Can someone with only meager abilities and a cordless drill do it? The hood latch on Subarust screwed up again while prepping for the rallycross Saturday. I used a bungee cord thru the hood latch part to the tow hook spot under the car for the event and commute. Tech didn't hassle me too much thankfully...
I have a decent garage I can take it to, but it doesn't sound difficult. Mostly lining up the pins with the hole in the hood?
Finding the best place for the pins is the hard part- then you pretty much just drill holes in stuff. You should be fine.
Google and/ or YouTube
you can do it
Very easy to do, but also very easy to do poorly.
I did it on my Mustang just after having a new hood custom painted and installed. Scary as hell but turned out good. I decided where I wanted the pins in the hood (which was different than where all the premade brackets put them) and measured everything about 10 times. Made some simple mild steel brackets out of flat 1/8" plate that mounted to existing bolt holes on the top of the radiator supports and extended to the place I wanted the pins. With brackets in place I installed the hood pins and topped them with white paint, then closed the hood until it hit the pins. This marked the exact center of the pin for drill through. Drill from BOTTOM UP with a tiny drill bit, then tape off the topside to protect the paint and drill DOWN with a big unibit to make the right size holes. Install the trim plates on the outside around the new hood pins before removing the protective tape. Ask me how I know that one.
Here's a link to a thread I did with full photo write-up: http://www.allfordmustangs.com/forums/2005-2010-mustang-gt-tech/74438-2005-mustang-gt-hood-pin-install.html#post610684
Its not hard, but can be tricky. Most important thing is to figure out where to put the pins, and you need to consider not just where to mount the pins but also where on the hood itself the pins would pass through given that pin mounting location. Consider how whatever plate you have for the hood, and its screw etc. holes, would line up with the stiffening material in the hood. Measure/lay out 6 times, cut once.
On the Chumpcar I found a good place on the core support for the pins. Then I shut the hood hard enough for the pins to leave dents. After that, I just drilled out the dents. Easy peasy.
I might take more care on a non-500 buck car but it worked really well.
It's not a Chumpcar but it is Subarust (not the Abarth), so I kinda like the dent idea, or paint-on-top-of-pin idea. Sounds like I could find the spot on the radiator support for the pins first, then use that to do the holes in the hood.
Not afraid at all to drill me some holes. I just don't want to end up with swiss cheese effects. ...although extra air cooling! I'm guessing the garage, even being SCCA owned and friend, would probably be at least an hour labor.
So any links to any particularly good hood pins for purchase? Saturday showed me there's a few different styles out there. I tend to pay middle of the road, not the cheapest crap but not the top-dollar either. And I prefer to reap the rewards of other's mistakes when possible!
Peel & stick:
Aerolatches are very, very nice for things you care about how they look.
Quicklatch is a nice middle ground that doesn't have hood pins to lose/tie in place with aircraft cable.
Otherwise the generic through the hood pin stuff is all more or less the same. The pins and covers, etc will rust as the coatings all wear off after a few miles of abuse with salt/dirt/water/vibrations, yada yada. So plan on basically cleaning and lubricating them whenever possible.
I used the Ford Racing Stainless set for the Mustang. I think they were like $25 or something. No issues other than the tiny screws that hold on the scuff plates were absolute crap. Still running them 7 years later with zero problems or attention.
Here they are. Either my memory's bad or they've gone up $10: http://www.americanmuscle.com/fordracing-hood-pin-kit.html?utm_content=Exterior+-+Other%7CFord+Racing&utm_campaign=79-04%20Years&utm_source=Google-pla&utm_medium=Shopping&utm_term=%7Bkeyword%7D&AMID=fordracing-hood-pin-kit-GSBasicFitmentV1&year=1989&T5_Var3=blue
Easiest option for drilling the holes in the hood is to put masking tape on the fenders and stretch a string across between them with the hood open. Mark the masking tape where the string goes, and measure from each side in to where the pin goes. Remove string, shut hood, set string up again and mark the hood.
I usually figure out where I want the pins to be under the hood, sling the string, and drill the hood and pin mounting pilot holes all at once. This ensures they are in line, and if I need to adjust a bit as I enlarge the holes I just do the same to both holes.
Raise the hood
Bolt pins somewhere convenient
Drop hood on pins with a bang
Drill out dents
For extra grass rootiness use 3/8 inch bolts and drill a hole through the end for some wire
logdog wrote: On the Chumpcar I found a good place on the core support for the pins. Then I shut the hood hard enough for the pins to leave dents. After that, I just drilled out the dents. Easy peasy. I might take more care on a non-500 buck car but it worked really well.
this is the best method.
And it's a hell of a lot easier on a conventional hood (like an impreza) than on an e30 hood where you have to compensate for it "sliding forward" to close after you put it down (and cut away some inner hood frame so it can slide to the hole).
btw, I just use some cheap ebay ones. They've held up fine to 2 years of rallycross. We use the same ones on our Chumpcar and on the stage rally car I crew for. I wouldn't pay for the high-dollar ones that do exactly the same thing, IMO.
we use this style and they work well
http://www.ebay.com/itm/UNIVERSAL-RACING-Sport-Car-Aluminum-Mount-Bonnet-Flip-Over-Hood-Latch-Pin-Kit-/251926695320?var=&hash=item3aa8004d98&vxp=mtr
In reply to XLR99:
I hope that is an example of what not to do. Imagine unthreading those nuts every time you need to open the hood.
Most cars have rubber bumpers which bolt to a flat spot on the hood, and land on a flat spot on the radiator support (or vice versa). This is usually a good place for the pins.
In reply to irish44j:
Thanks for the link! Just bought, if I'm lucky I have a project for Labor Day.
Remove the rubber bumpers in the hood/radiator support and install the pins. Drop the hood on the pins and drill out the dents. Pop rivit the chrome cover to the hood and slip the picture wire under one of the rivits to attach the key so you wont loose it in the future. Done
If you don't want to dent the hood, put some silly putty underneath the hood to see where the pins touch, mark with a punch, and drill the holes.
EvanB wrote: In reply to XLR99: I hope that is an example of what not to do. Imagine unthreading those nuts every time you need to open the hood.
Everyone else had all kinds of helpful real-world advice, so I was a bit disappointed that this was the best 'how not to drill hood pins' that I could find.
In reply to mightymike:
Also a good suggestion, thanks.
here's amazon links to the style that josh (irish44j) has:
black http://www.amazon.com/Universal-Aluminum-Alloy-Bonnet-Black/dp/B00E59ABY2/ref=sr_1_20?ie=UTF8&qid=1441208109&sr=8-20&keywords=hood+pins
pink(red) http://www.amazon.com/Universal-Aluminum-Clasp-Hood-Fiberglass/dp/B00967HR0Y/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1441207348&sr=8-12&keywords=hood+pins
anyone have a recommendation for a locking set? it's hard to ignore the value above, but I'll occasionally park the car on the street in the city and would welcome the extra bit of security.
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