Hey,

Well, while putting up Christmas decorations yesterday, my parents dropped the ladder on my car and I now need a new hood. I am either looking at the OEM Evo X hood direct from Mitsubishi or the Carbon Fiber variant that Seibon offers. The only thing that worries me about the OEM hood is the fact that its aluminum so it can dent easy, but the carbon fiber hood may not fit quite right. I just wanted to hear personal opinions and what people have heard or seen with Seibon products, is it worth a buy? Thanks in advance.

 

I tweaked my hood at one of the hinges (hood struts a bit too stiff). I'm planning to get the Carbon by Design hood (MAP resells them). Hollywood reported the fit as being excellent but I can't say how the cost compares to Seibon.

 

seibon's hoods are probably the better of the lot if you're talking about replicas. it still has fitment gripes if you're unlucky, such as gaps being too wide, doesn't sit flush, disconnected weave, etc.

i've been looking at the cbd hood for a while. although i like the fact they have the option to lay the area under the hood in carbon fiber, i still have a hard time justifying the cost.

 

Well you generally get what you pay for. I've seen two CBD hoods and there wasn't any fitment issues with either.

 

Would you guys recommend just going with the OEM aluminum?

 

You wont have anything worthy in weight savings. The trunk is different subject and the doors. Also the hood is exposed for very high heat so the clear coat on the CF tend to be fading and getting yellowish very rapidly. So on and so forth.

 

So I just called Mitsubishi... $1200 for the shell, $500 for two front vents and $300 for the center scoop.. $2000 for a new hood? I don't think so... Looks like its carbon for me, ill get it painted. Any other opinions on Seibon or Carbon by Design?

 

I just got my car back from the shop. If you didn't bust your removable vents and scoop on the OEM hood, they carry over easy nuff.

The OEM hood, unpainted was just under $1000; you're getting a bum deal on that price, go thru a shop/friend or let your fingers do the walking.

If you do the shop route, you're probably gonna thank yourself. 1 - you can get a better price (if needed). 2 - if you have any minor fitment issues (see below), a professional shop will make a nuisance and PITA for us into a snap.

I bought a CBD via MAP (thanks guys) and when I went through the shop prices, I saved $$ by not having to prep, paint and CC the OEM hood. I paid an extra hour of labor to have the fitment issue on the hood hinges (minor) and the hood latch (med) fixed. Net, I save $333 buck which came out of my pocket in the form of a deductible (instead of my $500 ded, I paid $166.)

The hood, was a little over a thou (includes the optional under CF liner), the install work was a couple of hours by the shop to install the thing. The hood latch mechanism needed to be modified to sit lower to achieve a tighter fit. Also, be prepared to modify the washer fluid tubes to run under the cowling (1 hr mod DIY).

If you want to paint it original, you might as well go with the OEM repair. The aftermarket CBD hood has special "exotic" appearance, custom look, and makes the engine noises more noticable because of a lot less liner crap that is on the OEM hood.

TMI?

 

9 E R&R OEM Hood (ALU) 5900A244 1 <b>923.86</b> T 923.86 1.2 Body
9 E R&R Hood (ALU) 2.8 Refinish
10 E Overlap Major Adj. Panel -0.4 Refinish
11 E Add for Clear Coat 0.5 Refinish
12 E Add for Underside(Complete) 1.3 Refinish
13 E Add for Clear Coat 0.3 Refinish
14 E Remove/Install Air inlet panel silver 5903A004HA
15 E Remove/Install RT Air outlet vent MR silver 5903A006HA
16 E Remove/Install LT Air outlet vent MR silver 5903A005HA
17 E Remove/Install Insulator inner 5915A040

 

If you get it painted you should be ok, however on my 8 the seibon trunk is yellowed a little bit.

 

So you know, we offer a couple of options for the 08+ Lancer in both carbon fiber and our Duraflex material. EvoM members get special pricing when purchasing directly through me as well.

GT Concept Evo X look (carbon and Duraflex)


GT Concept (carbon and Duraflex)


OE style (carbon only)

 

I have the Seibon CW style cf hood. There is a gap between one of the fenders and the hood, and the hood sits higher on one side than the other. The weave is also spotty. For the price you're paying, I guess you can't be too upset over it.

From a distance, it isn't terrible:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/macpsu/5159399773/http://www.flickr.com/photos/macpsu/5159399773/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/macpsu/, on Flickr

But up close, you can kind of see the hood dip from left to right (left side is higher - note the rubber liner between the top bumper piece and the hood):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/macpsu/5159400953/http://www.flickr.com/photos/macpsu/5159400953/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/macpsu/, on Flickr

 

get a hood pin and that might solve your problem. You can play with the hight a little. If you get the aero latch , that is a best , BUT it will not bend like the other hood pins base.

Rob

 

The only problem with putting my hoods vents onto the new hood is that I don't have any - I own a GTS. The quoted price is in Canadian dollars, and I received the same price from two dealerships . However, thank you for the extremely informative post, there's no such thing as TMI. Also, the red evolution that was posted isn't even bad, I wouldn't mind that. I can more than likely do the adjustments myself. Also, will I need hood pins for the new hood?

 

The pins are there for your safety. Having said that, I am not running them (yet) on mine. Maybe if I turn it to 100% track car and all, but not til then or I find a problem with the latch/strength.