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Hey Guys - thought this would be pretty simple but as we know....it seldom is. I'm tooling down the road, hit a bump and my hood pops op-en - have to pull over lift the hood and then it stays closed until the next bump. Went on to Willcox thinking I could simply order a new hood lock assembly but it seems that everything related is sold separately and I don't have a clue where to begin. As always, thanks for your help.
Hey Guys - thought this would be pretty simple but as we know....it seldom is. I'm tooling down the road, hit a bump and my hood pops op-en - have to pull over lift the hood and then it stays closed until the next bump. Went on to Willcox thinking I could simply order a new hood lock assembly but it seems that everything related is sold separately and I don't have a clue where to begin. As always, thanks for your help.
The spring cones are just out of alignment is all. I've seen a cool trick that makes adjusting them fairly easy. First put some duct tape or painter's tape across the round openings in the latches mounted to the hood. Then rest the hood down on the spring cones but don't push it shut. You're just trying to get the tips of the cones to make an impression into the tape. Now lift the hood, and you'll see the indentions. One or both may not be centered which is what you want. Once you have the indentions you can then loosen the hardware holding the spring cone brackets and move them to where they need to be to get the indentions in the middle of the round opening in the latches. Try it, and you'll see immediately what you need to do. Once they are both centered, tighten everything up and make sure the cable that connects the latches it still taught and that the hood release cable is tight and secure. Then you can close the hood, test for opening, and then drive to make sure it stays down.
Here is the link for the assembly, but I have to say.. Mark is spot on in his adjustment procedure. Give that a try first... and then take a hard look at the hardware for wear. Look at the pin, and the female lock catch lever!
If you have excessive wear in the female catch lever you'll see it and then know which part you need.
My thanks to everyone and thank you Mark for your detailed response. Of course I forgot to mention another hood problem (it's been a long but thankfully mild winter in NY) that happened only once just before putting the car away. I tried to open the hood and it seemed to release normally but I could not lift it up. Tried closing it figuring I would release the cable again but it would not close. Seemed like it was hitting something that was preventing it from closing. Eventually got lucky and I was able to close it down. Related to the adjustment issue?