Mullet's Metro Project

[Johnny Mullet]

Thanks for all the info on restoring the lenses. I see that these may have been done in the past and there is some sorta clear coat that is stuck to the lens and will not buff or sand off. I need to get that stuff off before restoring the lenses.

BTW, Here are some better quality pics of the car cleaned up...........

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by RacerX

This will take some time maybe 1/2 hour or so per light. But patience is well worth it for these lights are $130.00 each (new) aftermarket.

Now I understand why the guy didn't bother haggling with me when I sold a pair of foggy Swift headlights for $45. He probably just cleaned them up & resold them.

Good instructions - thanks for posting.

[FX2.3]

If you need cheap body parts

www.certifit.com

You have to pickup the part at the store. You get to look at the part before you buy it. A New headlight from them for a 98-01 Metro is $110.50, but a hood is only $54.75..

[Johnny Mullet]

Originally Posted by FX2.3

A New headlight from them for a 98-01 Metro is $110.50, but a hood is only $54.75..

A new water pump for my Chevy Truck was $24.00 and the serp belt was $35.00

[RacerX]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Now I understand why the guy didn't bother haggling with me when I sold a pair of foggy Swift headlights for $45. He probably just cleaned them up & resold them.

Good instructions - thanks for posting.

Thanks, And your welcome, It does take time, The last pair of lights I did were so bad that I started sanding them with 1000 grit on a Dynabraide phenumatic finishing sander....some are worse than others....I like your website Metrompg. As I get time I read thru it. Boy do I have a pile of questions.... Take care and thanks again.

[Johnny Mullet]

This next mod has to do with my soon to be posted grill block aeromod. I like having foglamps on my vehicle since I disabled my daytime running lights so people can see me and I use less power than the headlamps this way. They also look cool. Before I could accomplish this, I had to do some yard work including mowing, weeding, trimming, and some cleaning up outside before going in the garage to play...........



I have used many style fog/driving lamps in my day but the kind I like to use are not foglamps at all! They are actually side turn signal/marker lamps used on trailers found in any truck stop......................



I prefer these because they can be wired to your liking and last a very long time. They also provide just the right amount of light in poor visibilty such as a heavy snowstorm or thick fog if they are wired on the bright side and mounted low. I wanted these mounted behind the grille so they do not hinder my aero modifications I am performing on the vehicle.

I simply opened the hood and drilled a few 1/4" holes in the fiberglass framing behind the bumper. I then mounted the lamps and brackets and plugged in the 3 prong pigtails which are sold seperately. I ran both the white wires directly to ground and used the red wires (bright side of lamp) for illumination by splicing right into the parking lamp circuit. You could also wire these to a dash switch if desired. I tied off the brown wires since they will not be used on this application until I later decide to wire the "bright side" to run with parking lamps and the "dim side" to run with headlamps.



I also used a 15 amp inline fuse for safety and made sure all the wires were secured. here is how the car looks with the new lamps mounted behind the grill.......................



Trailer lamps/mounts = $0.00
3 prong pigtail connectors = $3.00
Inline fuse = $3.00
Bolts, butt connectors, etc = $1.00

Total cost = $7.00
Total labor time = 2 hours

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by Johnny Mullet

I wanted these mounted behind the grille so they do not hinder my aero modifications I am performing on the vehicle.

Does that include a partial grille block? Mine has been covered for long enough that I had forgotten just how big the gaping maw is on the '95-01 bumpers. It's nuts how many openings there are considering the size of the radiator and the cooling needs of the 3-can.

[Tango Charlie]

Those 'fog lights' look SWEEEET!

Hey,maybe you could move the license plate lower and use it as part of a grill block/air dam?

[Johnny Mullet]

I am needing some advise or maybe some experience on my grill block project. I am going to be using that thick, plastic mudflap material for the build, but unsure on how to approach this. Attaching the material is not a problem, but where to use it for the best fuel economy and proper cooling is.

There is already a 3/4" gap between the bumper and hood that I will leave alone and where I have those lamps mounted pretty much blocks those sections off (left side of my brain just said "Fill 'em all with lights!" haha.) The upper sections on each side of the lights seem to go nowhere for any cooling purposes at all and probably cause a lot of drag. So if there is enough airflow from the gap under the hood, I could do a full grill block similar to this...............



I was also thinking of just blocking off those side pieces that go nowhere for a partial block similar to this image................



Another idea was simply blocking off the lower portion of the grill, but extending it lower for an air dam effect also like in this image............



I am in no hurry to do this mod, but plan on having it done by winter. The Metro is already getting an astounding 62 MPG in it's current state with the mods and repairs I have already done documented in this thread. I want it to look good and this black plastic mudflap material will match my bumper material in color almost.

I would also like to incorporate moving the front license plate into the mod by relocating it or making it flush with the bumper or grille area.

Your thoughts and ideas are welcome! I need your help to make this a very professional looking modification and hopefully achieve even better fuel economy.

Thanks.

[MetroMPG]

On my car, aside from the same gap between the bumper and hood (which I plan to seal this summer), the only opening is directly ahead of the radiator: the upper and lower "slots" to the left of the licence plate. It's approximately 6x6 inches, and I've had absolutely no problems with the cooling fan coming on more than normal.