I'm planning on purchasing a 3rd. rear deck vent and was wondering if a fiberglass piece would be superior to a metal one. My concern is any conflict of a metal piece intagrating on to the stock deck composit. As always, thanks for any input. Rich
It depends on the metal piece. If it is installed using mechanical fasteners it will be fine....(assuming it looks OK I mean) Don't try to use fiberglass resin or epoxy to hold a metal vent, as they have different expansion rates due to temperature, and the joint will always crack after a while.
Gall: Thanks. Rather than buying a pre-fab vent, I was thinking of cutting and "splicing" 2 stock GT deck grills into a rectangle, that way rainwater won't be an issue and the louvers would match, like "SKI'S". Any thoughts? Rich
If you mold a metal vent to the deck lid, it will definately crack sooner or later. It gets hot and like mentioned, you have wayy different expansion rates. Just finding an 84 decklid is a great idea.
Gall: Thanks. Rather than buying a pre-fab vent, I was thinking of cutting and "splicing" 2 stock GT deck grills into a rectangle, that way rainwater won't be an issue and the louvers would match, like "SKI'S". Any thoughts? Rich
Do you mean Skitime? Well.....My idea of an 84 decklid won't work on a GT. And Skitime was the quality standard when you talk about what you can do to a Fiero. It looks like he built a separate metal assembly and fit into a hole in the center of the decklid. It is probably described in his build thread...(find it in the Construction Zone)....and you could do it that way too. Allow for expansion by making the hole in the deck lid larger than the metal assembly, and attach with fasteners, not glue. the deck lid will have to be re-worked to get enough material to support the vent.
[This message has been edited by Gall757 (edited 03-21-2014).]
"My" idea came after I was searching for pictures of 3rd. vented cars and saw SKITIME's masterpiece. Not wanting to spend an excessive amount for the mod., but wanting something professional and attractive, I thought I'd throw it out to the Forum for ideas. The body work won't pose a problem, as I've found a competant person to do the work. I'm still concerned with the rain water issue, being that the grill placement will be over the engine. My plan to use an '84 grill was dismissed when I discovered the design difference in that piece and the vents on later models, such as my '87 GT. So, the search continues for an aftermarket vent. If anyone finds a suitable substitute, please let this reader and all of us, know. Thanks all for the input. Rich
You do know that water soaks the engine bay anytime you drive in the rain anyway, right. It comes in with the air from the bottom. It would still be soaked if you didnt have any vents at all in the top. It also pours in thru all the seams at the back window and quarter panels.
