Broken Hood Latch, passenger side
 

Hello all,

I had that dreaded hood latch cable breakage that I hear/read about from time to time. I can pull the hood latch release which releases the driver's side hood latch. No go on the passenger's side. I'm pretty sure cable that crosses over to the passenger's side is broken at or near the passenger's side latch.

I've had people tell me to lift the hood up enough from the drivers's side to get a piece of flat metal under there to trip the latch. Let me tell ya - it's tight.

What other ways are there to get at the passenger's side hood latch?

thanks in advance,

Ken :)

RE: Broken Hood Latch, passenger side
 

Ok, if you look in the well where your windshield wipers are, there is an oval shaped rubber/plastic plug right next to where the latch would be. Pull that plug out and use a screwdriver to trip the latch. There is a tab on the latch mechanism just for this purpose. You have to push it down.

Don't use the other method, you'll end up cracking your hood at the mount points.

If you can't get it done, let me know and I'll try and post a pic of the mechanism for you to referrence.

PS, what year Vette?

RE: Broken Hood Latch, passenger side
 

Here are some pics. The little latch tab is tough to see in the pictures, but it should be easy enough to hit.

[IMG]local://upfiles/300/BE8B20D6EBF043C1B512475D14AB4220.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/300/7622DCD8634F41FAA6937C42653A3B17.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/300/229B160713D04BF8831FC487B107224E.jpg[/IMG]

RE: Broken Hood Latch, passenger side
 

Dave,

Many thanks for the info! My wife and I both are happy over this one. :) [sm=burnout.gif]

I was headed out to replace the A/C pump (worn out), and hit this hood snag. The cable didnt break, but instead the collar that holds the cable in place broke. No biggie.. I will replace that old crossover pull cable and be done with it.

Our - Vette is an 81, T tops, 4 speed, pretty good shape. Occasional bug with switches, etc that are typical for aging cars.
It's pretty much stock except the engine, which was replaced with a GM 350 HO deluxe crate motor. Boy did that breathe some life into this beast. I get my biggest kick out of watching my wife have fun with what's really her first hot-rod...

The rear axle ratio is currently 2.73 (blah!!) (stock for that year). They call 3.08 (for that year) a 'performance' ratio... uhh...ok.. LOL... If you do the math, experiment with some gear ratios with a spreadsheet... it looks like a set of 3.55's oughta give Mamma bear one hell of a kick when she mashes the gas. We'll probably replace the rear diff with one of those rebuilt rear diffs with the 3.55's and go from there....

Dave - thanks again for the info - that was a huge help.

Ken/Kim Hunter