Running Fiberglass Options

[Alphaogre]

Just looking to weigh the pros and cons of running Fiberglass bumpers and possibly hood and rear deck lid. How well do they fit? how much weight would you save etc...

Coming from desert racing im not scared of fiberglass or working with it, im Just trying to see if it would be worth investing in it. In the desert you are running in to stuff all the time so the fiberglass makes cheaper to replace panels.

My rear deck lid is perfectly fine, though my hood could use some TLC, my bumpers are in decent condition but the rubber strips on them have seen better days. I would rather replace these if they also add an advantage to the weight or deal with them and save the money.

I do like the front bumpers with the skirt/ "splitter" incorporated in to them....

Any recommendations on 914 fiberglass distribution?

Thanks in advance.

[ConeDodger]

Some of the best fiberglass parts I have seen have come from GT Racing and they have had to be reworked some. I am not sure but I have seen the front and rear lids on cars and there is no way to rework them really. They seem to fit just fine.
Bumpers? Not sure here... I plan to use them though... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Woody]

I bought my bumpers from Rennspeed. The front fitment could be better as the sides of the bumper don't match up with the car perfectly. The rear on the other hand fits fairly decent. They are very light, I think about 4 pounds each and they come with the mounting brackets molded in. I replaced the rubber impact bumpers as my car is a 75. The old bumpers were 40 pounds each and the shocks were 5 pounds each so the car lost almost 100 pounds. I like the way they look.

http://rennspd.com/P_Detail.asp?PID=311&Task=STD

http://rennspd.com/P_Detail.asp?PID=318&Task=STD

[brant]

most of the time the fit is crap...
you will cut weight
and you will give up crash protection/safety
and you will spend 2x as much $ at the paint shop when your guy tries to get them to fit.

replacement metal is cheaper than glass too.... so you really have to want to cut weight to bother with glass.

When I built my race only car we set the limit at $50 per a pound.

I would replace something on the car with something lighter if I could do it legally for $50/lb. If it was over that I didn't

[Randal]

The Getty Design stuff is perfect. I have CF, but assume the FG is the same quality. Fit and finish perfect.

[campbellcj]

I have GT bumpers, Getty lids and a Rennspeed top. All needed a bit of work. The weight saving is substantial - and it is relatively high-up on the car too.

[Woody]

I have GT bumpers, Getty lids and a Rennspeed top. All needed a bit of work. The weight saving is substantial - and it is relatively high-up on the car too.

How does the Rennspeed top work? The website says it must be pinned in place. Are there provisions for weather seals?

[campbellcj]

How does the Rennspeed top work? The website says it must be pinned in place. Are there provisions for weather seals?

It is a 'skin' top for racing purposes, no provision for seals or stock-type latches. Mine is attached with dzus fasteners. I've heard that Roger Sheridan might make them as well and of better quality/lighter weight.

[Britain Smith]

Have you seen this thread about all the different types of 914 Bodywork.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...=172075&hl=

-Britain

[Alphaogre]

Thanks for the input.

As of right now I am not going to run the fenders, I don't have the wheels to fill them yet, and im looking to push that cost off later.

I got a set of Fuchs when I bought the car so I would like to stick with those for now. Since the rubber on the bumpers is bad and the rubber is expensive I was looking to jsut replace the bumpers with the FB ones so I didnt have to deal with the rubber.
My hood needs some work, so then I though maybe ill just run a FB one of those as well, then I though well if I get rid of that one then I might as well get loose the back one....and so on... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

So that is the thought process.

Im not looking to build this as a show car, so for me a little lacking on fit and finnish to add performance is fine by me.

From looking around I saw the bumper wight loss would be about 40lbs each, and the hoods at about 30lbs or so. Not sure how accurate that is but I will be looking to add a cage, so any weight to augment the weight I am going to ad would be nice.

[carr914]

The Getty Design stuff is perfect. I have CF, but assume the FG is the same quality. Fit and finish perfect.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)