OK, so I'm looking at 2 different styles- this one looks like the one that would have come on the car had it been optioned that way:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...714245&rd=1

And this one looks way cooler: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...384037&rd=1

The thing that concerns me is the possible lack of quality. These hoods are cheaper than others I've looked at, but I don't know if that's a good thing.

Any advice?

TIA

I cant give you a testimonial from my personall experience, however, my father in law owns the best auto body shop within 2 or 3 hundred miles around here and I asked him about aftermarket hoods...he knows he stuff very very very well(he has a 100 thousand dollar bake room)...

and he said "You get what you pay for, don't buy anything cheap, because it will be just that-cheap. It won't line up, it'll need to be sanded a lot, and the paint doesn't go one like it's suppose to. And never buy anything out of california, they're 99% of the time just cheap crap. You'll want to buy something from a reputable company and want to spend $500-$700 if it's quality."

That's my 2 cents...I don't think id ever spend as little as $350 on a aftermarket hood unless it was from a private seller or used or something...

as for the 2 choices you have, I like them both a lot. They both look like they're suppose to be there, and don't look super gaudy...I think the LS1 lookin style one would look better on a TA, and the LT1 style ram air one would look better on a Formula or regular firebird...

that's just me tho, happy hunting!

I have to agree with Toms father-in-law, when it comes to hoods you get what you pay for. You go cheap, you'll get cheap and 99% of the time you'll end up having problems - either with the fitment, the quality of the hood when it comes to painting it, or even have issues where the different pieces of the hood start to split apart (top coming apart from the bottom, which I've seen happens before with a cheap hood and it wasn't a pretty sight).

Also did you notice that neither of those hoods are functional ram air hoods so that they're just for show and won't give you any addition "oomph"? Yes you could make them functional as it states but you'd have additional costs to do that such as opening up the openings (no cost if you have the skill and do it yourself but a body shop will definetly charge you extra to do that) and then having to find the screens and hardward for those. You add the cost of that into the cost of either of those hoods and IMO you'd be better off paying a bit more and just getting a good quality, functional ram air hood right from the start.

the second one looks similar to the one here: www.ramairdhood.com.
I think maybe another reason that they are selling it so cheap could be because it does not come with an airbox. just wait to see how high the bids go.

Thanks guys- yeah, I guess you do get what you pay for. I was looking to go cheaper, as I'm saving for a ring. Maybe I'll just put the hood on hiatus until next year.

Ask who the manufacturer is.

As for styles, I say go with the first one. The 98-up hood looks retarded on a 93-97 IMO.

You could put that in a more appropriate way dude.

I like both ways, but the 93-97 style really does seem to go best with the lines of the car.

I've been looking for a ram air hood for a long time (although my Fiancee doesn't like the look of them). I have been putting it off due to paint costs (ridiculous) and worried about fitment as well... My advice would be to save the $ for your ring and go with the hood in the future when you have enough $ to do it right.

Yeah dude- you're right. Gotta have priorities

There is a place here in IL called VFN fiberglass and from what i hear the quality is really good and the prices are pretty cheap compared to Suncoast or some others i cant think of. There was an article in a High Performance Pontiac issue a few months back and from what i remember they were pretty happy with it.

When i have the money i really would like to get the WS9 Outlaw hood.

I really like the look of the 4inch raised hood, but i think thats for those who want their car to stick out like a sore thumb. I want one real bad but the money isnt there yet. the whole car needs a paint job and i also want the front body kit valence for under the hood. The 4 inch cowl may be obnoxious, but Im a tall guy so i think ill be able to see over it. I just know that putting that on your car makes it look like one mean motha. Thos little mustangs with their cobra hoods....pssshhh!!!! lookin down the nose of a trans am with those huge nostrils beggin for speed....How can you not love these friggin cars??

The manufacturer might be important as far as if they have a good rep for quality, but you can get a decent deal on a quality product. You don't have to spend top $. Whoever is installing/painting is a huge issue. I see a lot of cars with good name bodyparts running around looking like crap cause the owner cheaped out on the install. The right shop can do a proper install & almost any surface can be prepped & painted properly. If you hear a paint shop tell you the paint looks like crap cause of the material I'd stay far away from them. The worse the shop the longer the list of excuses they have.

Well the other day I was driving across the border here in el paso/ciudad juarez, and noticed a fiberglass shop. I stopped and asked how much to make a Ram Air Hood. They tell me only $200-300 bucks. But thats because they shape the original hood using a highly advanced laser positioning and molding software. The workers they have there are in their 30's or 40's, and have been working with fiberglass since their early adolescent years. They get ideas off the magazines, their designs, and are also open to the customers suggestions. The only thing then left is to get a Ram Air Box to make it functional, preferrably get it first so they work around it. They even have pictures of their past work hanging on the wall, before and after. But the way things are going over there with the cartels I'm kind of nervous of driving around there. How many of you are familiar with the border shootings in how the Sinaloan Cartel wants to take over the Chihuahuan JL Cartel. Thats some crazy stuff, up to now more than 300 cops/people have died as a result of AK-47 shootings mainly. So many others have resigned and these narcs are even posting hit lists in public. It justs makes me feel kind of weird to be living in a world where things of this nature occur.