Cheap DIY for Strut tower covers

[PVAMT]

I bought some strut tower plugs from a vendor who went by CC550 years ago. They were color matched printed plastic covers that covered the factory holes in the strut towers. They weren’t fancy like what you can buy now but covered the holes. Over the years the under hood heat has not been kind to them and the mounting tabs started breaking off and eventually they started disintegrating.
I looked around for some covers. There are a lot of nice options. I looked for the DIY that used to be posted on this site but couldn’t locate it. I then returned to what was offered online. Holy cow prices have shot through the roof. I couldn’t see spending $60-$100 on plastic strut tower cavers. The machined metal ones were even more. I did some thinking and came up with this.

I ordered some 2” plastic circular plugs similar to what’s in the amazon photo. I actually bought mine at Ace hardware. You will need 2. I bored a 3/8” hole in the center. You will notice that mine are scuffed up. This was due to me following my original plan. I soon had a moment of clarity and altered the design.
I bought some trailer hub dust covers in the size in the picture. These are the exact ones I ordered from Amazon. I had hoped they would just fit into the strut tower but they’re a little big. I could have just opened up the strut tower holes a tiny bit and they probably would slip in but I didn’t want to grind on the car. I took out my dremel and cut off the flange under the lip. This took a while and many grinder disks as the hub caps are stainless steel. I then flattened the cuts. I pulled off the rubber bolt caps from the strut. Then pushed the plastic cap into the bottom of the hub cap. 3/8” is just a little smaller than the strut size of 10 mm. You will have to push a little but they will go on. That’s the diy. Nothing complicated the hubs were $13.58 for 4 and the caps were about $2.50 each. A heck of a lot cheaper than the $60-$100 ones sold online. You could add another $10 for the dremel cutoff wheel disks. Photos are attached. The bolt covers I picked up at a truck stop.
If you don’t like the stainless you can paint them.

Good luck,
Pete

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[1 old racer]

I love to see these DIY projects.

 

[kz]

Question out of curiosity - why exactly do you want to plug strut towers ? And what's the reason for these weird covers on strut bolts ?

 

[PVAMT]

Judging from the number of cars with strut tower covers at Mustang Week the last few years I wasn’t alone in not liking the bare hole with plain lock nuts . I just offered a cheaper option to the group. It’s personal preference, if you don’t like it then this diy doesn’t apply to you.

 

[Weyland-Yutani]

I love the resourcefulness!

 

[ORRadtech]

Interesting. I like the option to color match. How much were the bolt covers though?
That might make the difference to me in buying vs making. Once material cost approaches half buying vs making I start to wonder if it's worth my time. Of course making can be fun so there's that...

 

[PVAMT]

The bolt covers were bought years ago when I put in the original printed caps. A trip to the truck stop would be in order. I think these are the ones I bought and used a little double sided tape to hold them
Trux Mart (truxmart.com) p/n: 192250028124, sku 10131-GG LOC-SA3-E2 CN 15mm & 5/8” Round pointed chrome plastic 1-1/4” tall

Kenworth nut covers

 

[TonyT930]

I bought some strut tower plugs from a vendor who went by CC550 years ago. They were color matched printed plastic covers that covered the factory holes in the strut towers. They weren’t fancy like what you can buy now but covered the holes. Over the years the under hood heat has not been kind to them and the mounting tabs started breaking off and eventually they started disintegrating.
I looked around for some covers. There are a lot of nice options. I looked for the DIY that used to be posted on this site but couldn’t locate it. I then returned to what was offered online. Holy cow prices have shot through the roof. I couldn’t see spending $60-$100 on plastic strut tower cavers. The machined metal ones were even more. I did some thinking and came up with this.

I ordered some 2” plastic circular plugs similar to what’s in the amazon photo. I actually bought mine at Ace hardware. You will need 2. I bored a 3/8” hole in the center. You will notice that mine are scuffed up. This was due to me following my original plan. I soon had a moment of clarity and altered the design.
I bought some trailer hub dust covers in the size in the picture. These are the exact ones I ordered from Amazon. I had hoped they would just fit into the strut tower but they’re a little big. I could have just opened up the strut tower holes a tiny bit and they probably would slip in but I didn’t want to grind on the car. I took out my dremel and cut off the flange under the lip. This took a while and many grinder disks as the hub caps are stainless steel. I then flattened the cuts. I pulled off the rubber bolt caps from the strut. Then pushed the plastic cap into the bottom of the hub cap. 3/8” is just a little smaller than the strut size of 10 mm. You will have to push a little but they will go on. That’s the diy. Nothing complicated the hubs were $13.58 for 4 and the caps were about $2.50 each. A heck of a lot cheaper than the $60-$100 ones sold online. You could add another $10 for the dremel cutoff wheel disks. Photos are attached. The bolt covers I picked up at a truck stop.
If you don’t like the stainless you can paint them.

Good luck,
Pete

Pretty cool!!

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