Engine Cowl Cover Customization

[All2kool]

I got so frustrated with the missing plastic retaining bolts that hold the front cover in place, I decided a custom fabrication was in order. OK, fabrication is a strong word. I did take 4 rare earth magnetic disks and epoxy them to the underside where the bolts would be. I then dropped in some flat black paint to 'blend' it in. FoMoCo should have done it this way from the start.

 

[joegr]

You can buy the missing bolts easy enough. Still, that sounds like a very cool solution. I like it.

 

[G-RELL]

finished pic yet?

 

[All2kool]

You can buy the missing bolts easy enough. Still, that sounds like a very cool solution. I like it.

It's actually more secure than the plastic bolts I think.

finished pic yet?

Not much to see really - just looks like a quarter glued to the underside. The pic actually shows them epoxied in place and then painted black, which makes them still look as though they are missing.

 

[joegr]

It's actually more secure than the plastic bolts I think...

Yours must have partly broken already then. My non-broken ones are very secure. The broken ones are gone. I'm sure the magnets hold it more than well enough, and I like the idea that all you have to do is to pull the piece up to remove it and put it back to re-install it. That is easier than putting the plastic bolts in and out, but the magnets would have been more expensive for Ford than the plastic parts.

 

[theophile]

Not much to see really - just looks like a quarter glued to the underside. The pic actually shows them epoxied in place and then painted black, which makes them still look as though they are missing.

If you're like me, you probably have a pile somewhere of those push-pin cowl fasteners where the plastic prongs have broken off to the point that the fasteners are practically useless for fastening. You could take a few of those and cut the bottoms off and just glue them over the holes where the plastic bolts went. They obviously wouldn't be functional but they would make it "look right."

 

[All2kool]

If you're like me, you probably have a pile somewhere of those push-pin cowl fasteners where the plastic prongs have broken off to the point that the fasteners are practically useless for fastening. You could take a few of those and cut the bottoms off and just glue them over the holes where the plastic bolts went. They obviously wouldn't be functional but they would make it "look right."

I actually plan on doing just that. I ordered some plugs off EBay but still wanted to go with the magnets.