Help needed! Hood won’t unlatch and only distilled water in my engine at this time

[bcolins]

I’ve been rebuilding my cooling system from oil contamination issues and had finally got to the point of just flushing with pure distilled water prior to adding antifreeze. In the process, I also decided to try and get my driver side hood latch functioning as it has not latched since I bought this car about a month ago. I removed and lubricated the latch and checked it and it seemed to be operating properly, reinstalled it, and then adjusted the hood mounted latch loop down two turns thinking that would likely improve the latch function. I closed the hood and it latched on both sides and released properly from inside. I closed it again and it latched on both sides but now it will not release on the driver side. I jacked the car up, removed the left front wheel pulled the cable junction box apart and the driver side latch release cable and ball end were still intact as they should be. I pulled on the ball end with a vice grip, tried smacking the vice grip with a rubber mallet, and just simply lifting the vice grip and cable up and then snapping it down in an effort to release the latch. All to no avail. I pulled the fender liner out to see if there might be direct access to the latch above the fender liner, and as far as I can see there is not.

Any suggestions??? I have nothing but pure distilled water in my cooling system at this time and am expecting will have yet another hard freezer soon.

 

[bcolins]

I am actually considering destroying my hood with an angle grinder to get to the latch, which will of course require a new hood and paint work

 

[Scooba_Steve]

I am actually considering destroying my hood with an angle grinder to get to the latch, which will of course require a new hood and paint work

The latches are secured with side bolts. So you might be able to get to them with the bonnet down and some more disassembling.

 

[ed80]

Can't help with the hood latch problem, but you should be able to drain the block from below if you remove the splash shield and the reinforcement plate. The drain plug is under the exhaust manifold. That will at least prevent the block from cracking if you get a hard freeze.

 

[bcolins]

That is good to know…thanks!

 

[ed80]

I'd also find a friend to lean or sit on the top of the bonnet on that corner while you try to unlatch it. It may just be enough pressure relief to allow the latch to come undone.

 

[bcolins]

Forgot to mention that the first thing I tried was having a friend pull on the lever while I pressed down in the hood and that corner first lightly then aggressively.

 

[x-driver]

Is there access through the kidney grille?

 

[bcolins]

I got it sorted out. A local CCA member (Facebook page) went out to check where the latch was under his hood,....and gave me some measurements. I was thinking the latch was much farther back near the strut tower,.......its actually just above and behind the headlight housing, and accessible through the headlight access panel. AND the cable I was pulling on,....that I thought was running back to the driver side latch,....was actually the cable that went to the inside hood release. DOH!!!!

I had actually driven 120 miles on Sunday to grab a silver hood off another car,....in case I had to cut a hole in my hood. Fortunately, the hood turned out to be a Center latch hood,.....so I did not buy it.

 

[x-driver]

The hood itself has the same part number for both preLCI (center latch) and LCI (dual latch) cars I can't tell right now if the locks are simply interchangeable, but they might be.
But luckily you didn't need one at all