Dave … not certain on the color yet. It has changed many times over the years...right now a dark metallic red

More progress... good times. Started building a fiberglass hood for the Torino way back. Had a plan of fiberglass hood and making it a cowl hood for space for the intake I was going to build. When I had the car on the ground to get an idea where I was at I laid the hood and cowl on it to check it out.
It just looked wrong.
So back to thinking about what to do....
Checked into just buying a stock flat fiberglass hood. The truck shipping to Canada was insane so I had to make it myself. I can't justify buying a hood that's going to get modified anyway... might as well make my own exactly how I want it.
I did have a stock steel hood that I split the inner from the outer to use as my molds. Just grind off the pinch weld, clean it up and lay down the gel and glass.
So as I got started on the hood my engine details changed. I picked up a brand new M122 Eaton supercharger and intercooler off ebay . Of coarse I will have to build an intake for it and the hood will need a raised area to clear the intercooler but it only needs to be raised a little over an inch.

This is the M122 sitting on the engine. Its off a Caddy. It has an 8 rib belt drive and the V10 has a 8 rib drive on some applications so that will be easy. Besides making an intake the alternator will need to be relocated on a custom bracket.
The Caddy intake is cast as part of the supercharger. I will cut all that off to make room for mine.
Also in these pics the firewall and inner fenders are coming together.

Man this is Gold!
Love the work Gary!

I know it's a Ford but your mock up made me think of a 66/67 Chevelle big bock hood that had the cast ribs on the side. They had a round profile to them as well. Maybe that would be a way to have a cowl hood that's not your typical wedge shape like so many cowl hoods appear to be. Just a thought. I'm sure you'll think of something great.

Thanks Trey.
The factory hood lines on a Torino are quite pronounced at the front of the hood. I have taken the factory lines and raised them up as they go back ... so its kinda cowl like. The rear is closed and the back half has bulged sides on the raised part.
Once i get the bottom done I will flip it and drop it on the car and get some better pics.

Sounds nice. Can't wait to see pics.

Glad to see you're back on it, looking good!

It feels great getting to work on it after so long. Thanks.

Had a good weekend working on the Torino. Made some real progress on the hood. Its all roughed out and now ready for the fine tuning on the finished product. I'm very pleased with how it turned out especially since it was made with no proper mold.
As you can see in the pics its a two piece setup. The engine section must open first before the front can be opened. The front is just access to PS , overflow bottle and airbox. I wanted the look of the Talledega with the header panel but didn't want the length that it has.

Designed a new set of taillight housings a while back.
Rick, a friend of mine who is a CNC machinist took my drawing and turned it into a set of billet housings for me.
He also did some gas caps for me. I will be mounting the fuel filler on the sail panel and to make it uniform I will have a filler on both sides of the car. The fuel tank will be moved forward and I wont be using the stock license plate filler.

Got a batch of caps and had 2 sets anodized for my fuel fillers.

you are on a roll Gary, that hood is cool as is the rest of it.

Yup, I knew you'd come up with something great for the hood. I love it. Great work!

Gary I can't say enough about that hood and your design...very cool to say the least.The gas cap and tail lights are right up there too. Are you planning on tracking the car down the road?Great work...

Thanks guys.

Dave...
I intend to use it for long roadtrips and cruising around town. My wife and I love roadtrips. I do have access to a private roadcoarse (AREA 27) just up the road and I'm looking forward to trying it out on the track. Realistically, if I wanted a track car this would not be it.

Been getting as much done as I can. I will have to take a break in a couple of months for other commitments. I will continue to get small stuff done while taking care of other things.

Back to working on the custom intake tonight. Milled the bottom of it flat after tacking it together. Now to clamp it down and weld it up. I should be able to get a bunch done this coming weekend.

Yes I guess you're not too far from Area 27.I was up there last summer with a buddy of mine from Penticton.Nice facility from what I saw.Great drive coming down from Penticton.I'll be up there a few times this summer for sure.Until then I'll be keeping up on your build,great work.

Let me know when youll be around Dave. Do you drive your car up when you come up here?

I always drive my car up there every chance I get.My buddy in Penticton has a 2010 911 Porsche but always wants to drive my old sled.Can't blame him really.Mine is just meat and potatoes compared to his car.406 SBC/T-56 with 3.90:1 rear gear with about 450hp/450tq.I'm learning more and more every day how to work on it.Just installing Corvette C-6 front/C-4 rear brakes (Thanks Tobin and Kore3!)I'm getting there...but it's a BLAST! I'll be up there a bunch in the summer I'll be sure to drop you a line.Really enjoying your build thread

Spent a couple of hours Friday night surfacing the intake manifold. Now that its finished I will black wrinkle paint it to match the intercooler. Still have to build the intake duct that extends out the throttle body.
Saturday I worked on the radiator box and air filter mount. Got that all sheeted in and mostly welded. Began carving the foam for the mold to make the air cleaner duct. This will be made out of fiberglass. Hopefully I can get the first fiberglass on tomorrow night.

more pics

The foam is now fiberglass

I keep deciding to and then deciding against removing the gutters, chrome around the windows and flush mount the glass. If I were to leave the chrome around the windows I would black it out …...But … If I remove it all, it gives the car a more modern look. I'm not too worried about the fact its a ton of work to get rid of the chrome on this car. Its definitely not the easiest car to get rid of the chrome on.
I am currently on the remove it plan...…
Any comments on the idea are welcome ....

Pics of the car sides, one with the chrome off, one with it still on.

I am leaving mine on my Torino but blacking it out. I asked the question on the paint forum and got several responses...
https://lateral-g.net/forums/showthread.php?t=56371

Very cool, would love to know the process to get the foam out of the fiberglass?

I'm contemplating the same on my 69 Cougar but the chrome is nowhere near the level of integration that you have. The side however is similar as it ties into the "hockey stick" at the rear quarter windows.

Leave the trim and cerakote it a darker color. Doesn't need to be black, but should be muted for sure.

Hey Joe. its very easy to remove the foam. Its a urethane foam that can be purchased as a board in different thicknesses. Its also available as a 2 part liquid.
It shapes very easily with a knife, sandpaper and just you hand. Carve your shape just a little smaller than your desired size and then glass it up which adds the thickness of your final part. After the glass is dry you just carve it out of the inside.
I use it for spoilers , door panels, dash parts and even side rear view mirror bodies.

Thanx for the replies on the trim question and I read through Joes thread on the same question.
My car will most likely be 2 tone and I have removed a lot of the trim already. The bumpers will be body color. It will have black bits on the exterior also.
I did find a pic online of a Torino fastback with all the trim gone, The car is one color, gray. It is extremely well finished but to much gray for my liking.

https://www.streetmusclemag.com/feat...9-ford-torino/

I'm still undecided, but I think I'm back on leave it and paint it. I will wait until its the last thing to do before bodywork to decide.

Hi Gary - do you have a good online source for the solid board foam?

No , sorry John. I am able to get it right from a plastics supplier close by.
I would think that any plastics/ fiberglass supplier would be able to help you.
The stuff is expensive, but after using it you will find the price is worth the time saving when making custom one only parts.

This is the same stuff right?
https://www.fibreglast.com/category/..._Sandwich_Core

That is the stuff. Some of those products are intended for different purposes, such as stiffening a part.
I use the polyurethane foam board , usually in the 2 inch thick. You can glue it together to make it thicker. When I was making the air box part in the pics I held two pieces of foam together with 6 inch pieces of welding rod stuck into it.

Hope everyone is well.
I went to Puerto Vallarta just before Canada implemented 2 week quarantine on my return. Considered coming home early but was advised to stay and take my scheduled flight home. Glad I did because the rush to the airport around march 15 was crazy. I flew home on March 20 without any issues. Now I'm half way through my quarantine of 2 weeks.

I now have most of my "honey do list " done ...so now I'm forced to work on my car. hahaha

Everyone please practice hand washing , physical distancing and be safe.
My youngest daughter is a Paramedic and on the front lines...…

Take care all first responders

Have been working on the rear of the car for a few days. Got the bumper sectioned, trimmed down and made the mounting. Like the look of the narrow bumpers similar to a Mustang or Cougar. Had to fabricate the lower valance from scratch. Made a recess for the license plate and cutouts for the exhaust.
Still want to fine tune the bumper ends for a uniform gap.
I am quite happy with the look and now I'm thinking of chroming the bumpers instead of painting like my original plan.
I also want to find a couple of BU lights that surface mount into the lower valance.

Looks great!

Gary those tail light housings came out really nice to say the least.Looking forward to what comes next on the build.Really nice work...

Thanks for the compliments guys.

I still have some details to finish the rear bumper fitment but decided to get some progress on the front bumper. Quartered the bumper and narrowed the height, much like the rear. Made the main mount brackets, still have to make the brackets out to the bumper ends. Reshaped the outer ends to follow the grille ends. I extended the top plane of the bumper so I could do away with the filler panel between the bumper and grille.
Now that the front bumper has taken shape I can get going on the fender leading edges and then on to the airdam ….. can't wait
Also pulled out all my AC parts to plan out the hose routing and mounting of the components. Definitely going to need more fittings.

Worked on the front fender corners over the weekend. My wife was away for the weekend so I spent Saturday night imagineering the front spoiler and attachments. Wanted a hidden quick release system for the front spoiler so loading on a trailer or service work will be painless. Fabbed the fender side of the mounts for the spoiler. Need to get some over centre buckles for the spoiler side of the mounts. The actual spoiler will be made out of fiberglass, I will start making the pieces for that this week.
Ordered from amazon some very slender high intensity LED lights that should work for backup lights. I think the same lights, if available in amber with dual intensity, will work for front turn lights.

This thing is freakin' great.