Hood Hinge Question

[DrppdBlazr]

why wont the 81-87 Hood hinges work with the 73-80 hoods? Im sure thats been asked before but I couldnt find answer after searching.

[cory d]

they arent at all similar. 73-80 mounts to the fender, 81 mounts to the fire wall i believe. 81+ hoods are shorter too

[DrppdBlazr]

ahh i see. why couldnt you just modify it to work on older trucks..is the hood to long for the 81 hinges to handle.

[ray_mcavoy]

I don't think it's so much as the 81-up hinges wouldn't be able to handle the extra hood length as it is a geometry issue.

Much of the extra length on a 73-80 hood is back towards the windshield (where the 81-up trucks have a separate bolt-on cowl panel). The scissor type 73-80 hinges actually cause the back edge of the hood to lift up a bit (and the hood to move forward a bit) as it's opened.

The 81-up hinges are just a simple pivot and if you were to put them in the stock 81-up location on the cowl (either by using an 81-up cab or cutting the cowl on a 73-80 cab) I think the back edge of a 73-80 hood would be overhanging back behind the hinge pivots. That would cause that rear overhanging part of the hood to move down (as the front is lifted) and it would likely hit/bind on the cowl at the base of the windshield before you'd get the front open very high.