Hood latch on '69T; how to tighten down?

[raspritz]

I'm restoring a '69T. Body/frame work is complete. In sorting the hood, I've replaced the hinge pistons and rebuilt and reinstalled the latch mechanism. The hood closes and opens fine. However, it does not latch all the way down; though it latches closed, it pops back up a good 1/4 inch. I thought maybe the central pin of the 'male' part of the latching mechanism could be screwed in farther to cinch it down, but the pin appears to be in as far as it will go. How do I make the hood close more tightly?

Thanks,

Rich

[76911S]

My first guess based on your description is that you have the plunger screwed in too far and it is not engaging with the latch and only the release lever is catching. I would remove the upper catch assembly and make sure the hood is sitting correctly on the seal and rubber bump stops, make sure it seems level with fenders etc. Then reinstall catch and check alignment with latch before attempting to engage, loosen plunger almost all the way and make small adjustments to get proper engagement.

You might want to check that the latch is working correctly as well by inserting the plunger without it being attached to the hood, it may need greased and or adjusted.

I would also adjust everything without the hood struts attached as they put pressure on the hood and can disguise something out of adjustment.

I spent almost 3 hours the other day just getting my decklid latch adjusted and it does not have a seal. Patience and a clear understanding of how all the parts work together seem to be key.
Mark..

[mike curnow]

This is a really good explanation by 76911S .

[raspritz]

Terrific. I will do exactly that. I'm sure that will help in terms of adjusting the rear decklid latch as well, which I really should do tonight so I can get the car out of my wife's parking spot in the garage and outside under cover (I'm reminded of the camel and the tent, and thus far my wife has been surprisingly tolerant of being outside the tent, metaphorically speaking).

Rich

[classic]

Rich,

Just make sure to put some masking tape over the bottom hole of the latch, and put a dab of paint on the pin.

So as to make sure you have them centered.

Or you'll be back asking how to open a stuck hood

[raspritz]

OK, it was exactly the opposite. The plunger needed to be screwed in much further. All fixed now.

Thanks,

Rich

[NeunElf]

Another thing that can cause the front lid to fail to stay latched is the adjustment of the release cable at the bottom part of the latch.

The mechanism is designed to release the front deck lid if the cable breaks. I think it has two pivot points--with no tension on the cable at all the catch will retract. Get a friend to slowly pull the release knob as you look down into the latch. If the catch piece moves towards the center of the latch hole then there's too much slack in the cable and you need to adjust it, tightening the cable for more latch engagement.

There's a small hole in the receiver through witch you can insert a pin (or a pin punch or an awl, etc.) which might just help hold the latching piece for adjustment.