Repairing a original AAR hood

[Lloyd Lind]

This is the forth T/A and AAR hood fix I have done , they bow from the hood springs, the pictures show my fix and how I keep the hood lined up for fit. The wood on each side is cut to match the fenders of the Aar this hood goes on. The tube rests under the hood pin and is welded to the factory hinge bracket. Had to make the hole large enough to get the tube inside the hood , after welding I spray foamed the entire beam. Now that it is built back up with foam and filler I will lay up a thin layer of fiberglass over the repair.

[Roadman]

               Welcome aboard @Lloyd Lind                        Awesome help on hoods     

[IRON MAN]

Welcome to the forum. I like the technique you came up with for alleviating the bow the hood springs cause to the f'glass hoods.

[Katfish]

Any advantage to using a tube as opposed to a boxed 1"X1" for the reinforcement?

[Lloyd Lind]

I wanted to aviod seeing the corner of the square at the front, I have had that happen in the past. Since I welded a washer on I think I could have gone both ways but I had a time getting the tube inside the hood and a square is way worse, In the past it required taking the entire hinge fiberglass apart just to get the metal in all the way. Plus with a tube the foam gets all the way around it so it is not just pressing on the skin. The main problem is possibly seeing the metal beam through the hood later as the hood gets hot and you get cold flow from the fiberglass.  I eliminate that problem by making sure the end is under the hood pin plate though.

[Spikedog08]

That's pretty cool!  Welcome to the site!  Glad you signed up! 

[cataclysm80]

Nice work, Thanks for sharing!

[RUNCHARGER]

I like that fix.

[Cuda Cody]

Nice work!     And welcome to the site.   

[FSHTAIL]

Are there aftermarket AAR hoods that are beefed up like this to avoid the bowing?

Great fix, looks beefy. 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

[HEMICUDA]

Are there aftermarket AAR hoods that are beefed up like this to avoid the bowing?

Great fix, looks beefy. 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

The myth of AAR and T/A hoods bowing over time has been the attitude for years, that just not true.  These hoods were one of the biggest POS part Chrysler ever made, extremely crude, some worse than others.  Look at as many original ads from back in the day, not bowed, made wrong.   Fiberglass doesn't bend and take the shape, it breaks. 

The longer re-enforcing plate will protect the under structure from cracking in front of the front hood hinge bolt and that will only happen if the hinges are to tight. 

[AAR#2]

Are there aftermarket AAR hoods that are beefed up like this to avoid the bowing?

Great fix, looks beefy. 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

The myth of AAR and T/A hoods bowing over time has been the attitude for years, that just not true.  These hoods were one of the biggest POS part Chrysler ever made, extremely crude, some worse than others.  Look at as many original ads from back in the day, not bowed, made wrong.   Fiberglass doesn't bend and take the shape, it breaks. 

The longer re-enforcing plate will protect the under structure from cracking in front of the front hood hinge bolt and that will only happen if the hinges are to tight.

Additionally worth noting is that composites will 'spring closed' during the cure cycle. I doubt many understood/or knew about this back in 1969, as many variables play into the amount of 'spring close' that occurs. The base idea being that as the resin cures, it shrinks. The long arcing slope of the hood will naturally cure to a shape that will not match the contour, from front to rear, when compared to the fenders, unless of course someone had the insight to factor the amount of movement and compensate the layup tool.

As an example, if you were to layup on a 90 degree bar and allow to cure, the end result will usually produce an inside angle of 88.5-89 degrees. When the use of carbon fiber became more widely used, the stiffer, less forgiving material resulted in fitment issues that forced the industry to reevaluate practice.

I know there are many an opinion on this, but my personal opinion is that an AAR needs the mild bow to be an AAR. Adds character, and to those that are looking for that factory look, correctness.

[HEMICUDA]

Are there aftermarket AAR hoods that are beefed up like this to avoid the bowing?

Great fix, looks beefy. 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

The myth of AAR and T/A hoods bowing over time has been the attitude for years, that just not true.  These hoods were one of the biggest POS part Chrysler ever made, extremely crude, some worse than others.  Look at as many original ads from back in the day, not bowed, made wrong.   Fiberglass doesn't bend and take the shape, it breaks. 

The longer re-enforcing plate will protect the under structure from cracking in front of the front hood hinge bolt and that will only happen if the hinges are to tight.

Additionally worth noting is that composites will 'spring closed' during the cure cycle. I doubt many understood/or knew about this back in 1969, as many variables play into the amount of 'spring close' that occurs. The base idea being that as the resin cures, it shrinks. The long arcing slope of the hood will naturally cure to a shape that will not match the contour, from front to rear, when compared to the fenders, unless of course someone had the insight to factor the amount of movement and compensate the layup tool.

As an example, if you were to layup on a 90 degree bar and allow to cure, the end result will usually produce an inside angle of 88.5-89 degrees. When the use of carbon fiber became more widely used, the stiffer, less forgiving material resulted in fitment issues that forced the industry to reevaluate practice.

I know there are many an opinion on this, but my personal opinion is that an AAR needs the mild bow to be an AAR. Adds character, and to those that are looking for that factory look, correctness.

There you go, a much better explanation as to "why" from a very knowledgeable person, these hoods were awful from day one.

[61K T/A]

Are there aftermarket AAR hoods that are beefed up like this to avoid the bowing?

Great fix, looks beefy. 

There was a company in the Philadelphia area that stopped making Trans Am hoods last year. Arguably the best made hood (heavy) on the market. The companies name escapes me. Maybe some one will chime in. The company is still in business. Maybe worth a call and see if they will make you a hood.

[anlauto]

I know there are many an opinion on this, but my personal opinion is that an AAR needs the mild bow to be an AAR. Adds character, and to those that are looking for that factory look, correctness.

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