Hood Latch Help - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

mechanixman · 02-04-2013, 10:43 PM

I'm having problems with closing my hood all the way.
When I close it, both locks "click", then when I step back, the hood pops up to the 2nd latch.
It seems like the cone shaped hood latch bolt doesn't go far enough to lock into place.

Has anyone else had such a problem?
How do you fix it? Just unscrew the bolt till it latches on correctly?
Thanks

mr48chev · 02-04-2013, 11:46 PM

That and make sure that the the latch isn't beat up and not closing.

A lot of ham handed guys never quite figured out that you can't slam the hoods on an AD truck and expect it to close. You have to close it with the safety catch held so it goes in it's hole and then push the hood down to close it. That causes problems similar to the ones in the following photos of a hood latch in my batch of hood latches that has been pretty well beat to death.

You can see that the latch doesn't close all the way and that the metal on the side of the latch is split and the piece is pushed down from the latch pin being slammed on it in the past.

Here you can see it after I took a hammer and punch to it and pushed the metal back close to where it should be.

Now you can see that the latch goes all the way closed but the latch it's self still needs a lot of work and some welding before it is usable.

I've seen a lot of them that were worse than that one as they really got abused over the years but that is one thing to check and correct before going to the next step which is adjusting the screw. It has a jam nut on it that you have to loosen and then turn the pin with a screw driver.

mechanixman · 02-04-2013, 11:51 PM

Mine doesn't seem bad at all. When I first got it home I was looking at the latch. And everything looks fine. I played with the release, and everything looks fine. I'll post some pictures when I get the chance.

mr48chev · 02-05-2013, 12:03 AM

It may just not be adjusted right then. Does the hood look like it has been on the truck all the time or has it been replaced?

Probably the best thing is to screw the latch screw/pin out several turns and when the hood latches and stays figure out how much you need to turn it back in to have it set right.

mechanixman · 02-05-2013, 12:53 AM

Thanks for the advice!
The hood is original, and it doesn't look like it has been removed.
I just wanted to double check before I screwed anything up.
Thanks

02-04-2013, 10:43 PM	#1
mechanixman Registered User Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Mt. Prospect, ILL Posts: 820	Hood Latch Help I'm having problems with closing my hood all the way. When I close it, both locks "click", then when I step back, the hood pops up to the 2nd latch. It seems like the cone shaped hood latch bolt doesn't go far enough to lock into place. Has anyone else had such a problem? How do you fix it? Just unscrew the bolt till it latches on correctly? Thanks __________________ -Nick Projects: 1952 Chevy 1 ton = The Build page

02-04-2013, 11:46 PM	#2
mr48chev Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toppenish, WA Posts: 15,406	Re: Hood Latch Help That and make sure that the the latch isn't beat up and not closing. A lot of ham handed guys never quite figured out that you can't slam the hoods on an AD truck and expect it to close. You have to close it with the safety catch held so it goes in it's hole and then push the hood down to close it. That causes problems similar to the ones in the following photos of a hood latch in my batch of hood latches that has been pretty well beat to death. You can see that the latch doesn't close all the way and that the metal on the side of the latch is split and the piece is pushed down from the latch pin being slammed on it in the past. Here you can see it after I took a hammer and punch to it and pushed the metal back close to where it should be. Now you can see that the latch goes all the way closed but the latch it's self still needs a lot of work and some welding before it is usable. I've seen a lot of them that were worse than that one as they really got abused over the years but that is one thing to check and correct before going to the next step which is adjusting the screw. It has a jam nut on it that you have to loosen and then turn the pin with a screw driver. __________________ Founding member of the too many projects, too little time and money club. My ongoing truck projects: 48 Chev 3100 that will run a 292 Six. 71 GMC 2500 that is getting a Cad 500 transplant. 77 C 30 dualie, 454, 4 speed with a 10 foot flatbed and hoist. It does the heavy work and hauls the projects around.

02-04-2013, 11:51 PM	#3
mechanixman Registered User Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Mt. Prospect, ILL Posts: 820	Re: Hood Latch Help Mine doesn't seem bad at all. When I first got it home I was looking at the latch. And everything looks fine. I played with the release, and everything looks fine. I'll post some pictures when I get the chance. __________________ -Nick Projects: 1952 Chevy 1 ton = The Build page

02-05-2013, 12:03 AM	#4
mr48chev Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toppenish, WA Posts: 15,406	Re: Hood Latch Help It may just not be adjusted right then. Does the hood look like it has been on the truck all the time or has it been replaced? Probably the best thing is to screw the latch screw/pin out several turns and when the hood latches and stays figure out how much you need to turn it back in to have it set right. __________________ Founding member of the too many projects, too little time and money club. My ongoing truck projects: 48 Chev 3100 that will run a 292 Six. 71 GMC 2500 that is getting a Cad 500 transplant. 77 C 30 dualie, 454, 4 speed with a 10 foot flatbed and hoist. It does the heavy work and hauls the projects around.

02-05-2013, 12:53 AM	#5
mechanixman Registered User Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Mt. Prospect, ILL Posts: 820	Re: Hood Latch Help Thanks for the advice! The hood is original, and it doesn't look like it has been removed. I just wanted to double check before I screwed anything up. Thanks __________________ -Nick Projects: 1952 Chevy 1 ton = The Build page



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