[Gogi]

Could someone please shed some light on my problem with my 91 SEC's hood realease ? My driver side latch requires extreme pulling to realease. The passenger side releases normally. I've lubed both latches to no avail. I would really rather it not be a cable as that would be a royal PITA. I'm hopeful that one of you guys has successfully adjusted your cable and or latch.

Thanks a million for any ideas.

 

[luckymike]

If you're confident you've lubed everything properly, perhaps the latch is just worn out?

 

[bondavi]

The hood stop might be too high causing pressure against the latch. Lower it some.

 

[281lxm]

Your hinges could be bent or worn, you may need to add or subtract some washers to the latches and they may be different on either side. Do you need to slam this closed? Also, do you raise the hood or just unlatch it and then let it come up easy without force? It can bend if the right hand is dominantly pushing it up.

I had added washers and my hood a year ago and it closed and opened much better(do investigate the cable as they wear out). I changed out my hinges about 2 weeks ago and it is remarkable how my hood opens and closes. Almost a sound like the doors when closing, a controlled thud. Opening is like the trunk, removing the catch and it springs up rather pneumatically after lifting off the catches.

 

[Gogi]

So early this evening I raised the hood and locked the latches and, when pulling on the hood realease handle it is just as hard to unlock as it would be if hood closed.

When locking the mechanism on both sides with a screw driver I noticed that the drivers side had to be pushed down further to engage the lock; does this indicate a worn lock mechanism on the driver side ?

One other question, the hood release cable, is it one piece. When I partially removed the locking mechanism and was feeling around blindly in there it seemed the cable was attached to the left side lock then Continued to the right side lock.

Oh and thanks for all the responses.

 

[GreenT]

Reading the tittle I thought the thread was about one of those episodes where someone used viagra and ended up in the hospital.

Glad you're ok, gogi. :thumbsup:

 

[Gogi]

Old English saying, "Why so hard as, the Lady said to the Bishop"

Green it sounds like you're talking from experience. Lol

I think the latch/lock is worn, as was suggested in the first response. What do you all think.

 

[281lxm]

The cable is one until it gets to the locking mechanisms then becomes to extend to the right side (LHD). The cables wear out more than the latches. 20 bux at FCP Euro. You can adjust the tension on the unit near the fuse box.

If you replace the cable, unscrew the hinges and clean all the old and replace with new grease. You can see the wear and replace as needed. Cables fray and bind over time. Also, the first release is harder since it holds the most - one cable two latches..

 

[Tom Kaiser]

The cable is one until it gets to the locking mechanisms then becomes to extend to the right side (LHD). The cables wear out more than the latches. 20 bux at FCP Euro. You can adjust the tension on the unit near the fuse box.

If you replace the cable, unscrew the hinges and clean all the old and replace with new grease. You can see the wear and replace as needed. Cables fray and bind over time. Also, the first release is harder since it holds the most - one cable two latches..

Is there anythings special that I need to know about removing the two latches. They are caked with grease and I want to clean them up today. The hood doesn't close to my satisfaction so I need to make adjustments. The driver side sometimes does not lock down without extra force when shutting. What advice can you offer? TIA -Tom

 

[281lxm]

yes - 88-320 in the FSM lets you know exactly. Loosen the adjustment of the cable to relieve tension first. The rest is quite simple.

An add on comment - after you replace cleaned latches and attach the cable, add two flat washers to the DS latch on the hood itself, one on each side. You are lengthening the hood latch to account for wear of the mechanism you just cleaned. Mine took only one on each side to catch sooner, you may need more so have a few. Adjusting the stop after you are done may be required but we are talking about fractions of MM here with washers.

 

[flosshilde]

Is the release handle loose from the mounting to the firewall? I had this problem with my 500 and found that the PO had been trying to fix it for over a year. I just replaced it .

 

[Tom Kaiser]

yes - 88-320 in the FSM lets you know exactly. Loosen the adjustment of the cable to relieve tension first. The rest is quite simple.

An add on comment - after you replace cleaned latches and attach the cable, add two flat washers to the DS latch on the hood itself, one on each side. You are lengthening the hood latch to account for wear of the mechanism you just cleaned. Mine took only one on each side to catch sooner, you may need more so have a few. Adjusting the stop after you are done may be required but we are talking about fractions of MM here with washers.

I thoroughly cleaned out the old grease from both latches. Then I lubricated them and they are now re-installed. The hood opens easier but not effortlessly. When I lower the hood to a few inches above the body and let it fall it locks into place (most of the time). The left side (driver) doesn't always lock. I adjusted the hood height pins on both sides and improved the situation but again, not perfect. Today I am going to try adding washers as you suggest and see if I can get things perfect.
As a side note: I looked up the cost of the two latches and just about fell out of my chair. The two new, MB discounted parts, cost $1,000. Yes, they are much less expensive on eBay. This absolutely convinced me that I will completely disassemble my parts car next Spring and keep everything in storage. I plan to get every wiring harness, latch, pump, etc. possible removed, cleaned, then labeled and stored. I am looking forward to that project.

 

[281lxm]

Very good Tom. The little U bracket on the hood will be the fix with a few washers.

As for the parts car, really if you can do that you should. Getting the hinges for the hood saved my bacon. It is those types of things that you feel very smart about 3 years later when you need it. Best 800 ever spent was a parts car.

 

[Gogi]

Late update

I special ordered and got a new hood cable from my local dealer. I took a good look at the new cable and worked out that I could fix the latch instead of replacing the cable by shortening the distance where cable goes through the D/side latch to the passenger side latch.

It worked flawlessly and I’m happier than a rooster in a hen house!!