GT hood stripe opinions...

[ZEN50]

Didn't want to jump in on the other post so..... Anyone have experience with this stripe vendor??? Wondering if the quality is any good?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310286084076...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

thanks,
Zen

[TopGear85]

I don't have any personal experience with them, but they have a ton of good feedback. I recommend Phoenix Graphix for any and all decals, but they are more expensive than $47. I just did the hood decal on my 85 and I bought it from a fellow FEP member. He got it from Graphics Express. I'm really happy with how it looks. If I was to buy brand new I would go with Phoenix Graphix though.

Also, this decal (in the link) says it's flat black. The actual 85/86 decal is charcoal. Just a heads up.

[ZEN50]

Actually I was looking for the flat/satin black for my 86. I also have a cowl hood and am not sure how the "factory" decal will fit on the cowl hood.

I will check out Phoenix also.

thanks

[jayhawk261]

I ordered one from Phoenix. They had 2 options, Black and Gray. Mine has the charcoal sticker, so I ordered the gray. What they sent me was a light gray. I opened the box and gave it a quick look and saw gray, so I assumed it was correct. The shop put it on the hood, and it was a much lighter gray than the factory color. So much so that it couldn't be used. I sent them an email about the issue, and they never responded. I certainly couldn't recommend them. I suppose if I had called I might have gotten some restitution, but I never had a chance to.

[escogt]

That seller uses a pic of my car. lol

[wraithracing]

That seller uses a pic of my car. lol

It's possible there could be another Bright Atlantic Blue 1985 Mustang GT with clear headlight covers . . . Yeah! Probably NOT!

Looks good though!

Trey

[ZEN50]

That seller uses a pic of my car. lol

I thought that looked familiar!

[escogt]

It's possible there could be another Bright Atlantic Blue 1985 Mustang GT with clear headlight covers . . . Yeah! Probably NOT!

Looks good though!

Trey

hahaha Thanks, Trey!!

I thought that looked familiar!

Yup. That's me. I asked him for a decal & he obliged me. Nice guy.

[eric]

On my 86, I painted my trim with the SEM 39153 that is commonly recommended and it looks TERRIFIC. My car is an original two-tone ( Jalapena red, with charcoal from the trim down) so I used the SEM 39153 for the bottom two-tone also and again, looks great!

However, I bought the "Charcoal gray" hood stripe decal from Phoenix graphics and it is WAY too light vs. the SEM 39153. I think if anything the SEM 39153 is a little bit darker than the original stock charcoal gray paint the cars came with, but again, it looks excellent.

Now my concern is getting the hood stripe to match the SEM 39153 !!

So, anybody have experience using the SEM 39153 for all the trim and then matching it well with a hood stripe decal? If so, PLEASE let me know what vendor and color option you used for the hood stripe decal that matches well with SEM 39153 trim paint. Thanks!!!

(attached is a picture of how mine currently looks... again, the SEM 39153 trim is nice but the decal and trim don't match as you can see )

-Eric

[jayhawk261]

On my 86, I painted my trim with the SEM 39153 that is commonly recommended and it looks TERRIFIC. My car is an original two-tone ( Jalapena red, with charcoal from the trim down) so I used the SEM 39153 for the bottom two-tone also and again, looks great!

However, I bought the "Charcoal gray" hood stripe decal from Phoenix graphics and it is WAY too light vs. the SEM 39153. I think if anything the SEM 39153 is a little bit darker than the original stock charcoal gray paint the cars came with, but again, it looks excellent.

Now my concern is getting the hood stripe to match the SEM 39153 !!

So, anybody have experience using the SEM 39153 for all the trim and then matching it well with a hood stripe decal? If so, PLEASE let me know what vendor and color option you used for the hood stripe decal that matches well with SEM 39153 trim paint. Thanks!!!

(attached is a picture of how mine currently looks... again, the SEM 39153 trim is nice but the decal and trim don't match as you can see )

-Eric

I had mine painted on after getting the same light gray one as you. The body shop charged me $250 to do it, and it matches perfectly. Painting is the way to go. Graphics Express even sells a template so they can get the GT and stripe placement correct.

[eric]

that looks great! That's actually what I am thinking also as my next step if I can't find a confirmed decal match for the SEM paint ( I already bought that stencil you mentioned as my backup plan! ).

I was just hoping somebody might say there is a SEM 39153 dead-ringer decal out there somewhere.

If not, I will go with the paint approach.

Body shop guy said he'd suggest laying down the same SEM 39153 right on top of the decal already on the hood ( using adhesion promoter first) because that way if something starts to crack or peel it can easily be removed since it will be on top of the vinyl decal. He's just a little concerned that the SEM paint might not hold up to the heat on the hood over the engine since it isn't made for that application. I think his idea makes sense.

Still, I am interested to see if anybody else has found a really good decal match for the SEM 39153 trim paint since so many people out there have used the SEM 39153 on the trim for these cars. If not, then I too will go with the "paint the hood stripe" approach.

[1985 Motorsport Capri]

anyone know why none of Fox Body repo companies don't make the correct colored hood decal? everyone just offers gloss black & light grey.

[eric]

I don't know. It would seem like a good business opportunity for them to make one that is color matched to the SEM 39153 seeing that so many folks are using that for their trim color on these 85/86 cars.

I contacted graphic express and asked them the same question and they directed me to the paint stencil that I already own. That might be the path I have to take I guess.

[TopGear85]

That light grey looks correct for black cars, but pretty far off for everyone else. That's a disappointment. Phoenix graphics has been very good for me so far, but this is way off.

[TopGear85]

Here's mine, it's from graphics express. It looks black in the pics but it's a very dark grey. I think once it starts to fade it will look more correct. Either way I'm happy with how it came out.

I used sem 39153 for all the trim so you can see the comparison:

[steam_mill]

Nice car....

Any more pics especially of the sunroof?

[86V8NOTCH]

I had a local installer put a NOS charcoal gray decal on a cowl hood for my 86 GT convertible. Instead of centering it (center of cowl is narrower than factory location of decal on hood), and then cutting an equal amount off each side, he slid it over towards the passenger side so more of the GT showed and cut it perfectly to match the width of the cowl area.

[eric]

Here's mine, it's from graphics express. It looks black in the pics but it's a very dark grey. I think once it starts to fade it will look more correct. Either way I'm happy with how it came out.

I used sem 39153 for all the trim so you can see the comparison:

That looks really good and a very close match in the picture. So that's SEM 39153 on the trim, huh? I think that's a really close match then and a heck of a lot closer than what I have right now for sure!!

Do you know exactly which sku you ordered from graphic express?

These are the options on their website:

CHARCOAL BLACK (FLAT)

DARK GRAY (SPECIAL) (RARE) +$24.00

BLACK CUSTOM COLOR - NOT- RETURNS +$47.00

GOLD METALLIC CUSTOM COLOR - NO RETURNS +$47.00

SILVER METALLIC CUSTOM COLOR - NO RETURN +$47.00

WHITE CUSTOM COLOR - NO RETURNS +$47.00

If you have the exact model/sku number ( such as Part # N108-GT whatever whatever ) that would help too.

Thanks!
-Eric

[eric]

I had a local installer put a NOS charcoal gray decal on a cowl hood for my 86 GT convertible. Instead of centering it (center of cowl is narrower than factory location of decal on hood), and then cutting an equal amount off each side, he slid it over towards the passenger side so more of the GT showed and cut it perfectly to match the width of the cowl area.

Nice looking! Hard to find those NOS decals now days though!

[TopGear85]

Nice car....

Any more pics especially of the sunroof?

I try not to emphasize the sunroof because I'm not a big fan of it. It's an aftermarket unit that was installed two months after the car was purchased and it was installed at the dealership the car was bought from (so it has history with the car). I actually went as far as installing a solid roof headliner and I painted the outside glass red to blend in with the rest of the roof. I'll look and see if I have a couple pics though.

That looks really good and a very close match in the picture. So that's SEM 39153 on the trim, huh? I think that's a really close match then and a heck of a lot closer than what I have right now for sure!!

Do you know exactly which sku you ordered from graphic express?

These are the options on their website:

CHARCOAL BLACK (FLAT)

DARK GRAY (SPECIAL) (RARE) +$24.00

BLACK CUSTOM COLOR - NOT- RETURNS +$47.00

GOLD METALLIC CUSTOM COLOR - NO RETURNS +$47.00

SILVER METALLIC CUSTOM COLOR - NO RETURN +$47.00

WHITE CUSTOM COLOR - NO RETURNS +$47.00

If you have the exact model/sku number ( such as Part # N108-GT whatever whatever ) that would help too.

I'll check the packaging and let you know. I'm on vacation for 4 more days so it will be a little while, but I'll get that info for you. It matches pretty well and once the decal fades just a little, it will be perfect. Stay tuned...

Thanks!
-Eric

[eric]

Hi Mike(TopGear85), did you ever get a chance to check the packaging details/sku-code on the exact hood stripe you used? Would really appreciate it.
I am supposed to take it back to the shop next week so I was hoping to get a new stripe decal before then. Thanks!
-Eric

[homer302]

On my 86, I painted my trim with the SEM 39153 that is commonly recommended and it looks TERRIFIC. My car is an original two-tone ( Jalapena red, with charcoal from the trim down) so I used the SEM 39153 for the bottom two-tone also and again, looks great!

However, I bought the "Charcoal gray" hood stripe decal from Phoenix graphics and it is WAY too light vs. the SEM 39153. I think if anything the SEM 39153 is a little bit darker than the original stock charcoal gray paint the cars came with, but again, it looks excellent.

Now my concern is getting the hood stripe to match the SEM 39153 !!

So, anybody have experience using the SEM 39153 for all the trim and then matching it well with a hood stripe decal? If so, PLEASE let me know what vendor and color option you used for the hood stripe decal that matches well with SEM 39153 trim paint. Thanks!!!

(attached is a picture of how mine currently looks... again, the SEM 39153 trim is nice but the decal and trim don't match as you can see )

-Eric

Hey Eric, don't ever store your car with the seat folded forward like that. That will flat ruin the foam in the bolsters on the seat bottom! Ask me how I know. It will end up with a "memory" impression where the top side bolsters were pushing down on it!

[eric]

Hey Eric, don't ever store your car with the seat folded forward like that. That will flat ruin the foam in the bolsters on the seat bottom! Ask me how I know. It will end up with a "memory" impression where the top side bolsters were pushing down on it!

Good advice!

Actually, i had just hopped out of the car and grabbed something out of the back seat before i took that picture. So it wasn't "in storage".
This car is a daily driver (again) now. So hopefully it won't be sitting for very long in one position.

[Matt1986gt]

I had the same problem with the decal on my car. I chose the “gray” one and it was way too little got. Do not buy if you have a black car as it’s not even close to a match. I’m having it removed and painted on

[Matt1986gt]

I had the same problem with the decal on my car. I chose the “gray” one and it was way too little got. Do not buy if you have a black car as it’s not even close to a match. I’m having it removed and painted on