Rafal

Let's have a debate on the final design of the C/F hoods!

Since we are building a totally new hood for our cars, why don't we take the opportunity and create something unique and different, rather than just copy BRABUS vents onto a stock hood?

Most of us like this EXPRESSION hood, with its modified, built-up painted nose and a true CL-type grille that is long, narrow and elegant. It looks better than all the bulky, truck-like Taiwanese knock-offs put together.
We can get the louvered grille from EXPRESSION to fit our new hood !
Just add the vents and you got one mean looking hood!

This would be so easy to achieve in C/F.

Feel free to argue!

Archi

I was looking at a friend's Vanquish S yesterday. I really like the vents in the hood.....what do you think?

vraa

The problem with truly integrating vents like those is the issues that Marcus has brought up. If they really work, and drag. The problem with creating custom one off jobs (or fifteen off jobs, however you think about it) is that there is very little R&D to do the hood because of the lack of resources. It's so hard to try to get a 5000$ project (I'm just estimating that cost) when you get no return, and on top of that, you have to shell most of it out of your own pocket.

Of course, if we could get guys to chip in, this wouldn't be such an issue.. but we'd need cars to test it on, wind tunnels to make sure there is little or no drag, etc.

The really cool thing about the current group buy on the carbon fiber hood is that it's a carbon fiber copy of the Brabus hood (with a few minor alterations I'm sure, Neal has the exact information). Brabus does have the wind tunnel testing capabilities. They have the resources to make sure the proper hood passes drag tests and making sure they do dissipate something. That's why copying it, except making it available to the public, making it cheaper, and also making it in carbon fiber is such a great idea.

BMWEATR

I think that aston is the sickest car on the planet!

medici78

I don't see a point in changing the design. Personally, I'd like to have functioning vents, but that wannabe CL hood looks like crap to me. Leave the coupe grilles to the coupes and the upright star on the sedans, CLS excepted.

BenzoBoi

I'm sorry but I personally hate that grille. The Expression hood (If there is such a thing) doesn't look bad but I cannot bare to put that big silver star right in front of the grille like that.

BlackC230Coupe

Guys, as much as I appreciate the thought on just coming up with any design you want. That's fine. But I am not going to make it. I originally only wanted to do the OEM hood in CF. But somehow 99% of people said if you can do the Brabus vents then they would want it. I spent a lot of time with the CF guys, and we finally are able to get the job done. I see some people that originally wanted the hood with vents have disappears. But I was doing this for you guys. There is a lot of work in this to make it perfect. But if people have changed there mind, that's fine, but no hoods will be made. I guess its alot easier to say you want then hood then actually commit to it.

e55 baller

I am commited to the CF hood. Are you going to make them? Thanks

BenzoBoi

E55 baller, this is the link to the cf hood group buy. There is a link I believe on the 3rd page at the way bottom that will lead you to put a deposit down for the hood. Once we get 15 people, they will start making the hoods. If I'm correct, at the current moment, we have 10 people...

W211 CF hood group buy

Rafal

OK, guys, are we all ready for this look?

I have placed these mock vents directly over the air boxes, inside the perimeter of the engine seals. I have all the measurements.
Frankly, I am a little scared... Is this how we all imagined the hood might look?

These vents are not as visible on black cars as they are on silver.

Let's discuss this!

OzE55

This is a photo of the Brabus CLK hood.
Slits a bit finer which helps the look.

chem0

omg.. what was I thinking..

BenzoBoi

Maybe not as extreme as Rafal's pic but a little more subtle lines like what Oz said...