Since I can't find a FOHA lip for my na, I made one...
05-13-2007, 06:32 PM
#1
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Since I can't find a FOHA lip for my na, I made one...
I've always wanted a FOHA lip for my 944, but as we all know, they aren't easy to come by. Techno Duck's 2-year search told me that it'd probably be easier for me to track him down, drive up to NY and steal his. Unfortunately, that would be rude of me to do so I had to find other options.
Long-story short, I looked at several different materials to use and decided that garden edging, however ricey that may be, would be the best material for this project. It's cheap, easy to work with, readily accessable and durable. So I went out and spent $10 on a 20' section of edging and another $9 on some moulding tape to hold it in place.
I wanted to keep the depth shallow for several reasons. It wouldn't get hung up on anything, it wouldn't flex (that garden edging isn't exactly stiff) and it (hopefully) wouldn't put enough force to overpower the tape and require me to put any further reinforcement on it. I was aiming for about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 inches, but ended up with 1 1/8 inches simply because I was using a metal ruler of that thickness and it made trimming the edging very easy. This means that, with about a half-inch overlap on the valance for mounting, my lip is about 5/8 inches deep.
I needed about a 6 1/2 feet for the whole thing, so I cut a 7-foot section to give me room to work with. I cleaned it all up, put on the tape and mounted it to my front valance. I took a pair of scissors to trim one side matching the end of the wheel well, and then used it as a template for the other side. After that, I took a piece of sandpaper to round out the corners.
As things currently stand, I am very pleased with how it looks. While not as nice as the FOHA, it has what I am looking for and lines up with the 951 rocker extensions nicely.
Now, the only question is "Will it hold?" I'm leaving it in the garage for the next couple days in case the tape needs to cure or something and then I'll take it out. If it holds, I have a nice front lip for two hours of my life, ~$20 and three beers. If it falls off, well... I gave it a shot and am not really out anything significant.
So far, I'm happy.
BB.
Long-story short, I looked at several different materials to use and decided that garden edging, however ricey that may be, would be the best material for this project. It's cheap, easy to work with, readily accessable and durable. So I went out and spent $10 on a 20' section of edging and another $9 on some moulding tape to hold it in place.
I wanted to keep the depth shallow for several reasons. It wouldn't get hung up on anything, it wouldn't flex (that garden edging isn't exactly stiff) and it (hopefully) wouldn't put enough force to overpower the tape and require me to put any further reinforcement on it. I was aiming for about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 inches, but ended up with 1 1/8 inches simply because I was using a metal ruler of that thickness and it made trimming the edging very easy. This means that, with about a half-inch overlap on the valance for mounting, my lip is about 5/8 inches deep.
I needed about a 6 1/2 feet for the whole thing, so I cut a 7-foot section to give me room to work with. I cleaned it all up, put on the tape and mounted it to my front valance. I took a pair of scissors to trim one side matching the end of the wheel well, and then used it as a template for the other side. After that, I took a piece of sandpaper to round out the corners.
As things currently stand, I am very pleased with how it looks. While not as nice as the FOHA, it has what I am looking for and lines up with the 951 rocker extensions nicely.
Now, the only question is "Will it hold?" I'm leaving it in the garage for the next couple days in case the tape needs to cure or something and then I'll take it out. If it holds, I have a nice front lip for two hours of my life, ~$20 and three beers. If it falls off, well... I gave it a shot and am not really out anything significant.
So far, I'm happy.
BB.
05-13-2007, 08:53 PM
#5
Nordschleife Master
...
I bought another spare valance that i am going to be using for winter use and maybe some auto-x usage. My current valance which is beat to **** is going to get the same treatment with the garden edging. I bought 14 feet from Home Depot for $8. The best tape to use is the double sided Super Heavy Duty Scotch Indoor/Outdoor mounting tape. This stuff is incredibly strong.
Im so paranoid with the Foha lip, ive got about 3 inches of ground clearance in the front due to the length of the lip, i actually avoid going to certain places now because i ground out on the apron. Until i find another one of these lips as a spare i dont think i will trust anyone driving my car.
I bought another spare valance that i am going to be using for winter use and maybe some auto-x usage. My current valance which is beat to **** is going to get the same treatment with the garden edging. I bought 14 feet from Home Depot for $8. The best tape to use is the double sided Super Heavy Duty Scotch Indoor/Outdoor mounting tape. This stuff is incredibly strong.
Im so paranoid with the Foha lip, ive got about 3 inches of ground clearance in the front due to the length of the lip, i actually avoid going to certain places now because i ground out on the apron. Until i find another one of these lips as a spare i dont think i will trust anyone driving my car.
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05-14-2007, 10:30 AM
#8
Rennlist Member
BB, looks great! 
Nice clean factory look to it.
Nice clean factory look to it.
05-14-2007, 01:38 PM
#13
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Hey, Jay, I like yours, too (I think I said so in your thread) - looks more 'race' car than factory.
Not sure which way I'll go, factory look or race look - garden edging is definitely in my car's future, though
Not sure which way I'll go, factory look or race look - garden edging is definitely in my car's future, though
05-14-2007, 01:42 PM
#14
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I like that race car look as well, and were my car not more "street" than "track", I'd probably have done something similar.
BB.
BB.
05-14-2007, 08:06 PM
#15
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I decided to tighten things down a bit. So, I bought some offset mirror hangers and bent them into little "L" brackets and taped them behind the lip and under the valance to help secure everything. It's probably overkill, but I feel a lot better about having that extra little bit of support. It might also be useful for anyone who might want to make the lip a little deeper.
BB.
BB.