Complete Makeover: 1994 BPU Supra
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thanks man...i was beginning to think that nobody here was interested, despite all the views the thread was getting. i figured there'd be more activity in this thread given all the interest expressed in other Supra builds here...granted, i know this build is only cosmetic, and that my Supra is pretty "plain Jane" w/ respect to the other Supras here with regard to go-fast modifications. but she'll at least look stunning when it all comes together, i promise 
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so i confirmed the worst of my fears today - the Seibon TS hood doesn't clear my new Mint speed strut bar. it comes in contact with the 3rd row of louvers and the "spine" (center support) of the hood. but i'm determined to make it work, so the hood will get cut one way or another to accommodate the strut bar. but first, a few pics of the strut bar installed...it looks a bit lonely without the motor lol:
...so i climbed into the engine bay, let the hood down until it hit the strut bar, and i marked off a line with tape on the underside of the hood...it turned out to be located approx. 5.25" from the leading edge of the 3rd row of louvers:
...so i climbed out of the engine bay and measured up 5.25 inches, this time on the topside of the hood, and marked it off with tape. i then taped off the sides of the louvers as necessary. this is what i came up with:
...originally i had planned on leaving all three rows of louvers as bare CF. but now that i'm going to have to trim away approx. half of the 3rd row of louvers (maybe a bit more), i'm think of leaving just the first 2 rows of louvers as bare CF, and painting what remains of the 3rd row Anthracite to match the rest of the hood and car. i'm not entirely sure when i'll get around to cutting the hood, but i'll be sure to document it. stay tuned for updates soon...
...so i climbed into the engine bay, let the hood down until it hit the strut bar, and i marked off a line with tape on the underside of the hood...it turned out to be located approx. 5.25" from the leading edge of the 3rd row of louvers:
...so i climbed out of the engine bay and measured up 5.25 inches, this time on the topside of the hood, and marked it off with tape. i then taped off the sides of the louvers as necessary. this is what i came up with:
...originally i had planned on leaving all three rows of louvers as bare CF. but now that i'm going to have to trim away approx. half of the 3rd row of louvers (maybe a bit more), i'm think of leaving just the first 2 rows of louvers as bare CF, and painting what remains of the 3rd row Anthracite to match the rest of the hood and car. i'm not entirely sure when i'll get around to cutting the hood, but i'll be sure to document it. stay tuned for updates soon...
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thanks for showing support and interest guys ...
.....
...
Paul cut in the engine bay and the rear hatch yesterday, so i went today to take some pics:
this pic was taken a bit later than the previous one when the sun was low enough to peek in...
...my camera sucks and the lighting was pretty bad, so the pics do the color no justice...but come Sunday everything will be painted save for the hood. so hopefully i'll have enough light, natural or not, to take some better pics.
i also went there to trim the hood to fit around the Mint Speed strut bar. unfortunately it wasn't clearing by a whole 1/2"-3/4"! so i ended up having to cut out substantial sections of the 3rd row of louvers...its hard to imagine how the genuine TS hood clears the TRD/Mint Speed strut bar...those hoods must bow more than the Seibon TS hood. i probably could have cut away an inch or so less than i did, but in the end it wouldn't have mattered - i don't like seeing holes that big in the hood, or that much strut bar peeking through for that matter. at any rate, i used an air dremel with a grinding/sanding disk to make the rough cuts, and a grinding burr to smooth out and straighten the edges a bit:
from this angle you can hardly tell, but most people (myself included) aren't 4'0"...at any higher of an angle, the cuts are viewable unfortunately...
...i was going to sand and ease the edges after using the burr, but b/c i made the swift decision to just fill the 3rd row of louvers right after cutting, i didn't bother. when Paul goes to fill those louvers, he'll cut the rest of them out and get rid of any remnants of 3rd row louver edges - that way it'll look nice and smooth on that area of the underside of the hood when it finally gets painted.
i forgot to take pics of the cutting i did to the spine on the underside of the hood. but i took out approx. a 4" section, and the strut bar clears just fine now. i'm going to have Paul glass shut the holes that were left in the spine after i got done cutting...that way he can paint over that section of the underside and it won't look unfinished.
this pic was taken a bit later than the previous one when the sun was low enough to peek in...
...my camera sucks and the lighting was pretty bad, so the pics do the color no justice...but come Sunday everything will be painted save for the hood. so hopefully i'll have enough light, natural or not, to take some better pics.
i also went there to trim the hood to fit around the Mint Speed strut bar. unfortunately it wasn't clearing by a whole 1/2"-3/4"! so i ended up having to cut out substantial sections of the 3rd row of louvers...its hard to imagine how the genuine TS hood clears the TRD/Mint Speed strut bar...those hoods must bow more than the Seibon TS hood. i probably could have cut away an inch or so less than i did, but in the end it wouldn't have mattered - i don't like seeing holes that big in the hood, or that much strut bar peeking through for that matter. at any rate, i used an air dremel with a grinding/sanding disk to make the rough cuts, and a grinding burr to smooth out and straighten the edges a bit:
from this angle you can hardly tell, but most people (myself included) aren't 4'0"...at any higher of an angle, the cuts are viewable unfortunately...
...i was going to sand and ease the edges after using the burr, but b/c i made the swift decision to just fill the 3rd row of louvers right after cutting, i didn't bother. when Paul goes to fill those louvers, he'll cut the rest of them out and get rid of any remnants of 3rd row louver edges - that way it'll look nice and smooth on that area of the underside of the hood when it finally gets painted.
i forgot to take pics of the cutting i did to the spine on the underside of the hood. but i took out approx. a 4" section, and the strut bar clears just fine now. i'm going to have Paul glass shut the holes that were left in the spine after i got done cutting...that way he can paint over that section of the underside and it won't look unfinished.
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so i went to look at some of the paint work on Saturday, and let me say that i don't regret going without a pearl coat one bit. here are some pictures i took...
OE mirrors & front bumper grill (both of which will not be going back on the car), hood latches, OE door handles, APR GT3 mirror bases, refueling door, and RMM wing end plates (to cover the otherwise exposed screws on the vertical supports):
OE front bumper:
OE rear spoiler (which is not going back on the car):
rear bumper, end supports for RMM wing, OE 3-piece side skirts (also not going back on the car), and OE rear spats:
new targa top:
...sorry about the picture quality...it was an overcast day, not to mention my "point-n-shoot" excuse for a digital camera sucks anyways...
OE mirrors & front bumper grill (both of which will not be going back on the car), hood latches, OE door handles, APR GT3 mirror bases, refueling door, and RMM wing end plates (to cover the otherwise exposed screws on the vertical supports):
OE front bumper:
OE rear spoiler (which is not going back on the car):
rear bumper, end supports for RMM wing, OE 3-piece side skirts (also not going back on the car), and OE rear spats:
new targa top:
...sorry about the picture quality...it was an overcast day, not to mention my "point-n-shoot" excuse for a digital camera sucks anyways...
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got some better quality pictures of the paint (in sunlight this time)...don't mind the dust in the first picture:
OE rear wing, OE 3-piece side skirts, OE mirrors, and OE rear spats painted...even though they're not going back on the car:
...and a garage full of parts waiting to go back in and on the car:
OE rear wing, OE 3-piece side skirts, OE mirrors, and OE rear spats painted...even though they're not going back on the car:
...and a garage full of parts waiting to go back in and on the car:
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OK guys, i finally have this thread caught up to the build threads i started on other forums. the car is back at Fifteen52 (my buddy Shawn's shop), and that heap of parts you saw in my garage above is making its way over there in bits and pieces. i got the ABS unit back in, left the traction control pump and actuator out, and rerouted the brake lines to work without traction control. i've also got the wiring harness run. i mounted the A/C condenser & FMIC the other night. i'm hoping to get the radiator and the IC piping installed tonight. maybe i'll get a chance to drop the engine in this weekend...we'll see.
Paul is currently filling the 3rd row of louvers on the hood and painting it, so i should have that back in a week or so...
Paul is currently filling the 3rd row of louvers on the hood and painting it, so i should have that back in a week or so...