(4/25/2004) - I finally think I decided what I want to do regarding the Baja kit for the front end...  I want a slightly different look, so its not going to be easy (it never is).  My choices were pretty limited when it came time to find a kit/fiberglass parts to buy.  These days the fiberglass isn't hand-laid, or woven - its usually just shot out of a gun into the epoxy.  I decided that since this ISN'T a show car, I would be at least content with whatever I ended up with.  So I went with Mark V Fiberglass.  Mark V has a "super-beetle" Baja kit available, but I hate the way it looks (there is a piece that goes over the front apron, and it makes the car look like it has an "underbite").  So I went my own way and ordered all kinds of stuff, in hopes that I can mix a bunch of it together to get the look I want.

I ordered all my pieces, and shortly thereafter a HUGE box arrived at my house...  Below is what it contained. (and YES, all the pieces arrived in perfect shape - no damage from shipping).

So what did I get?  I got the rear fenders, front fenders and rear engine cover (or whatever the heck its real name is) from the super-beetle Baja kit.  I had them OMIT the retarded looking front apron cover and super-Baja hood.  I sprung for the front hood made to replace a STOCK super hood, but this one has the 'indents' (nostrils) in it.  They WARNED me that this stuff wouldn't fit together correctly, but I told them I will make it fit, and make it look pretty good.

The hood is what really sets the look apart.  Here's a close-up:

Their fiberglass seems pretty decent quality (its not the best, but I've seen worse).  It should stand up for quite a while.)

One of the first things I notices was how FAT the fenders (especially the rear) were!  Holy cow!  I couldn't wait any longer, so I installed the rear fenders:  

Keep in mind, my rear tires are 215/75/15's (they AREN'T small), AND I have the rear disc brake kit which helps push out the tires a bit, but check out how much more tire you need to fill the area under the fender.  Jeez.  I could fit 24's under these fenders! :-)

Needless to say, I'm NOT going to use these rear fenders - they are just FAR too wide.  For now I will stick with the rear Baja fenders that I already have (they fit nice).  Eventually I will buy a new set of rear fenders that aren't so wide.  In the meantime I will still be using the rear fenders for another project (stay tuned for that)...

Here's the hood mounted.  It fits OK.  There is a slightly larger gap at the top then I would like, but otherwise it looks pretty nice.

I debated whether or not to install the hood handle.  I really need the functionality of a locking trunk, so I went ahead and installed it:

Then I switched back to the stock hood, so that I could paint the new hood later.  

I pulled off the bumper and started stripping the front fenders so that I could test fit the new front fenders:

Here you can see the new fiberglass fenders installed.  As you can see, there is about a 1" gap in the front portion of the fender (between the fender and body of the car).  This is usually filled in with that ugly looking front apron cover (which I opted not to use).  What I plan to do is fabricate a 'filler' that I will probably weld into that spot to make it look "right."

Here it is with hood and fenders installed (and the turn signals installed on the front fenders).  You can also make out the holes cut out in the louvers...  This is where the lower mounts for the front Baja bumper will go.

Since this is a daily driver, I DO need headlights.  I bought a cheap set of "Baja headlight buckets" and installed them.

They are made of plastic, but they look like they will hold up.  Hopefully they will have enough adjustment in them when I aim my headlights.

To keep the undersides of the fenders (and hood) from getting nasty, I decided to coat them.  I bought a can of cheap bedliner from Wal-Mart, and a couple cans of undercoating.  I brushed the bedliner on first, then sprayed the undercoating on next.  This seems to create a fairly good "armor" layer, Plus it looks pretty good too.

You probably noticed that the front fenders are also a little wider than stock.  They aren't as bad as the rear fenders, and with the right size tires it will look good.  Right now I'm running 165's up front and 215/75's in the rear.  I plan on keeping the 215's in the rear, but I want to get something a little wider and taller in the front.  To give me an idea of what a bigger tire might look like up front, I took off a rear tire and mounted it up front:

Looks pretty beefy! (and the 215 fits FINE!), BUT I want to have something slightly smaller than the 215 up front.  I'm going to go with a new set of 215/75's for the rears, and I'm going to get either 205/70 or 205/75's for the front- (probably Toyo 800 Ultra's).