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The thought has never really crossed my mind previously however since my xk isn't a 4.2 anymore I was thinking a subdue change somewhere on the vehicle to indicate there's something a bit different under the hood .
The colours that I was thinking were
Red - Arden use this color on their 4.5
Silver - would match the vents and wheels however does it look to corvette'ish
British racing green - very traditional & subdue
Other - suggestions open
How much do you want to spend on something that won't be seen unless you open the hood? I spent $185 to have my engine appearance cover hydrodipped with fake carbon fiber with red painted lettering.
Not interested in spending huge amounts of dollars just something small indicating there's something a little different about this xk .
In regards to hydrodipping whilst great in USA I very much doubt it could be done in Australia we seem to not have the demand over here Masked , ready for color
Last edited by steve_k_xk; Aug 29, 2021 at 09:21 PM.
I'm not certain there's a right answer. Red in engine compartments has been done for decades and rather common. Any accents typically look best when tied to a like color elsewhere or carbon fibre when there's other bits in carbon. I'm also not a fan of engine appearance covers so perhaps something could be done with your intake headers instead.
I prefer no cover... but red would be the way to go. Especially if it matches the calipers and any other little details here and there.
I gotta say GKUBRAK's look gets my vote, no cover and red. His picture reminds me of my old 550 standup Jetski. Red has the advantage of looking fast and being fast!
Question I'd love a definitive answer to: do these engine covers serve any performance/operational function?
The hood pad on my old SL550 was getting shaggy and my mechanic said in the long run the engine heat isn't great for the paint job on the hood (that, and the sound-deadening factor), so it should be replaced. Anything like that on these engine covers or are they purely cosmetic?
Considering the XKR-S GT doesn’t have either an appearance cover nor sound deadening material on the bonnet and considering other super cars forego having one, it’s not necessary. I removed both of mine with no ill effect and I reckon both serve only to keep operation as quiet as possible as well as cosmetics for retail appearances, hence “appearance” cover.
The hood pad on my old SL550 was getting shaggy and my mechanic said in the long run the engine heat isn't great for the paint job on the hood (that, and the sound-deadening factor), so it should be replaced. Anything like that on these engine covers or are they purely cosmetic?
the engine cover probably does not do much in this regard but it can't hurt either. yes, the hood paint suffers on the average car when you remove the fire blanket, the effect is multiplied in a hotter climate, i have learned that firsthand. i would like to think ours would fare a bit better than average even without the engine cover simply because it's aluminum and not steel, but i could be wrong.
Engine cover colour xk 4.4l
