funcrusher

So I got in a little fender bender and need to replace the front hood. I believe my Platinum Edition has th millenium silver color but I'm not positive. Probably near impossible to find in good condition unless I buy brand new which is crazy price from dealership. I'm thinking I can either....

Buy new from dealership which will be an arm and a leg.

Get any year ES300 from a junkyard and have a bodyshop paint it to match mine. Any year es300 will work right?

Get a non oem, aftermarket brand.

Any advice? This sucks!

mmatheny

I can answer ONE of your questions - NOT _ANY_ year, for sure!

funcrusher

I meant every year up to 2001.

mugencivic

any hood from a 1997 - 2001 ES300 will fit. the only difference between the 97-99 & 2000-2001 is the grille.

funcrusher

Pre 97 won't fit?

speedkar9

Your first option would be to see if you can locate a 97-01 OEM hood from a junkyard that doesn't have any rust, then have a body shop paint it.

If not, then you could go with the aftermarket hood, but make sure you get it prep'd and painted properly and then rustproofed to prevent corrosion. You will have to transfer your existing hardware, the wiper nozzles, hosing, and under hood liner.

The aftermarket hoods are inferior to OEM, the gauge of the metal is thinner and it won't resist rust and dents as good as the OEM hood. But since the hood is just a aesthetic part of the car (and not structural), on such an old car, I'd consider it as a last option.

mugencivic

no, different body style

funcrusher

Which color will be the best and easiest for a body shop to match/paint to make Millenium Silver? I see tons of good ones but not sure if the Silver ones are actually my millennium silver.

mugencivic

the 3rd gen (97-2001) only had one color of silver which was the millennium silver. if you find a silver hood at the junk yard, 9 out of 10 it'll match you car and the shop wouldn't even need to spray it and just buff if needed.

funcrusher

Great news!! That saves a ton of money.

How can I verify that a hood is OEM at a junkyard?

mugencivic

should have a vin number somewhere on it

LeX2K

Easy to tell, TOYOTA is embossed into the sheet metal LH side front. Also look for the emissions/info stickers.

speedkar9

Not on most Toyota's. VIN stamping body panels is a Honda thing.

mugencivic

i didn't know that, thanks for clarifying that. funny thing is that i've owned a lot of honda's and figured the vin stamping on all panels was something done by all manufacturers

808mcv20l

I'm with you I've owned mostly Hondas/Acuras myself I too thought the vin would be on the hood.

btw your S/N made me think of the MugenRR civic that car was a beast. Can't wait to see what the USA bound Civic Type R is gonna look like.