Original 2bbl V8 Air Cleaner (California)

Motivation

I originally restored the air cleaner for my '64 Tempest months ago, but the hood insulation quickly scuffed up the fresh paint. Frustrating, to say the least. After researching more durable options to keep the 326 V8 looking sharp, I discovered 2K aerosol paint. It cures into an incredibly resilient, factory-hard finish, but the process sounded a bit intimidating. The cans feature a plunger on the bottom that releases an internal chemical hardener, meaning once you activate it, the clock is ticking and you only have about 24 hours to spray. Since 2K paint will often react with and lift standard enamel, you can’t simply spray it over an existing finish. I decided it was easier to start fresh and tracked down a replacement air cleaner on eBay. Finding the exact match took some digging—I specifically needed a housing equipped with the valve cover vent tube, an early emissions feature unique to California-built cars. The learning curve was absolutely worth it. Here’s the final result, complete with a fresh factory service sticker. The Technical Walkthrough Months after restoring my original air cleaner, the hood insulation had already rubbed scuffs into the top layer of paint. I needed something much tougher. Enter 2K paint: a two-part, chemically activated aerosol that delivers a rock-hard, factory-quality finish. It’s slightly daunting the first time you use it. You have to strike a plunger at the base of the can to mix the hardener, and from that moment, you only have about a day to apply the paint before it solidifies right inside the can.

What I Did

Because 2K paint will ruin standard 1K paint if sprayed directly over it, I opted to source a correct replacement air cleaner off eBay rather than stripping my original one. I had to hunt down the rare California-emissions version featuring the correct spot for the valve cover vent tube. Check out the before and after below, wrapped up with a brand-new service sticker.

Before

After