber hood for the XB (well actually they were emailed to me). I wanted to post pictures to get some opinions first. Is there a decent free image service where I can host the pictures?

- Joe

www.imageshack.us

Thanks Razo-E,

Here's the link to the hood images:

http://img235.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=tf23kt.jpg&cols=4


Seems like a pretty nice piece. I like the curved scoop. Dealer retail $750, but he'll sell one to me for $600.

:thumbup: or :thumbdown ?

Thanks guys.

hmmmm, i like the style, but the fact that the car is VERY square and boxy, the round hood bulge/scoop may look weird...

got any pics of it installed..?

No, I should ask. That's a very good point, thanks! I'll find out if they have any pictures of the hood installed already. I wish they were closer...I'm up in New England and they're in SoCal.

Ok Razo-E....I was able to get some pictures from them...

http://img235.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=tf23kt.jpg&cols=4

I think it looks good and accents the body lines very well....especially since the XB is not completely boxy...it does have some complementary curves.

Worth it? I don't think I have seen anything like it around...which is cool. I hate it when body mods are mass-produced.

The carbon-fiber mirror covers are pretty sweet too.

actually, that doesnt look half bad..:thumbup:

go for it..:)

:thumbup: suh-weet...thanks man, I think I'll do that.

The air in-take is positioned the wrong way. It's for style I admit, but for heat ventilation, it doesn't fly. How's it suppost to cool off the engine with it faced towards the driver... local jet stream? :lol:

Actually that is incorrect.

It depends on what you are trying to achieve (excluding aesthetics).

First, you don't cool most of today's engines using air flow (with a few exceptions like VW, Porsche, etc...). If you're looking to better cool your water-cooled engine you need to look at the cooling system and exhaust. You can use larger radiators, higher CFM fans, high perf water pumps, thermostats and so forth. You can also wrap or ceramic coat your headers to lower underhood temps. Placing a scoop on your vehicle to funnel air into an engine compartment for the purposes of cooling the engine is basically useless if the engine is water-cooled. The results would be negligible.

Second, the purpose of most hood scoops/cowls is to direct cool air into the engine's intake. There are two schools of thought. A forward-facing scoop and a rearward-facing cowl.

The function of a forward facing scoop is pretty clear. Air flows over the body and into the scoop. So long as you place the scoop on a surface exposed to airflow you're golden. There is no such thing as a forward-facing scoop used for ventilation.

Cowl induction is a bit different and can function as a vent or an intake. Cowl induction relies upon a rearward-facing opening. In order for cowl induction to function as a cool-air intake the opening should be located as close as possible to an area of high pressure. The base of an automobile/truck windshield is one such place. Air flows over the cowl and is sucked into the engine compartment through the rear opening since the pressure near the windshield is higher than the pressure in the engine compartment. The cowl induction hoods of the late 60s and early 70s Chevy Camaros and Chevelles functioned in precisely this manner.

However, you can turn a cowl into a hot-air vent by placing it on a surface exposed to negative external air pressure such as the front right and left quadrants of most automobile hoods. Then the air pressure in the engine compartment is greater than the outside air pressure at the surface. Warm air is literally sucked out of the engine compartment. Louvers are commonly used in this capacity.

So there you have it....a little lesson in cooling.

Given the position of the cowl on the hood in question, it would function as a cool-air intake, not as a vent.

Seems stupid to have an intake reversed. I bet he won't even make the intake reversed when he buys the hood. If it serves has a heat-vent than that would be cool.

Thanks josephmartins, I had no idea about the reversal-intake. Still doesn't prove as a safe bet in my opinion. :cool:

Any time man.

Actually I like this XB hood for aesthetic reasons to break up the otherwise boxy look a bit....and let's face it, I won't be racing it any time soon. :D

For future reference, cowl induction is a very safe bet and a track-proven design. Just remember, the rear opening of the cowl should always be located at the base of your windshield.

Did you get it? Seems like alot of $$ to me. Is that painted and shipped or something?

Hi superjeer,

Yep.

As for price, it all depends. $600-800 is toward the low end for carbon fiber (CF) hoods. A 100% CF hood using the best possible materials (meaning the lightest and strongest with the best engineering) would easily cost more than $2000. But that is out of most people's budgets, including mine.

Instead, quite a few manufacturers produce carbon-fiber "reinforced" fiberglass hoods. That means that only the top couple of layers (if you're lucky) are CF. The rest is fiberglass. It's more for looks than for performance.

Those range in price from $300-1200 or so. I have found that the really cheap hoods seem to be in the $300-500 range and are usually poor quality. I've had shrinkage, cracking, warping and a host of other issues. These manufacturers usually put one layer of CF (hundredths of an inch thick) over a poorly done fiberglass hood. Garbage in- garbage out.

My advice to anyone into the whole CF thing...if you want looks go mid-range. If you want looks and performance, save up and go top-of-the-line. And if you like throwing money out the window, buy the bargain crap. Remember, body parts are under constant stress...temperature changes, air pressure, weather, twisting, flexing, and so forth.

I was debating putting together a group buy for these CF hoods for the Scion XB to see if I could negotiate a better price, but there'd have to be enough interest. Time will tell.

In the meantime, I'm going to focus on a new set of flares for my 4x4. :whatwhat:

you can get a pure fiber hood for a lot less than $2000.

There is no such thing as a forward-facing scoop used for ventilation

and whats that supposed to mean?

I was told by several guys that race carbon-fiber bikes that carbon fiber should not be exposed to sunlight since this will break down the fiber, much like it does to any plastic over time.

Yep. If you leave it in the sun it'll fade like everything else.

Though it is "Uv Coated" it will still fade.