APPLICATION:  My car is a 1996 V-6.  This hood scoop is designed to fit a 1999 up Mustang.  I found the scoop fits the curve of the 1996 hood perfectly, but the scoop grill insert and fastening system required modification. 

TOOLS REQUIRED:  Basic mechanical tools plus a Dremel power tool to install the scoop.  For the stripe, a tape measure, scissors, Xacto type knife, spray bottle, rubber squeegee, and masking tape. 

TIME REQUIRED: Allow a full day.  This modification has many individual operations and requires a large dose of time and patience.

COST OF THIS PROJECT: The scoop is a Ford factory part I found for a best price of $97.50.  Shipping was $16.50 and you should plan another $12.00 or so for fasteners and a trim molding.  The striping material will cost in the area of $20, so you are looking at something close to $150 for everything. 

WHERE TO GET THE PARTS: I purchased the hood scoop from Gene Evans Ford in Atlanta.  To order from Gene Evans phone 1-800-992-9801 or go through their web site at www.getracing.com.  I ordered by phone.  The service was great and delivery took only a couple days. 

WHY MAKE THIS MODIFICATION?
Strictly for looks.  For my money, this is the best looking modification I have made to my 3.8 so far. 

WHAT I ACCOMPLISHED: 
I really like this hood scoop and stripe treatment.  It makes my car look very unique.

PHOTOS:

>
1.  The underside of the hood scoop with the grill removed.  Note that the grill is a honeycomb design, which coincidentally matches the 1996 Mustang grill perfectly.

2. The upper side of the scoop with the finish protected against possible installation damage.

3.  Remove this guide pin.  No sense drilling a big hole in your hood when it is not necessary. 

4.  The scoop being fitted to the hood. 

5.  Cutting the scoop grill to the proper angle and size.

6.  The scoop grill trimmed to size and the rubber molding used to finish off the cut.

7.  The underside of the scoop with the factory mounting bolts in place.

8.  The factory fasteners are too short for the '96 hood.  This is the hardware I purchased to create a new mounting system.

9.  A close-up of the mount I fabricated slipped in place on one of the scoop mounting tabs.  To achieve a proper fit, I later had to reverse all the slip nuts so that the turned down (up in the photo) portion visible here was on the top of the scoop mounting tab rather than the bottom.

10.  My final mounting system in place. 

11.  The hood pad.

12.  The pad has a ground cable.  I learned why when I started to drill.

13.  Using a template, I marked and drilled the holes.  That was when I learned the hood on my car is - FIBERGLASS! 

14. The underside of the hood with the holes drilled.  You have to be sure that you locate the hood scoop far enough forward to miss the framework.

15. The hood scoop installed.

16.  While I had the liner off I painted the horse silver.  The paint bled around the edges, but it still looks good. 

17.  The hood scoop looks great, but I had mixed emotions about the black scoop mounted on a different color hood.

18.  Yet, I like it black because most the muscle car scoops including those on Mustangs were black.

19.  Still, it still needs something...

20.  Wait, I know!  Some black striping to carry the black color of the scoop down the hood.

21.  These are the supplies you will need to install a stripe on your car. 

22.  I started by drawing out some possible designs.

23.  I laid out a first design and didn't like it. 

24.  Back to the drawing board for a single stripe design. 

25.  This one I like.

26.  Some trimming is required to achieve a proper fit where the stripe meets the grill of the scoop.

27.  Cutting the concave curve necessary to fit against the grill of the scoop. 

28.  Leave at least a couple inches of extra length to wrap under the hood. 

29.  The wide center stripe squeegeed into place.

30.  The side stripes squeegeed into place.

31.  The excess material is trimmed and folded under the hood.

32.  The finished job after it dried and was polished.

33.  Another view of the finished job. 

HOW I COMPLETED THE MODIFICATION:
This is not a job for the faint at heart.  Read carefully and proceed only if you are confident in your ability.  On the other hand, don't be scared off.  It just takes time and patience.     

The photos pretty much explain the procedure.  The scoop is a very flexible plastic material, not fiberglass.  It is available as a Ford factory part for prices of just under $100 finished in various production run colors.  Since I was installing the scoop on a 1996 car, I chose black thinking that it would be the only color I might not want to repaint (my car is Pacific Green).

The scoop came wrapped in a protective plastic material.  I cut that material to fit the upper portion of the scoop and taped it in place to protect the very slick black finish during the installation process.  

The honeycomb grill and the rear of the scoop have protruding mounting guide pins molded in.  I used a Dremel power tool fitted with a cutting wheel to remove the pin on the scoop (don't forget to wear safety goggles).  The one on the grill was removed in the process of shaping it to fit the convex curve of a 1996 hood when it is designed to fit the concave curve of a 1999 up hood.  The scoop itself fits the 1996 hood perfectly.  

Let's talk about the grill.  I decided that it had to be removed from the scoop to be shaped.  The folks at Ford clearly installed this grill to remain in place at warp speeds.  It is a snap fit that I finally overcame, but I am still not sure how.  Reinstalling it was a little easier, but not much.  You may elect to shape the grill without removing it and I think that could be done, but only with increased danger of damaging the finish on the scoop.

The next thing I did was create an exact pattern of the hood scoop by tracing around it on a piece of thin poster board.  I then turned the scoop upside down and marked holes for the preinstalled factory fasteners.  A note of caution here - the front two fasteners are mounted to the scoop on tabs canted to fit the center indentation on the 1999 up hood and must flex flat during installation on an earlier hood (see photo 10).  If you do not hold each tab down even with the base of the scoop while creating your pattern, your mark for those holes will be off a half-inch or so.

Once I completed the pattern, I drew a line down its exact center.  I then measured from the top of the hood to where I wanted the hood scoop to mount.  Be sure that is a point at least one inch forward of the back brace of the hood frame (see photo 14).  Don't worry about the underside center brace because there are no center mounting holes required. 

Remove the silencing panel on the underside of the hood.  The retaining clips pry out and if you are gentle in the process will be reusable.   Don't forget to remove the ground cable at the right (from the driver's seat and left as you will be looking at it) corner of the hood.  Ground cable?  Why?   We are about to find out.

Lay the pattern on the hood and align it to the precise center of the hood.  This will take some measuring and items such as a cloth tape measure and a T-square are a big help.  Tape the pattern in place and check all the measurements.  Also, be sure your holes are going to miss all the underhood bracing.

Now, center punch the holes for drilling.  Wait, the center punch is just bouncing back with no indentation.  Strange...  Well, let's try drilling a hole.  Man, this is the softest metal I have ever drilled through.  Wait, this ain't metal, its FIBERGLASS.  I have a fiberglass hood.  O'boy, I'll bet the factory screwed up and gave me the light-weight racing version of the V-6.   On the other hand, all Mustang hoods may be fiberglass.  I really don't know, but I was shocked to find my hood was not metal.  Well, it does explain the need for the ground cable. 

Ok, the holes are drilled.  The next thing is to get the grill of the scoop shaped to fit the hood.  Do this by placing the scoop in place and measuring the distance from the top of the scoop opening to the top of the hood at the centerline and on each side. 

Using some of the thin poster board, draw a precisely straight horizontal line that is at least as long as the hood scoop is wide.  Consider this the top of the hood scoop opening.  Draw three lines down from the straight line based on your measurements from the top of the scoop opening to the hood.  Join the bottom of those lines into a curve that duplicates the top of the hood.  Cut out this pattern and make sure it fits perfectly against the hood.

Tape the pattern to the grill and use a hacksaw blade to cut off the excess material.  Well, I actually recommend you cut about a sixteenth of an inch below the line.  Shaping it to size after the first fitting is more work, but safer.  I doubt that Ford services this grill as a separate part.  I used a Dremel tool with the grinding wheel attachment to finish shaping the bottom of the grill, checking the fit many times as I progressed.  When I got close, I finished the job with a file. 

The plastic of the scoop grill is very hard to work with.  Partly because it is a honeycomb design, but mostly because it is made of a soft almost waxy plastic that makes a perfectly smooth cut near impossible.  So, after I was satisfied with the fit, to cover the less than perfect cut I glued on a piece of trim molding (see photo six).  But, I made a mistake.  This molding is about 1/8th of an inch (compressed) wide at the bottom.  When I tried to bolt the hood scoop down the first time, the thickness of the molding interfered with achieving a flush fit in front.  So, off with the scoop, remove the grill a second time, remove the molding and cut it down further.  Don't make that same mistake.

We are now ready to talk about the factory scoop fastening system.  It is too short for the 1966 Hood.  The threaded rods do not protrude far enough through the hood to properly install a fender type washer and nut combination.   You need the washer to spread the stress, especially bolting against fiberglass.  Something longer was needed, so I headed for the local hardware.  Not a "home center", but a good old-fashioned neighborhood hardware where there are real people with ideas to help you solve a problem.

The solution is shown in photo eight.  I purchased these slip-nuts and bolts and installed them on the scoop mounting tabs just the way they are intended to be used (flat side up and curved edge down).  This did not work because the curve on the lower surface held the scoop just slightly away from the surface of the hood.  I flipped the slip-nuts upside down, screwed the bolts in backwards and reinstalled them.  The flat side was now down and the problem solved.

Before you start putting the scoop in place on the hood, tape the ends of each bolt so that if you accidentally run one across the hood no damage will be done.  Remember to reach under the side of the scoop and apply some pressure to the bottom of each of the front fasteners.  If you drilled properly, these bolts will match the holes only when the tab they are on is pushed flush with the bottom of the scoop. 

Once the scoop is in place, fasten it down with masking tape (the easy release blue type is safest).  A generous strip across the scoop from top to bottom and another side to side should do it because the two front canted fasteners tend to hold the scoop even without tape.  Because you do not want the scoop to fall off when you raise the hood and assuming you have no one to hold the scoop in place, do this: hold a fender washer and nut combination in one hand and lift the hood just far enough to reach under and install the first washer and bolt finger tight.  You can then raise the hood fully, install the hood prop and thread a washer and nut on each of the fastening bolts.  Tighten them finger tight, then use a socket to tighten them lightly (snug plus a half turn) in an X-pattern.  The hood silencer panel can now be reinstalled.  Don't forget the ground strap.   

Except, if you intend to install a stripe or other tape treatment, do not tighten the scoop or reinstall the hood silencer panel.  You will see why later.

Over the next couple days, I decided I not only liked the scoop black, I wanted it black.  I could envision the black scoop on any color Mustang and I still liked it black.  Still, something was needed to give it a more finished "factory" look.  I decided a gloss black decal design might do the trick. 

I took a picture of the front of the car (photo number 18) and blew it up on a copy machine.  I then traced it with a black marking pen and started drawing out some possible decal designs.  I then did some measuring on the hood and decided on a two racing stripe design with each stripe being 9-inches wide.  A local sign shop cut the gloss black material they use to letter trucks into two panels 9-inches wide and 30-inches long.  Since the material is 24-inches wide, this left a section six inches wide and 30-inches long.  I had them cut that into quarter inch stripes. 

I cut the 9-inch panels apart leaving a border of the backing material and taped both to the hood.  I didn't like it.  Next, I tried a centered single 9-inch stripe and that, to my eye at least, looked far better. 

In fitting the stripe I realized the grill of the hood scoop is slightly curved, necessitating that there be a slight concave cut to the top of the stripe.  The other and better option would be to slip the vinyl material under the grill, but this has to be done prior to tightening the scoop into place.   Unfortunately, I did not plan that far ahead.  My recommendation would be that the stripe be applied before the scoop is tightened down.  But, not wanting to go through the process of removing the silencing panel and loosening the scoop, I trimmed the top of vinyl stripe to fit the grill.  I then trimmed the excess on the bottom of the stripe leaving two inches beyond the front of the hood.  This overhang will be tucked under the leading edge of the hood. 

A word here about cutting vinyl on the car.  Don't do it!  If you watch a professional, you will see that use a very sharp fine blade and trim the vinyl in place on the car.  Even with a light hand, this will mark at least the clear-coat portion of the paint.  If you plan to leave the stripe in place forever, it probably does not matter.  But, if you want to retain the option of removing it in the future, trim the vinyl off the car (see photo 27) so there are no marks in the paint.   

There is no special preparation of the hood paint required prior to striping, except that the surface must of course be completely clean.  You do not have to prep the area by removing the polish or any thing like that. 

Installing vinyl decal materials on a car in any format is not all that difficult as long as you use liberal amounts of the "magic formula" - a dishwasher soap and water combination (about five drops to the average spray bottle).  It is also important not to drive the car for at least several hours or attempt to clean off the mess left by the solution for at least eight hours. 

You do not want to try to install vinyl material on a surface that is hot from the sun or at a temperature less than 65-degrees Fahrenheit.    You also do not want a windy day that will blow your material around while you are trying to lay it in place.  The best place to install vinyl is in a well-lighted garage. 

Prior to starting your vinyl installation, use small pieces of masking tape with a line drawn down the center to designate the precise center of the hood scoop grill and the hood.  In fact, it is not a bad idea to go even further with these tape reference marks by placing several per side 4½-inches from center left and right to mark the sides of the stripe.  In addition, placing a piece of tape on the top and bottom of the vinyl stripe to indicate its centerline is helpful.

Now comes the fun part.  Working on a large flat surface (I used the kitchen counter at a time my wife was not home), carefully separate the 9-inch stripe from the backing material, stopping about every six inches to spray the back (adhesive side) of the stripe liberally with the soap/water solution.  If you do not do this the stripe will fold back on itself and stick together.  No, you will not be able to pull it apart. 

Holding the dripping wet stripe in one hand, spray the area where it is to be installed liberally with the soap/water solution.  Yes, it is making a mess of your nicely polished hood and yes it is dripping down all over the bumper, etc.  You just have to worry about that later. 

Now, lay the stripe on the hood and unfold it.  Obviously, you want the adhesive side down.  The stripe will at this point float easily on top of the water/soap solution.  That will only last a couple minutes though, so work quickly but carefully to center the stripe.  If you sense the vinyl becoming difficult to move, lift the material at various points and spray more solution under it. 

Lineup the top and bottom center line marks on the stripe with those on the scoop and hood.  Use a piece of string if you do not trust your eye.  Once you are certain the stripe is properly positioned, remove the tape centerline markers and place the protective material you removed from the underside of the stripe (gloss side down) on top of the stripe.  Use a hard rubber squeegee (a credit card, body filler applicators, etc. work but I worry that they will scratch) to lightly smooth the stripe into place. 

Discard the protective material and spray the top of the stripe with the soap/water solution.  This will protect it from scratching and make the smoothing down process easier.  Starting at the top center of the stripe, smooth first from center to one edge and then from center to the other edge, continuing down the entire length of the stripe.  Be sure to remove all the air bubbles.  When you get to the front, smooth to the curve of the hood.  The couple inches of extra material will distort slightly, that is not a problem.  Do not try to fold that excess material under the hood yet.  That will come later.

Look at the stripe with a very critical eye.  Be sure it is as perfect as you can get it and then leave the whole thing alone for at least a couple hours.  Do not move the car into the sun during this drying process to try and hurry things along.  Yes, professionals do continue with the design while the main decal panel is still drying in place.  We are not professionals. 

After the couple hour wait, you can complete the design by installing the side stripe or stripes if you want more than one.  The process is the same, but the thin side stripes are a little more difficult to work with.  A pro will not use solution on these thin stripes, but I did.  I then used a tape measure to adjust the stripe a precisely even distance from the main stripe.  When I had both sides in place and smoothed down, I walked away from the car for another couple hours.

After those last couple hours have passed and the striping has adhered, you will find the excess material at the front of the hood has dried and the adhesion has returned.  You will also find that the distortion created by mating the wide stripe to the front curve of the hood has caused the excess material to develop waves.  With some sharp scissors, make a cut up the excess material at intervals of about one inch.  Starting in the center, fold that excess material under the hood and press it down, then fold the ends of the thin stripes under the hood.  Resist the temptation to polish every thing up and let it dry over night.

The next day, wax the hood treating the stripes as you would any fine paint finish and the job is done.  Wait, you found a bubble of air right in the center of the large stripe.  Use a fine pointed instrument to lightly prick the vinyl material in the center of the bubble.  Spray the area with solution and smooth the bubble from all sides towards the small center pinpoint opening.  This will force the air out.

You now have a black stripe treatment that carries your eye to a black hood scoop clearly intended to be a different color to emphasize the fact this is not your run of the mill Mustang.