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REAR SPOILER
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Ok here is the stocker!
Ok a more recent one
Since I got the SunCoast RamAir I hood & the headlight conversion
the car seemed like it was missing something, seemed a bit off balance. The rear seemed too stock. The front end looks beefy and you step to the rear and nothing. The bottom lower spoiler just is not enough.
So I start thinking...I could modify the existing spoiler. So we take a trip to Hawks and see what we can score for a replacement that I can mod. While we are looking at his cars I see a spoiler I have never seen before. It�s on a Camaro RS. Joe says it�s a rare 88 spoiler. It was only produced for 1/2 a year. I look at it and we both have an idea. We grab a stock spoiler and hold it up on the RS spoiler. Wow that is it! Ok it�s a stacked spoiler, but it works. It looks oriental, which will go with the Chinese dragon theme RAIF has developed
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BUILDING THE SPOILER
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Now the transformation commenced...
Ok we decided to replace the whole deck lid and leave my stock one intact. Ideally, I wish I could have found a virgin decklid to use, or one with the 88 spoiler already on it. That would have been easier then welding up holes on another decklid. We could not find one, so I got what I could. We liberated a deck lid from pull-a-part. Prices usually range from $10 to $50...I have been quoted many different $. We also got a contact plate from another 3rd gen since this one was not equipped with one.
Pics from when cargo area was gray...
One shot of it in black!
The contact plate has wires on the back side that transfer power to the 3rd brake light in the spoiler w/o running wires down the side of the glass!
Then I had to set the RS spoiler down on the deck lid & measure where the new holes needed to be. I marked them and Joe drilled them out. Then I did the same thing on the top of the RS spoiler. I set the stock style bird spoiler on the RS spoiler and decided what orientation I liked. Then I marked the holes for the studs to fit through and Joe drilled them out. We could now put the unit together. It looked quite promising. Paint would tell the whole story though. We got Joe's dad to weld up the old spoiler holes and we sanded and primed the 2 new spoilers.
Somewhere are the pics of the spoiler as we were building it. I just have to develop them!
Now we have to figure out how to get the nuts on when bolting the upper & lower spoiler together. We achieve this by drilling holes in the lower side of the RS spoiler. We can get a deep well socket in there to tighten the bolt on.
Here is a pic of where we drilled an access hole in the RS Spoiler.
We got them primed and ready for paint.
Off to the painter's. Now its up to the John, the painter. He does a beautiful job. He painted each piece separate so there would be no dry spray on the undersides.
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DECKLID REMOVAL
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Now for the install...(wish I had more pics of this...) The pics using the blue car are from my 82s decklid. I hope supplimenting in some of these pics will help explain things better!
This is not an easy mod like one would think. We had 3 of us and we were still struggling. The guys handled taking off my deck lid and I had to sit in the hatch of the car and hold up the hatch while the struts were being taken off. Man those things weigh alot. I would have used a stick or something, but I was too afraid the tint would get scratched, or it would slip and the glass would break.
Now I would STRONGLY recommend having someone help you with this, but it can be done alone. Alone you will need a broomstick to prop open the glass.
Use a towel or something to protect your tint from harm...I would pull a deck lid off a yard car before you even touch your car. Get a feel for what you are working with!
First you take off the plastic panel on the bottom of the deck lid...
then you will see the nuts that hold the deck lid to the glass. Start to loosen the 8 nuts a touch while the hatch struts are still supporting the deck lid.
Now on either side of the deck lid there are screws through the trim piece that runs around the hatch glass. You will need to remove them.
Now I would brace the glass with the broomstick. Or have someone get in the car and hold it. It�s VERY heavy. You will need to detach the struts now.
You will have to remove the bolts and then take off the struts. This usually requires you to lift the glass to its highest point and they will then come off. Now the glass is very heavy, don't drop it. Slowly lower it to the broomstick or helper. Make sure it rests securely...
Now finish taking off the nuts... We got the 8 bolts off holding the deck lid to the glass. Chances are the black metal brace on the bottom will come down very easy. Make sure you lower it slowly there are plastic disks that will are stuck b/w it and the glass and you should retain these. There are also rubber strips that fit on the edge of the glass. Save these as well.
The deck lid will still probably be on the glass firm as ever.
The sealer they used is really good. There was a seal and Urethane holding and sealing the glass to the deck lid. You will have to pry
and rock it to get it loose, but it will finally let go and the sealer will act like pizza cheese.
Off came my deck lid after some coaxing. It is sticky and nasty and will ruin your clothes, so be careful. Ok my stock deck lid and spoiler were removed as a unit. Things got quite a bit lighter then.
Make sure you keep up with all the hardware. Now even if this is a yard car I would retain all the hardware, just in case you need it on yours (lose or damage a piece) I also think the deck lid had white disks that are on the stud. They sit b/w it & the glass.
Here is the glass with the deck lid off.
We had to strip off all the old glass sealer.
All cleaned up and read for the new decklid...
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DECKLID ADHESION
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We tried a urethane sealer, it did not work...We got it installed, but we had a leak and Joe and I had to try to fix the seal from the outside. The urethane still did not go on even and dried to quick and it still leaked. So we had to start over. This time Chris was not there to help, so it was just Joe and I. We reluctantly wrapped a towel around a stick and braced the glass. We took off the deck lid. We decided to get rid of the urethane, which was a pain.
The 2nd time we went with Butyl Tape. It feels like clay and comes in a roll. The actual tape, as they call it, is the diameter of a finger. It�s slightly sticky, but stays pliable, again like clay. It does not dry out like silicone or urathane will and split or crack on you! This stuff does the trick, it works great. Not messy at all. When it rained at the next show I had no leaks.
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DECKLID INSTALLATION
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To put the decklid back on...
You will brace your glass up as you did to take off the old deck lid. (friend or broom) You need to have all your hardware handy. I set my glass so it was not over my head. It was about level b/w my shoulders and elbows. It�s a bit easier to handle this way. The deck lid will support some of its own weight and balance on the glass.
Now before you start to put on the deck lid...get those 2 rubber glass edge guards and put them back on... Now get the deck lid and put it up on the glass. The studs are to line up with the holes.
This is the tricky part...you have to balance the deck lid and get the black metal plate up to the glass and line it up with the studs...now don't forget the black round disks. They go b/w the metal plate and the glass. Nub goes up and the stud goes through the hole. I put mine on the metal plate and raised it up as a unit. It�s a pain to get them all in the right spot. But once you get them lined up you can started the nut will hold the deck lid...
Now don't tighten them all the way down. The deck lid still needs to be adjusted. You can raise it up and reattach the struts. Now you can remove the broom & check the deck placement. You may have to adjust it left to right or front to back.
3rd gen f-bodies always have a hatch misalignment and this is the best time to fix it! You may have to raise and lower it a few times to get it just right, but once you are happy, tighten down then nuts snug. We did what we could to fix this common hatch overbite on my car. It took some coaxing.
Now the 2 screws you took out of the side of the deck lid will probably not line up anymore. You will have to drill new holes. Once we got it lined up like we needed we saw that we would have to redrill some holes for the side molding in the rear on mine. Now you can put the plastic panel back up!
I think I covered it all. But I have not done one since, so just going on memory could have missed something... Let me know if I left something out. Check the tech articles on TGO before doing this.
So all was well and I had a deck lid with holes ready for the new spoilers.
Ok pics of the freshly painted deck lid w/o spoilers
We then attached the 2 spoilers together. Now John had told us to use 3M tape to make a gasket to insulate the spoilers and protect the paint from cracking. I got it on there as best I could, but it came out a bit more obvious than we would have liked. I don't know if I can color them or what. But they did their job because the paint did not crack when we installed the spoilers. I could have used the factory ones, but they seemed too clunky. Then we brought them upstairs and installed them as a unit to the rear deck lid...
Ok some final install shots from that night!
And with the new 3rd brake light!
Sweet, I love it....
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PICTURES
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Some day shots from different angles to give you a real feel for the look...
W/o gfx
Everything installed...
Adds a touch of that oriental look doesn't it? Before you go there, I don't mean "ricer", I mean the way the buildings are styled in the orient. Flows with the Dragon theme...
With the hatch open...
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HOME PAGE
Follow this link to additional information on the car not found on this site!
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DIRECTORY FOR RAIF'S EXTERIOR SITE
01 Site Overview
02 Red Window Tint
03 Red Window Vinyl
04 Stance
05 Bumper Insert Conversion
06 Ground Effects
07 Lower GFX Spoiler
08 SunCoast Hood
09 Shaving
10 Shaving Electronics
11 Antenna Relocation & Gas Tank Filler Neck Reroute
12 Headlight Conversion
13 Clear Front Turn Signals
14 Exterior Underbody Neon
15 Strobes & Wig Wag
16 Spoiler <<<
17 4h Gen Mirror Conversion
18 Tailights
19 Primer
20 Paint
21 Emblems
22 Smoothed TA Fender Vents
23 Clear Rear Side Markers
24 Paint: Jam Touch Up
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