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Aftermarket L-88hood

topless82vette

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 1, 2001
Messages
910
Location
southern california
Corvette
1982 convertible (not factory) stock 350cfi auto
does anyone know how well the aftermarket long style L-88 hoods fit .... will they fit as good as my stock hood does has anyone here ever put one on theres and if so who makes the best one

thanks
 
Topless,

I have the short style L88 hood on my 1970 BB. Got it from Ecklers. The fit was pretty close. Had to shave a tad off of each side. Closes well. Good quality. Got it with the Fresh Air Chamber - makes a difference in acceleration on cooler days using Fresh Air. The Fresh AIr Chamber just slips right in and you bond it to the inside of the hood. I got the L88 carb drop base and put a rubber seal on it ; the hood closes down perfectly onto it .

Ive read that people who have bought JC Whitneys L88 hood , have been happy with it, and it costs about $200 less than Ecklers.

Dave.
 
I too have an Ecklers hood. The fit is also dependent on your particular car. If it has ever been in a front end accident the body shop may have made some compromises in the fit of the replacement parts.
What I'm trying to say is that any hood will probably require some customization to achieve an optimal fit on your car.
The best thing about these hoods is the ability to get a decent intake and air cleaner on the engine and still be able to close the hood. I currently have a performer rpm manifold and a 4" K&N filter. I had to trim the wing nut on the air cleaner to fit but fit it does.
 
thanks for your input on the hood, no it doesnt appear the car has ever had front end damage I am planning on switching the stock crossfire injection system for tuned port injection so the extra clearance will really help me out
 
whitney's L-88 hood latch fitment?

I too am thinking of fitting an L-88 hood to my '71.

Wondering if anyone has specific knowledge how/if the stock latch-hinge-support rod attachment and fitment works out on Whitney's L-88 hood? Are the mounting points/bulkheads already in place?

Does anyone know who makes whitney's L-88 hood.
JACK:gap
 
why so many L-88 hoods?

Also, when I check the Whitney site ... I see there are three different part numbers for L-88 hoods without air boxes to fit 68-82. All 3 descriptions state they eliminate wiper doors. If they all 3 eliminate the door and all 3 have no air box ... then what is the difference that would require 3 different pn's ... one for 68-72 ... another for 73-76 and a third for 77-82?? I think the door went away after 72.
JACK:confused
 
Legendary Cars makes whitney L-88 hoods

Did a bit of research. Whitney tells me Legendary Cars makes their L-88 hood. I contacted Legendary Cars, Inc at 2065 Bunnell RD, Warrington PA 18976 (phone: 215-491-1717) (email: legcars@aol.com). I spoke with Larry at Legendary. He tells me the info at Whitney site is incorrect. However, I forgot:hb to ask why there were so many pn's. He did tell me all latches, hinges & supports mount right up as stock. And that he sells the hoods direct too ... but the price is about the same at Whitney. BTW Legendary's pn's:
68-72 L-88 w/o air box, w/o wiper= CHA061
68-72 L-88 with air box, w/o wiper= CHA062
68-72 L-88 w/o air box, with wiper= SHA061
68-72 L-88 with air box, with wiper= SHA062
So, I still don't know why there's 3 different hoods for 68-82? And does anyone have specific knowledge of Legendary's quality?
JACK:confused
 
what is the difference between a 73-76 corvette hood and a 77-82 is there also a way to mount my factory air box off my 82's hood to the L-88 one or would it require alot of work I need to have a sealed air cleaner to be emmissions legal unless I go to tuned port injection do any of you know if a 84 corvette air cleaner will mount on to my 82's crossfire system that would eliminate the need for the air box
 
L88 air box

For those wanting to use the L88 hood with the air box Paragon, www.corvette-paragon.com , has the air cleaner, screen, base defuser ect necessary to match up with the hood and look like a L88 installation.

Tom
 
You mean these air cleaner parts Tom? I got my hood from Ecklers too. I'm having a little fit problem but it should turn out in the end. Every Vette is just a little different and like women, I think they age differently too!

aircleanerinstalled.jpg
 
Man, every time I get a glimpse of the Vette, I think; I just gotta look him up the next time I visit my mother in Pittsburgh. :gap

Sweet ride dude! :upthumbs

_ken :w

FYI, I just got back from your site, where I was going to sign the guestbook but told me that the page couldn't be found. :(

Then I tried to e-mail you via the "Contact..." button you provide, but that gave the same results. :eyerole

Nice site, BTW. :upthumbs
 
Sorry Ken. That site went under an upheaval last month and I haven't had time to sort through the links and pages. Thanks for the info about the problems.

Next time you're in the area give me a holler. We can go for a shake rattle and roll cruise and see how many parts fall off!:D
 
Nice pic of the setup. I didnt use the screen on mine. I thought it might restrict the air too much. If i pop the hood for any length of time, i just put a plastic carb cap on top of the carb to keep those nasty Asian LadyBugs from getting toasted on the compression stoke !

Dave
 
Dave, I remember you posting once that you had to seal the rear of the hood?? What type of foam did you use and are you still monitoring underhood/carb air temps?

Len
 
Am watching this post with interest as I have short L-88 hood & may need long to eliminate wiper door.

Just a note of caution the hood barely clears the air cleaner & leaves little room for the wing nut if you have a Big Block. Had a new carb installed & it required a new stud. Mechanic used a big plastic wing nut & when he was done just dropped the hood & Kapow right down on wing nut which broke. Hood got a small crack in the process so I was ****ed. I was given an on the spot bill adjustment but wanted to warn folks.
 
That's the stuff.
 
Jack,
The difference between the three hoods are the hinge mounts and the latches at the rear.
Mike
 
1970,

I sealed the rear of the hood using some nice rubber stick on seal from JC Whitney. They offer various widths and thicknesses. I think i used the 3/4 inch high by 1/2 inch wide .

Havent done under hood temps. check in a while. Ill do it tomorrow on a 2 hour run im going on, and report back.

Theres definetely a difference in throttle response now that its in the low 50's here in Northern Illinois.

Dave.
 
I have another question on the L-88 hood I may be putting tuned port inj. on my 82 would something like the ram air Z-28 ss air box work and still have enough hood clearance I thought this would look pretty cool on the car
 

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