Please help me pick a color scheme for my engine stuff

[Paul]

So I've come to something of a "fork in the road" where, for once, I'm somewhat indecisive. This is pretty unusual for me; decisiveness is one of my strong traits.



Anyway, I've been putting together my 306 and powdercoating EVERYTHING. Right now I only have gunmetal gray and matte black powdercoat, plus some black anodized parts like my water pump, fuel rails, throttle body, etc...


I need to decide a couple things:

A.) Should I have the alternator case and A/C pump polished, or should I powdercoat them silver, or powdercoat them matte black? I LOVE the matte black, but I'm afraid it will end up being too much black.
B.) I want to do a two-tone on the upper intake. One "inside" the thin groove and gunmetal gray "outside" the thin groove. I'm not sure if I should something like silver inside, or matte black, or gloss black. Again, I really like the black, but I'm afraid it will be TOO MUCH black. Of course, this would need to "go" with the alternator and A/C compressor as well.
C.) Should I have the base of the distributor polished, or matte black powdercoat? I'm going to be using black/grey plug wires.

My alternator and power steering pump pulleys are polished billet. Valve covers will be gunmetal gray to match the aluminum accessory brackets. I'll probably do my crank pulley in matte black, unless I can find a nice polished one for a reasonable price. All fuel lines will be black braided nylon. All fasteners are polished stainless steel. Headers will be matte black or dull grey ceramic coat.

Anyway, please give me your thoughts. Also, any constructive criticism is welcome - I'm always looking for ways to improve it. Here's my quick mock-up that I did tonight.

Paul.

 

[TxCobrA98]

wow Paul, that thing is soooooooooooooooooo clean!

for some criticism, i personally dont like the upper intake being one gray and the valve covers being another. but its not my engine. everything else, i love!

1) I say you powdercoat the AC pump and Alternator silver to let it stand out a bit from the brackets being black.

2) i would do a black. i think it would match up with the lower intake and compliment each other.

3) i would polish the base. i think it would look good with the pulleys you got. i think all that would tie everything together.

freaking clean though. i need to look into this powder coating thing you got going.

 

[Nestromo]

What do I think? I think it's a Mustang not the Mona Lisa. I would thrw on some FRPP black and cast valve covers. I've never been keen on the 5.0's little three layer thingies. Great loking motor though. Where are some pics of the car?

 

[94Pro-5.0]

hey paul, it looks great

i think the alternator casing and PS pump would look best polished, but silver wouild look good also.

the upper intake would look good the way you described, but polished IMO looks the best, but i know you said you didnt want another polished upper.

also, polished crank pulley if the others are polished.

:thumb:

 

[Schiffy]

I'm a big fan of Black Chrome, because it incorporates the black, and a little chrmoy look(if thats a color) or Graphite gray, those look awesome...
My engine combo will consist of Black, and Black Chrome, with a "Black Vein" (Paul, you being the powdercoater should know what that finish looks like) finish on the valve covers...

 

[ddrracing]

Paul, I must say that is a very nice looking engine. LOVE the color you got so far, then again, im a big fan of no flashy colors.
Another good color to look into is the Dupli-Color Wheel paints Ebony color.

 

[TxCobrA98]

i dont like the blingin in the engine bay either. i like the clean look rather than flashy.

but i think a little bit of polished things look awesome like his pullies. i like how your keeping the polished to a minimum though. it looks great so far. cant wait to see it in the car. you got to get pictures.

what car is this for? is it just a fun car that your going to show or what?

 

[Paul]

I've got a picture of my notch in my build thread - you guys can look there if you're interested.


It's just a cruiser mostly, and of course I'll race it like all my other cars. I'm not really into the car show scene; I'm just a sticker for details and like well-executed projects.

Paul.

 

[TxCobrA98]

oh ok ill check it out. it will definitely be clean!

 

[Mr. OAM]

Here's what I've learned over the years. This is the guide I have made for myself.

Two colors are good.

Three colors are too much if they are used equally. The engine starts to look like a toy.

Two colors with a third accent color works well. The accent color is usually on the lesser mass parts like wire harneses, vacuum hoses, fuel lines, grooves in manifolds, etc.

Chrome or polished aluminum is not usually perceived as a "color" per se. It is viewed more as "shine". As such it should be viewed as neutral when choosing a complementary second "color" and balanced accordingly, unless it is used as your accent.

Choose an overall "flavor" that you want your engine to convey. Choose your two complimentary colors and then that will guide you to your accent color if one is to be used. Balance your two main colors equally as possible. They don't have to be present in the exact same amount but one should not overpower the other.


That's how I do it. It works for me.

Looking great.

Steve