Firehawk clone? Silly idea?
On The Tree
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 187
Likes: 0
From: MIDDLE GA.
Not a big fan of clones. Its trickery.
I have owned a 70 judge clone but I bought it like that and do not have the money for a real one. I would do as mentioned above and just make it different all together. wheels drop springs and hoods do wonders for TA's
I have owned a 70 judge clone but I bought it like that and do not have the money for a real one. I would do as mentioned above and just make it different all together. wheels drop springs and hoods do wonders for TA's
On The Tree
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 101
Likes: 0
From: Southeast MO
Do whatever, you won't be fully satisfied till you get the real deal. Like 97ramsst said, good luck with finding that EXACT hood. On another point the Firehawk's name is still standing strong, it'll probably be even stronger when the G8's out on the streets whining and kickin a*s!
Heres an idea. They make firebird badges in the same script as the hawk badges. If you werent looking really close you would never know. Then when ppl ask you just tell them, no look, it says firebird.
I hate it when people take the SS and WS6 badges off their cars and pretend they are just regular Trans Ams and Camaros. It really upsets me that someone tries to pass off a WS6 as a regular TA. If they wanted a plain one they should have bought it that way. Now everytime I see a WS6 or SS hood on a car without the badges I have to ask: Is that a real WS6/SS? It just bothers me that much.
Seriously, it's just stickers. If you like the look then clone away. Most of the "real" Firehawk owners are gonna tell you not to do it because they feel you are devalueing their cars(or some crap).
Seriously, it's just stickers. If you like the look then clone away. Most of the "real" Firehawk owners are gonna tell you not to do it because they feel you are devalueing their cars(or some crap).
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 3,452
Likes: 3
From: somewhere that doesn't get snow
yeah. thats what i did with my 95 T/A. it's got an oem hood and airbox and i have pretty accurately replicated the ram air setup on a 96-97 WS6 but i don't call it a WS6 or have any WS6 badging on it. the reason i didn't buy a real 96-97 WS6 was because of price. i got such a good deal on my 95 (6k w/ 84k mi in 2004) that i didn't think a hood and airbox and different wheels (which i was going to replace anyway most likely) was worth $4-6k. most of the 96-97 WS6's i found back then with similar mileage were $10-12k. i paid less than $2200 total for my wheels and tires AND ram air conversion and that included painting the roof panel and headlight doors as well as the hood. i know i got super lucky on the ram air though since i only paid ~ $550 for all the parts with the majority of them, the hood, airbox, maf to tb bellow, and blockoff plate for the old intake being oem. the screens and maf extension i bought aftermarket.
Last edited by 1995blacktattop; Jun 23, 2009 at 01:48 PM.
You can get away with the hood, spoiler, and wheels but that's as far as you should go. I think you'll get a lot of looks without the badging because how many Trans Am's have the Firehawk hood and Iroc spoiler that isn't a Firehawk and it won't be the usual WS6. I like the badging the Firehawks have being just the decal and it's font, but I don't think I'd clone one that extent. It's your car you can do what you want, I mean who would be able to tell anyway if it was placed perfectly. There is a 99-04 Mustang Saleen clone around in the town I live in and he pulls off the look as if it's a real one very well.
Don't forget though, what will you tell someone when they ask you if it's a Firehawk because people familiar with these cars will ask. But you can easily get away with saying yes. lol. Without asking for the WU6 code there is nothing saying you're lying except the lack of the WU6 RPO code. But if you get everything else dead on to how the firehawks are done and you can live with the fact that in collectablity & value it is only that of a TA, go for it.
Don't forget though, what will you tell someone when they ask you if it's a Firehawk because people familiar with these cars will ask. But you can easily get away with saying yes. lol. Without asking for the WU6 code there is nothing saying you're lying except the lack of the WU6 RPO code. But if you get everything else dead on to how the firehawks are done and you can live with the fact that in collectablity & value it is only that of a TA, go for it.
If you like the visual style of the Firehawk badging, you can get a custom decal made up in the same font that says Firebird.
Cloning a Firehawk for value also isn't worth it, because it's not like they're Yenkos or anything and it will still only be worth what a TA is to a true collector. That, and you'll **** off the people who worked hard for their REAL Firehawks if they find out your Firehawk badged car isn't a Firehawk.
If you do all of this and fully clone it then you will be happy with the looks but I bet you'll feel a little guilty knowing that even though it has every correct part and badge it still isn't a true firehawk. When people ask about it and you tell them it's a firehawk or refer to it as a firehawk you will have the same feeling as cheating on a test at school then getting all of the praise for your hard work. You'll just feel guilty in the long run. If you want a 'hawk then sell your ride and get one. If you can't afford it then do something else but better like a raptor hood, superhawk hood, or my favorite a Mecham hood and make your car more individual.
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TECH Fanatic
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,107
Likes: 0
From: College Park, GA
I gotta agree with 97rammsst, the name is meaningless, plus i dont see a big difference with a Firehawk over a WS.6 other than the hood, bumper, and iroc spoiler. So do as u please as long as your happy with the car.
