Hey all. I am new to the site and had a question. Here goes. I am thinking about welding my hood cowl shut on my 66 resto-mod. The car was given to me by my dad who lives in Vegas. The car has no rust and no leaks (at least none that I could detect after pouring tons of water in there). My plan was to cut out the grates, POR 15 the inside of it, recess the area slightly, then weld in a piece of sheet metal. I am in the body phase of the project now and thought this would be the right time to do this. This is my first restoration project, so I am trying to get all the intel that I can. I am getting crunched for time because I am getting set to re-deploy to Iraq.......Again..... Serious, I need to get a handle on this and I want to be done with that damned cowl FOREVER.If anybody who has done this could drop me a note and a few pointers telling me the dangers and pitfalls of this, I would really appreciate it.I have searched the forums and I see a lot of info on this topic but nothing of a step by step nature. I am new here and probably missing something. Any help would be great. Thanks in advance. Ace
Sounds like a fun project. I like to use a piece of heavy paper to make the panel before you start cutting metal for the insert. Take your time and make your filler panel fit nice, you don't want it to fit super tight and you don't want huge gaps either. Once your insert is right just tack weld ( I assume mig??) the panel in a few spots. Slowly work you way around the area running very short beads...you don't want to warp the metal from to heat. Same goes for grinding the welds down, slow and easy...you don't want to overheat the area. You may want to practice on a scrap piece before you start.
The only downside I see is reduced outside air intake for the heater/defroster/air cond (if equipped) and air intake for the underdash vents. There are two small drains on either side that will take in air but they are quite smaller than the grill area. You may want to make sure these drain areas are clear of debris and may want to open them up a little more with some custom metal work.
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1968 Mustang coupe, Acapulco Blue, 289 2v, C-4, Power Steering.
Hopefully a 1969 convertible or Sportsroof (non Mach or Boss) for next Mustang project
Trying to find my father's 1973 Mustang Grande he bought brand new. 3F04F126773 last known registration and title was in New Jersey, 1982.
Thanks for the great suggestions!Today I ran a lot more water through the grate and checked the drainage again.It works like the day it was made. I am not to concerend with the deforst/air intake for the cockpit. I am only driving this sucker to work and back. I live less than 8 miles from the back gate of my base. I will be putting in an aftermarket A/C system eventually, then I will knock out some bigger holes in the drain area to accomadate the heater venting/intake. Thanks for that post Jay, I did not even think of that!!! I will post some pics when I figure out the pic thing here. Please keep the suggestions coming, i need all the help I can get. Also thanks to Champion speed for the suggestion. Take care....Ace
If it does not leak when you put water in it, take a look at what we did to protect the metal and stop any future rust. It may be easier than what you are thinking of doing.
You will be able to completely paint all the unpainted metal and also put seal seal around the top hats.
You will also retain use of the heater/defrost/fresh air by NOT blocking off the cowl.
Here is our write up with lots of pictures. Cowl Repair
A code 66 coupe
289 4v, Roller Rockers, Electric fan
Performer & 650 Edelbrock
MSD ignition
Tri Y into 2.25 Shelby side exhaust
T5 conversion & Hydraulic clutch
CSRP Discs
If you use a aftermarket heat and air unit most of those don't suck air from outside.To me it looks better with the cowl shaved if i had to do mine over i would shave mine off.
You say the car has no rust and is from Nevada. I doubt there is anything wrong with the cowl. It probably looks like the day it was built. Cars out here in the desert don't rust. Why fix a problem that isn't there?
To me it looks better how many true show cars you seen with a cowl vent?Or a firewall that is not smooth its his car he can do whatever to it makes him happy.later if he don't like it he can always replace the cowl cover.
I just got done seriously investigating the insdie of the cowl, under the vent louvers. It appears someone has already sealed the metal and squared away whatever is under it.I cant see the "top hats" though.
The car is from Nevada, but now I live in coastal Ga. and plan to for the forseeable future (I am stationed here). The car started to get minor surface rust on all exposed area's and thats what initated this project. As With any, project one thing lead to another.
This thing drains and appears to have no rust.I think if I shave it and seal it up it will be that way for good. The car had the front end (fenders,hood,light cowls,etc,etc) replaced, so as far as being an original, thats not a reality. So I figure while I am customizing, that would solve a much dreaded problem.
I really appreciate the time you all took to throw in your 2 cents. I have been debating this for awhile. Has anybody here done any custom work to re-route the fresh air intake to work around a sealed off cowl?? Just a thought. Thanks folks.
I agree entirely that each owner can do whatever they want with their cars. Whether or not the car was truly a rust free Nevada car, its gonna rust in GA if its a daily driver - period. They always did and always will. Under those circumstances I would put my effort where it would have the best return and I doubt that is in a cowl that has no problem.
From all the panel replacement and cowl work that has already been done I would have doubts this is a true Nevada car. Cars from the intermountain west do NOT rust unless there is some unusual circumstance involved. Cars driven on the streets here without paint rarely rust more than a surface rust. The first time I took my 8 year old son to Detroit he asked "what's the funny red stuff on the all the cars." He had NEVER seen a rusty car. That is why it is very difficult to sell a rusty car here - why bother, there are much better ones which were local cars.
I have two '66s and neither have ever had, or needed any panels replaced except because of collision damage. If the car already has rust then my earlier comment does not apply. As a daily driver it will accumulate more rust so, once again, put the effort where it gives the most return.
BTW, it seems to me that opening the cowl vent under the fender is going to add another way to water to get into the cowl defeating the whole purpose of closing it off. If outside air passes through the cowl it can condense into water and you are back to the original problem except now the cowl is semi-sealed and it can't dry out as easily. The original cowl grate both lets in water and lets out water vapor as the cowl area dries out.
The reason the car had replacement parts put on was as a result of a collision.A Drunk driver smacked it head on while it was parked. I think they sealed it up under the cowl while the fenders were off during the refit.
My dad bought this car from a friend of ours who moved from L.A. and retired in vegas. So I am positive to it's hsitory. I have been riding in it for 35 years. He just gave it to me too keep me busy while I was re-cooping from some injuries from this last tour.
I agree about cutting into the car and opening it up to more issues and rust area's. I am just going to stick with the original plan. even though it's already been done once, I am going to hit it again, and seal it off. I like the shaved look as well, Andrew. Thank you for all the time and response you have put in. Now to wrap this up and drop in the new electronic ignition,manifold, street avenger, headers, traction bars............On with the show........
Cowl repair/weld 
