One Piece Fiberglass front end

[JoeM29]

i have seen these in the back of many magazines, i have a 72 duster, i know that the quality is not going to be great, but how does it line up, does it function ok, and is this practical for a street strip car, how much weight is it actually gonna save, how much of a 1/4 mile difference would there be, any comments or suggestions would be great,
thanks, joe

[rumblefish360]

I have seen and pick one up on the front of a 67=69 firebirb. It's weight felt like, say about , 60lbs. (Its been awhile) It attached via a bracket kit to the front frame.

[JoeM29]

do you think the weight loss would be worth the 550.
thanks, joe

[pylut]

Uhhhmmmm,Go over to www.vfnfiberglass.com I dont know if they have your front end but they have a lot of mopar stuff and they show the weights of parts.
I have a 72 charger SE and I can tell you that my metal hood with hinges weighs 92 pounsds and their fiberglass race hood is 22lbs and goes for $229+ shipping.
Hope this helps!

[The Dartman]

Skip the tilt fiberglass frontend. They don't fit well, don't open well, and headlight and turn signals require a bunch of mods to make work.

My Dad's 72 Duster came equiped with a 'glass tilt front end, and it has been described as looking like "socks on a rooster". I personally don't think it looks too bad, but steel would look and function better. Many times I wanted to cut the thing apart and make the fender fixed with a lift off hood. It is very very difficult to open a front end yourself, and my Dad's dosn't even open enough to really thrash on the motor. This car weighs about 2950 with no driver, so I would guess a weight savings would be about 200 pounds, with all wheelwell, radiator support, bumper supports being cut out.

As far as weight savings, are you going to cut out the wheel wells? What about front end support? My Dad's car has bars from the firewall to the stub for support, and make no mistake - you need them. Without bars, the car would start to bend in an "L" before the car would lift off the ground. Do you realize that in order to run a grill that more extensive mods to the original piece need to be made? Even if you airbrushed a grill, air holes would need to be made to keep from over heating. Are you prepared to do this either way? What about fabricating headlight buckets? There are a lot of things to think about using one of these on the street. I personally wouldn't even consider it unless the front end was wrecked. In this day and age, you should think about whether or not what you will do to the car to get a Glass front end on it will be worth it in the long run.

THAT BEING SAID.... JC WHITNEY as recent as a year or two ago had one peice 'Glass front ends for a 72 Duster for about $500. I beleive my Dad's is one of this pieces, since I saw one brand new (unpainted) that someone else bought. They are not low quality items, in fact they are pretty decent (I worked a lot of 'glass myself). If you choose to go this route I implore you to make sure you purchase the hinge kit and headlight buckets that are made for the piece, not to fabricate them.

VFN makes a one piece fender and bumber front end, with a lift off hood that may be a better option for you, too.

[JoeM29]

yea know that i know you have to cut the inner fenders, it seems like it is more work than its worth, i think i will just buy some fiberglass stuff, like hood, bumpers, and maybe fenders,
thanks, joe

[rumblefish360]

Is it worth it. Only if your racing IMO. Lots of work . Everything writin up top would only be ehcoed here.
If it was a All out project, yea.