Mods to my '79 front bumper for additional cooling, weight loss, and cool looks!

Recently my car was involved in a minor front end mishap. Since I had to remove the front bumper to make repairs, I took advantage of the situation to modify the front end to make the center license plate area a functional air intake.
This is how the bumper looked when I got it back from the body shop.

I went shoping, bought a metal grill trash can from Staples and a license plate frame from Kragens and modified the bumper to look like this.



This is what the '79 Vette front end looks like with no bumper cover.

The plate with the rubber boobs on each end weighs 15 lbs alone. It won't be going back in. The corugated plastic shaper thingy weighs only six pounds. It can stay after some mods. The metal cross member weighs 18 lbs. It's needed to help hold the front end together and hold the factory grills. I modified it to flow air in the middle and to lose weight.

I did a Norvall Wilhelm job on the crossmember, drilling holes and removing metal untill it only weighed 10 lbs. I could probably find another few pounds if I drilled some more.

Here is 20 lbs of stuff I removed.

Here is the car after everything is put back together. The water temp is down an amazing 15 degrees, I lost 25 lbs and hopefully improved the looks.

I never had a overheating problem until moving to Florida from Maryland, found that opening up the license plate area greatly helped the at speed cooling...

never could see how a late shark ever had enough open space there for good highway cooling...

Looks good!



Maybe that's why my Vette always runs so cool.

I don't have a clue why I did not remove all that junk when I replaced my front bumper.....

Good job :thumbs:

Looks great!

Bee Jay.................

You acheived the cool looks, that's for sure. I like it.

Here is the latest. At approxamately 140mph, accelerating at almost WOT, my left headlight poped up. It startled me, and I backed off, and it went down immediately. I have no reservoir/battering ram up front, so I guess with wot, there isn't enough vacuum to fight the additioanal air pressure in front of the radiaor, and keep the headlights closed. I have the radiator sealed pretty good, so any air intake has to pass thru the radiator. I guess I need to look into electric actuators and hood vents to releive pressure. This never happened before, so I guess it's the additional air flow from this mod.
Bee Jay

140 mph!!!!!!

Kid Vette said:

140 mph!!!!!!

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And it only startled you

OK, I'm curious. Where do you find a stretch of road where you can open it up to 140!? The highest speed limit around here is 75 on the freeways. So at 140 you would be going 65 mph over the speed limit. I'm guessing they would throw you in jail immediately and it would be automatic loss of license. No? I got stopped going 95 in a 75 and was charged with reckless driving and had to attend defensive driving classes to keep my license.

i thought California required a front plate?

I did the same thing then had to figure a revised way to hang a plate. Plate only comes off when on the track.

Kid Vette said:

OK, I'm curious. Where do you find a stretch of road where you can open it up to 140!? The highest speed limit around here is 75 on the freeways. So at 140 you would be going 65 mph over the speed limit. I'm guessing they would throw you in jail immediately and it would be automatic loss of license. No? I got stopped going 95 in a 75 and was charged with reckless driving and had to attend defensive driving classes to keep my license.

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You are a victim of your location, same as I was in Faryland, outside DC.....think the fastest I ever got to was 100 mph, indicated, but that was before Garmin/GPS......I know those sites doing the tire diameter/speed/rpm calculation are crap, something don't add up....I believe Garmin....

there are two stretches of road near me that allow those speeds, IF there is very very light traffic, and it's getting harder to find those times anymore...freeking wide open roads a few years ago, but NOW, NE Florida is getting sucked into the same cesspool .....:shocking:

Kid Vette said:

OK, I'm curious. Where do you find a stretch of road where you can open it up to 140!? The highest speed limit around here is 75 on the freeways. So at 140 you would be going 65 mph over the speed limit. I'm guessing they would throw you in jail immediately and it would be automatic loss of license. No? I got stopped going 95 in a 75 and was charged with reckless driving and had to attend defensive driving classes to keep my license.

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If they catch me they would impound my car, take me behind Sears and beat the crap out of me, then put me under the jail, and suspend my license.

"My Masaratti does 195, I lost my license, now I don't drive!"

Kid Vette is prolly too young to remember that.
Bee Jay

mrvette said:

Kid Vette said:

OK, I'm curious. Where do you find a stretch of road where you can open it up to 140!? The highest speed limit around here is 75 on the freeways. So at 140 you would be going 65 mph over the speed limit. I'm guessing they would throw you in jail immediately and it would be automatic loss of license. No? I got stopped going 95 in a 75 and was charged with reckless driving and had to attend defensive driving classes to keep my license.

Click to expand...

You are a victim of your location, same as I was in Faryland, outside DC.....think the fastest I ever got to was 100 mph, indicated, but that was before Garmin/GPS......I know those sites doing the tire diameter/speed/rpm calculation are crap, something don't add up....I believe Garmin....

there are two stretches of road near me that allow those speeds, IF there is very very light traffic, and it's getting harder to find those times anymore...freeking wide open roads a few years ago, but NOW, NE Florida is getting sucked into the same cesspool .....:shocking:

Click to expand...

I have this wonderful loop that starts just behind my house. Harris Grade is a mountain pass with about five miles of tight corners, the price of failure to negotiate a corner is extremely high. Lots of crosses on the side of the road. Harris Grade dumps you onto highway 135, about half way between Los Alomos and Santa Maria. In other words, in the middle of nowhere. Well, 135 is a divided four lane all the way to Hiway 1, or about three miles. Three miles of four lane with almost noone on it especially early Saturday mornings. Then it's Hiway 1 back past Vandenberg AFB and then home. Takes me about 20 minutes on a slow day.
Bee Jay

turtlevette said:

i thought California required a front plate?

I did the same thing then had to figure a revised way to hang a plate. Plate only comes off when on the track.

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It's a fix it ticket. That is why I designed it like I did. I can remove the screen and put a plate on in no time.
Bee Jay

MYBAD79 said:

I don't have a clue why I did not remove all that junk when I replaced my front bumper.....

Good job :thumbs:

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Yeah, certainly got me thinking too before I glue my front bumper back on...

Bee Jay said:

"My Masaratti does 195, I lost my license, now I don't drive!"

Kid Vette is prolly too young to remember that.
Bee Jay

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Wrong! That was Joe Walsh. Believe me, I'm old enough to remember!

Kid Vette said:

Bee Jay said:

"My Masaratti does 195, I lost my license, now I don't drive!"

Kid Vette is prolly too young to remember that.
Bee Jay

Click to expand...

Wrong! That was Joe Walsh. Believe me, I'm old enough to remember!

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And it's 185, trust me, I used to play it in the band I played around with.

Tank