5 Ways to Hide New Parts in an Old Engine Bay
New parts can stick out like a sore thumb in an. . . aging. . . engine compartment. Those shiny new parts might restore the function but sometimes ruin the look. Want the best of both worlds? Here are a couple tips to make new parts blend in without losing the function.
Of course, these tips are highly dependent on the goals of your project. Not everything deserves or needs restoration. In fact, the desire to keep things looking well-worn or authentic to the rest of the car can keep the whole operation from looking half-finished and more like a survivor. No one needs to know that survivor has had a heart transplant.
Don’t use new parts at all
Known good used parts can sometimes be found cheaper through a junkyard, eBay, or other resellers than new parts. If the right look matters it could be worth going through the effort of gutting a new alternator and putting all the important bits in the “seasoned” housing, yielding restored function without the look of restored parts. Win/win.
Flat clear or paint match
For items like suspension and steering, there isn’t the option to only use the good bits to make the part right again. Since almost everything new comes slathered in gloss black paint it is easy to make them blend in a bit by simply knocking the gloss off by spraying a flat clear coat over the new shiny parts. This will instantly put a bit of age on without removing any of the corrosion protection of the factory paint.
If you want to get even fancier, lay down a coat of matching paint. Most automotive paint stores can mix a custom color into an aerosol can. Take in the old part, have them mix up some paint, and before you know it that new piece will disappear—but in a good way.
Careful cleaning
One of the things that gives away where I have been and haven’t been is the clearly defined line of where I stopped cleaning. A spotless section of the car right next to 50 years of built-up road grime sticks out like a sore thumb. By cleaning only the absolutely necessary bits and areas to ensure safe and proper function it will create a less obvious fingerprint as to where repairs happened.
“Curated wear”
Call it fake patina if you want. A few carefully placed scratches, dents, or smears of oil can go a long way in transforming something brand new off the shelf and camouflaging it into the larger picture. Some Scotchbrite, steel wool, or sandpaper can take the paint off an area to match an old piece that has lost its paint after years of wear. Alternatively, a little bit of polish to brighten one spot on a dull part can accomplish a similar result. Is it slightly disingenuous? Sure. This technique can also look quite tacky if done poorly, but when done well, this is a real option for keeping the right feel to your vintage ride while also keeping it in top running condition.
Reuse hardware
Even if the part is new, the bolts and nuts don’t have to be. Shiny new hardware is a dead giveaway of where a mechanic has been to those who know where to look. Shiny new grade-5 bolt heads from the local hardware store will stick out immediately. If your old hardware can be cleaned up and reused it will hide most repairs far better. Focus on the thread with a wire wheel or thread chaser to ensure the hardware works like it should but leave the head alone for maximum sneaky factor.
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Or, you could simply install the part, close the hood and drive the thing. After a 1,000 miles, problem solved.
LOL, made my day!
The parts cars I have bought over the years get stripped of nuts, bolts, wiring, switches, small parts etc before being hauled off to the crusher. Many small parts are used in many models produced by the same manufacturer.
Folks tell me I’m getting old, and that’s true — but old me is missing the point of this ‘how to’, or ‘how not to’ article. Why do I want my engine/mechanical parts to look old? Who do I have to fool? My gen (I’m too old to be a boomer, after all) generally preferred their engine to look new, or new-ish — not old. Old what what we had when we were broke, underpaid, over-extended, etc. When I became semi-successful, I gravitated to upgrading my ole’ wheels, and like to flaunt it. Making new parts look old is an anathema to me, folks. I’ve lived too many moons using old parts that looked old (especially dismantler or parts-car stuff), then ‘restoring’ them to look new-er. Now that I can afford some new bits, I want to enjoy it. Don’t bother to clue me in, however; I’m happy enough in the newer restomod thing. I M Humble O.
I’m simply not understanding this “style/fad/hobby/challenge/necessity.” Is this for the people who are working on the “distressed” look (patina; fake or otherwise), or cars that shows their longevity with the original fan-belt/tire/upholstery still intact and functional?
I can’t imagine doing this (obsession) on a regular daily driver–what would be the point? If I blow a radiator hose on my regular ol’ Honda commuter car, I’m not going to scuff up the new hose and put dirt and grease on it and use the old and tired hose clamps to match the surroundings.
If it was a cherished “heirloom” or with significant sentimental value, I wouldn’t drive it so much that it gets broken, rusted, lost, greasy, dirty, dented, scratched…so much so that I’d have to find a replacement parts that matches the dirty/messed up surroundings. If it was that important, it would be well kept to begin with. Otherwise, keep it stored, or restore it.
If you’re talking about a “sleeper,” that I understand.
Why, just yesterday, I met an old feller in his 80s with a ’66 Mustang that he bought new and kept all these years. It’s original everything, except for things that broke (water pump). But he said he was too embarrassed to even open the hood (it’s that dirty and ugly, he thinks). So I suggested to him that he should get his grandkids to clean the engine bay spic-n-span, so that it won’t be so ugly. The it’d be rather clean and old/original and not new still.
Dirt and grease doesn’t add any value to the classic. It would be more valuable if it wasn’t so greasy/dirty. Otherwise, I would never wash and clean my cars before selling my car if it was that much more valuable.
Here’s where I thought the article was going: modern parts in antique or classic cars. Like alternator guts hidden in a stock generator housing. Or an OEM cartridge oil filter that hides a spin-on. I had to spend a fair amount of time burying a voltage regulator underneath the frame and installing a dummy cutout relay on top of the gen.
What about an idea for new plastic tanks, like a window wash fluid reservoir or coolant recovery tank?
Kyle, sorry to say your 140 looks rather shameful. Very dirty, worn labels, battery terminal corrosion, air cleaner dented and crooked, deck lid seal, worn and torn. In an article about engine bays, yours isn’t a good example.
Some of these ideas remind me of being 15 years old & getting a job at a used car lot as a lot boy. Not real proud of them but they were tricks I was taught at the time. Rolling miles with a special attachment for a power drill was one. Another was welding a frame back together. Not so much the “welding” as that proved useful later on, but using a wire brush to collect “rust” on a piece of paper , painting over the weld, & then “blowing” the rust flakes on the wet paint so it matched the rest of the frame was pretty shaky practice.
I can’t imagine anyone with half a brain buying something that evokes the phrase “ridden hard and put away wet”.
If you were looking for a new partner would you go down to the local bar and look for, or smell for, the worst one there?
You’ll find me with the one that has pride in appearance and looks killer. Then I’d go out and check the engine bay of her ’67 Corvette to see if it looked the same way. If it did, I’d kidnap both.
Seriously, ask your used car manager what he puts on the lot, or check the insurance companies ratings. Crap is crap and has probably been treated like that. Now stop reading everything on the web and clean -up your act.
Nothing looks worse in a Mode A or T than red, yellow or blue wiring, I use all black, I do not trust looms made in China, I rewire with automotive wire, solder all fasteners use one gauge larger in all headlight circuits.
If an alternator or regulator looks new and is new-isn’t that a plus whether or not the car is for sale?
Some would say yes, but not everything is for sale or going to be for sale.
“5 ways to hide new parts in an old engine bay” makes me immediately wonder–why would you want to??!
The pic above this article of a grungy, greasy engine bay is to me very unappealing, to say the least. And then to purposely spend time and effort to make new parts look as ugly as the rest of it? I think not. Spend the effort cleaning up the old crud.