drwet

I recently received my spoiler extension kit from Willcox and I'm starting to look at the installation. My plan is to bolt it up using stainless steel machine screws and nuts instead of blind rivets. In looking at the diagram below from the assembly manual, I see the factory installed two metal strips (#6 in the diagram) probably as stiffeners, and apparently between the original air dam and the extension. It would make more sense to me if they installed it behind the original air dam to stop the blind rivets from pulling through the plastic. I would love to hear from anyone who has installed one of these things. Did you include the metal strip? How thick? What is its purpose? Any other pitfalls I should know about?

KapsSA

Factory installation.
Strips go back side..........

drwet

Thank you. That makes a lot more sense.

Any chance you could post a photo of the outboard end of that strip and give me dimensions and some idea of the thickness?

jb78L-82

Here is my GM OEM 1979 spoiler extension that I put on my 78 in the early 90's...no metal strips. Has been perfect for about28 years............




Unless you want to be 100% OEM, in my opinion and after almost 30 years on my car, you do not need them.

drwet

I suspect GM put the strips there so they could use blind rivets to attach the extension. Without the strips the rivets would just pull through the stock air dam. With machine screws and a good size washer, that shouldn't be a problem. What did you use to attach your extension?

jb78L-82

Aluminum screws and nuts...30 years ago....was tough to find stainless back then...still look perfect

mark79,80

I installed the L82 spoiler extension on my 1979 L82 which I have since sold. I used metal strips that were about 1 1/2" tall. The metal was a galvanized steel material that was used to suspend A/C ducts in a commercial building. I used blind rivets to hold the spoiler in place with washers in front of the rivets on the front side of the spoiler.