Lamrith's Brightwork Build - image heavy

[lamrith]

I have held off posting this build thread until I had it going/done as I just did not know when it might happen.  Now that it is mostly done I figured I better get it going!

All the mod pictures and threads over the last year had me itching to start tweaking my rig.  The SHO just did not have the visual pop of my last rig.  But after the love/hate relationship I had with that car I wanted to wait a year to make sure the SHO was going to be a keeper.

The inspiration car:

It was a long torturous wait, but YEAH IT IS A KEEPER!  During the last few months I have been planning and I was watching all you addicts and what you were doing with your cars.  There are a bunch of seriously wicked rides on this forum.  The vast majority bordering on exclusive style is to black everything out.  Blacking out is an awesome look, and if I had any color other than black I probably would have gone that route.  However I have a bit of a nostalgic streak and enjoy cars with POP to them.  Contrast and brightwork like the old classic cars and into the 80's Euro sedans always catches my eye.  I knew blacking out a Tux Black car just was not going to cut it for me.

I have to say this is a pretty darn good forum.  Everyone here is helpful and polite to each other and always promoting the sharing of information.  I first and foremost want to say thanks to all the members and the mods for making that happen and sharing ideas openly.

I enlisted the input and help of a few folks here that need special mention and thanks.

AgentLongwood - For his help with photoshoping a picture of my car a bunch of times for a proof of concept before I started spending $.  I really appreciate your help and input.

BJSHO - Has been a bit of a sounding board for ideas when I was looking at this project the last few weeks.  Many thanks for takin the time when I had questions or ideas to throw your way at random times of the day.  And I look forward to hearing how your projet progresses.

802SHO - New guy to the forum, but he jumped right in sharing tons of info he learned doing his car.  We traded numerous emails where he provided pictures and info on things he did to his car and encouraged me to follow my vision and stay "outside the box".

That is it for this initial post aside from some teaser pictures of items as they have arrived in.

 

[SHOdded]

Cant wait!!!  Gonna be glorious

 

[lamrith]

So the 1st item to address was the grill.  Without the grill change the rest of the look was not going to happen and was a bit pointless.  I saw a few options out there that might work, but most of them were overlays.  Often zip tied in place etc.  Looking up close at pictures of them just did not have the look and finish I was looking for.  I wanted something that almost looked factory, yet stood out.  Then I found www.customcargrills.com.  I emailed them and traded a few emails with Matt and he recommended a few options.  What caught my eye is that they make premolded/cut grills for the Taurus and a bunch of other vehicles.

I really wanted to do a wire mesh look like the V series Caddy's use, but he did not think it would work for this application.  Not to be dissuaded I bought a sample kit and chose the weave as one of the samples.  WOW it is a really nice product for sure and is under the FORD logo in this picture below.

Alas, it was not meant to be though.  Just as Matt had said, it was not going to work.  It is a true woven rod material, so if you flex or bend it, that loosens the weave and it starts to come apart.  I would still like to go this route,  I just cannot see a way to make it work yet.  The far right and middle left samples seemed ok, but I was not a fan of the tiered look it had when at an angle like the 13+ grill.  The left most piece looked good, was solid yet flexible and actually is the highest flowing mesh he carries so I contact Matt and had him make me up a custom grill with my car using the perforated hex mesh and also ordered 2 strips of perf hex sheet for the lower grill.  Matt was on it and had the order shipped in a day.

BUMPER REMOVAL
I did not find much out there about removing the bumper cover, I know there are threads but I could not find them when I needed them, so I will give a quick walkthru here in hopes it helps others.  It really is super simple and the way I did it I found it easy to remove and install by myself, no helpers needed.

• Jack up the car and get it set on a pair of Jackstands.
  Then you need to:
• • Remove the three small socket head screws plus one plastic Molly in each wheel well
  • Remove a bunch of plastic molly's and a bunch of 8mm hex screws holding on the cover under the car and remove the panel.
  • While you are under the car, unplug the DRL and bumper sensor connectors on both sides of bumper.
  • Loosen by 1/2 - 1 turn the eight phillips head screws (yellow in picture) ontop of grill and inner corner of bumper cover.  Do not remove, just loosen.
  • Remove Four 10m socket head bolts holding upper rad cover on to car.  Leave the molly's in the middle in place for now.(red in picture)
  • 
• The bumper is now just sitting there by the two mollys, the bumper reinforcement bar below the grill and the clips at each corner.  These clips can be tricky to disconnect without breaking the teeth.  If you break a tooth off, don't panic I give the part numbers for the replacement parts below, they are cheap and very easy to replace.  I paid $13.xx after tax at local dealer, they are <$8.00 online.
• The trick with the clips is that you need to pull the bumper cover forward away from the seam and then lift up on it.  Pulling the cover away from the seam pulls it off of the two teeth a bit and helps it break free without taking a tooth with it.  I use the flat of one hand on the bumper cover like shown to pull the panel forward away from the seam and fender, then use the other hand under the cover and wheel well liner to lift away from the car.  I press my hands together to pull the cover forward then up away from the car (towards the camera) and it will pop free.  Repeat on the other side.
  
  
  
  
  2010+ Fender clips:
  • Right (pass side): AG1Z17C947A
  • Left (drivers side): AG1Z17C947B
• Now you are ready to remove the bumper from the car.  Make sure you have a soft spot (grass or blankets on a hard surface) to put the bumper on.
• I stood in front dead center and used my knee to push lightly against the bumper holding it in place then removed the two mollys on the radiator cover by the hood latch.  keep pressure on the bumper and set them aside someplace within reach.
• Now grab the top cover and upper lip of bumper cover where they meet and carefully lift up a little to take the weight of the bumper and carefully slide the entire thing forward away from the car.  Holding it this way you have very good control and the top panel gives the bumper structure so it does not twist all over while you carry it it to that soft spot you setup to work on it.
• Once on the ground you need to remove the top panel by taking out the 8 phillips head screws.
• Then  carefully roll the bumper forward on the blanket so you are looking at the backside of the bumper.  The reinforcement bar is held on by some clips and is holding the top and bottom grills in place.  You may need to use a screw driver to pull back the tabs holding the clips in place and then lift the bar up off the grill.
• Now you can remove the grill and bezel, they are held in place by similar clips and tabs.  just take your time and get them to pop loose one by one.

GRILL SWAP
The grill itself is attached to the bezel with T20 torx screws.  Once removed give the backside of the bezel a good cleaning, I used simple green and paper towels, but basic soap and water will also work, you have to have clean surface for the adhesive to hold. 

Now you are ready for the new mesh.  The customcargrill grill is precut and folded to fit.  It will need some tweaking and adjustment as it was designed to fit the PI grill.  Other than that you can follow the install video on their website.  I saw an opportunity to possibly not use the adhesive, and unfolded the top edge of the mesh and was able to get it to reach the screw points at pictured.  I was then able to re-install the back plate/air guide back using those screws and pinched the mesh to the bezel. 

The Goop works awesome and now that I have used it would have no concern using only it in the future and would not bother with the screws.  The adhesive takes 24hrs to cure, so plan ahead and give it time.  Make sure to keep the goop on the backside of the bezel, and below the edge as it slowly runs as it cures.  They used a toothpick, but I used a plastic pick-nick knife and just pushed it in there like they did.  I left my grill facing down, so the goop ran down the back of the bezel and stayed hidden.
Once it is dry, re-assemble the grill/bumper in reverse of how you removed it.

• Install the top cover with the eight phillips head screws, make sure to leave them 1/2-1 turn loose like when you removed the assembly.
• Carry the assembly over to the vehicle and slowly raise it into place, careful to not mount it too quickly so that the sides of the bumper do not slam into the fenders and scratch them.  Just let it slide into place with the reinforcement bar around the bumper support.
• Install those 2 molly's to hold it all in place.
• Snap each side of the bumper into the clips at the edge of the fenders.
• align the bumper assebly as needed so everything lines up and no distortion to the bumper the install the four 10mm bolts in the top cover and tighten the phillips head screws down.
• Under the car reconnect the wires for the DRL and sensors (do this 1st so you do not forget, don't ask me how I know this..)
• install all the previously removed fasteners

Without further blathering or guilding the lilly by me, here is how mine turned out to this point.  I am still working out how I want to to attach the lower grill mesh, but being a daily driver had to get her back together while I figure that out.

 

[dubcitySHO]

I'm liking where this is going!  Look forward to the progress!!  :thumb:

 

[SHOdded]

Bold and beautiful!

 

[lamrith]

Truth be told, while I am covering this second, it actually was the 1st thing I did in this transformation.  I covered the grill 1st as without it I would not have started at all. 
I took a long time deciding to go for lowering.  I have had 2 cars previous that were lowered and did not care for the ride on either one.  One was my 1995 Mustang GT, the other the Caddy that inspired this build.  Both I returned to stock after a few months lowered.  While we do not have the severe potholes and road failures that many of you do, the roads out here suck.  They tend to be very uneven, wavey, and undulating.  They tend to get the car moving up and down a bit and use quite a bit of travel to smooth out, even the PP suspension was on the stiff side so I avoided lowering.  But that wheel gap was killin me!

Once I felt strongly the new look would work I started looking around for all the needed items and found a NOS set of H&R's on ebay for a good deal.  I ordered in a pair of the new Rear Camber bolts (#84130) and the new improved thrust washers (F2GZ-7G273-A) at the same time.

Install is pretty straightforward install and has been covered a bunch of times so I will not go into details on it.
Ground to top of wheel well:
Rear went from 31" to 29.5"
Front went from 29.5 to 28.5"

So far the ride has been stiff, but starting to loosen up and is not as bad.  I nicked a speed bump when I went over it like I used to and the car bounced.

I can't wait until I can get alignment done, it handles terrible right now due to camber in the rear.

 

[FoMoCoSHO]

Stance looks great...Some wheel spacers for those flowers would look sweet IMHO.

 

[lamrith]

Funny you should mention that FoMoCoSHO!  Initially I planned to use the stockers.  I saw this picture on the forum and it gave me the initial idea of going bright with the car like Caddy.

But once I went out and researched local powder coating (would have beeen more grey than the bright silver I wanted) and PVD coating ($200+/wheel) I realized that I should just buy new wheels as it was about the same $ and would open the door to more tire options.

While the springs and grill parts were enroute I turned my attention to the wheel's.  I had finalized the ones I wanted but was unsure about the width to get.  They offer them in 20x8.5 and 20x9.5.  I spent a bit of time reading on tires folks used and knew I wanted to go 275's on all 4 corners so I opted for the 20*9.5 35offset.  Then I started looking around for the best deal.  That turned out to be on Ebay.  I found a seller selling them in 40 offset, but I wanted 35 so I emailed them to see if they offered the 35 for the same price.  After a few days of back and forth they responded that the ones that had were actually 35 offset per the MFG.  SOLD!

While the wheels were in transit I did the lowering and the new grill.  When the wheels landed I had hoped to hit a shop on the way home and get them swapped but most were booked up.  I also found a wide range of pricing too, from $170 down to $112 after tax.  I went with the $112 since it was Firestone, they carry the tire I plan to go to long term (Indy 500), and I wanted to try the shop out.  They also do alignments, so I can schedule that in another week!  Even better is that the girl that helped me get setup said they have an alignment sale coming up at end of month and a tire sale next month!

I think the kid doing the wheel swap knew I was jazzed to get it done, because of course he mounted the wheels facing away from the lobby 1st and made me wait.  Finally he mounted the pass side up and wow, even up in the air with 4x4 wheel gap it looked good!

I will say I am extremely happy with how it turned out.  Pretty much exactly the look I was after.  No longer the sleeper it used to be, but I smile when I walk out the door and see it.

 

[EcoAbe]

Looks real good! Love that you ventured away from a stock grill and wheels. Very unique

 

[SHOdded]

Made dentists around the world happy. Looks exquisite!

 

[lamrith]

Thanks guys.  I still need to do a few things but she is pretty much dialed for now.

Remaining:

• All-Fit 2.5" lip (sitting in package at home)
• Make and install lower grille to match upper (materials at home just need time to pull bumper and make the panel.)
• Tires:  275/40r20 Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 (once the Nitto's are worn down more.)

 

[FoMoCoSHO]

New wheels look awesome!

Maybe oems w/spacers for winter action?

 

[Agentlongwood]

1st off; WHOOOAAA... That looks so damn good, lol.  I think you made the right call with those wheels.  The fitment with the lowering springs is just about perfect.  The grill came out good too.  Seems like you can't see as much radiator and what not, which looks nice. 

2nd; no prob man, happy to help.  Photoshop is a fun hobby.

 

[lamrith]

New wheels look awesome!

Maybe oems w/spacers for winter action?

If we got snow more than one morning a year I might consider winter set, but as it is, it is literally one morning a year and all melted of by  the commute home.
I had a buyer for the stockers on Thurs, but have not heard back since.  Need the $ to pay the CC down and make room for the tires in a few months.

1st off; WHOOOAAA... That looks so damn good, lol.  I think you made the right call with those wheels.  The fitment with the lowering springs is just about perfect.  The grill came out good too.  Seems like you can't see as much radiator and what not, which looks nice. 

2nd; no prob man, happy to help.  Photoshop is a fun hobby.

Well I still really appreciate it.  I tried a few times and man ohh man, I would have been better off trying to do it with a watercolor paint set!  :rofl2:

 

[lamrith]

Finally went and got the alignment done.  Wanted to give it a couple hundred miles to settle in.  As soem have mentioned in threads, the ride has actually gotten better with some time.  Initially it was super hard, I was really thinking I was going to have to pull the springs out and return to stock, but the last week it really worked in nicely.

I knew alignment was pretty far off, every manhole cover had the car wiggling back and forth.  I thought it was a camber issue, as I had thrown the camber bolts in and had no way to know if I had it set even close.  Turns out it was mostly toe issues.  Felt much more composed on the way home after being dialed in.

 

[ZSHO]

It certainly looks like it was warranted!  Did you install new Strut mounts!!
Best of luck & Enjoy the ride. Z

 

[lamrith]

It certainly looks like it was warranted!  Did you install new Strut mounts!!
Best of luck & Enjoy the ride. Z

Very much needed, shocking how much toe variation there was going on.

No I did not replace them, I looked mine over very well and they were clean and tight still so I stayed with the ones on it.  This car was babied by previous owner, even though it has 55k on it, it rides and drives like it has 20k.

 

[StealBlueSHO]

Looks good!!!!! VERY IMPRESSED! Congratulations on the out come, I know it has been some time in coming. I think it was worth the wait!