I’ve rough fitted the front sheet metal to install the split hood. I removed the old louvered side panels, and bought new louvered ones from Rootleib. Using 2 Dan Fink hood latching mechanisms, I fabricated a split top hood setup with fixed, removable side panels.

With this setup you can access from both sides and remove both side panels. You can obtain much better panel alignments without the flimsyness of the 4 piece hood. I’v seen many paint jobs ruined because of bad hood alignments and side panel scrapes on the fenders.

I think this hood mod really updates the car and makes eveything a very solid fit, without losing the nostalgia look. The Rootleib louvres are a little different with no chrome mouldings, but I wanted a custom anyway.

The exhaust system has been installed. California Muffler in Winnetka, Ca did a great looking job. They used 2-1/4 tubing with Thermal Dynamics Mufflers. Every joint is flanged for easy removal of any component. I liked the performance they gave me on my 33 Chevy so I just duplicated the system on this car.
It was a little tricky getting the clearance over the rear end housing when the car is lowered. I lost a little space in the rumble area but it was worth it to keep the pipes off the ground. I’m not using the rumble anyway. I’ve decided to go for storage instead