Hood Latch Problem
 

My hood latch on my 72 GTO never wants to fully release. It pops and then I have to stick my hand through the scope and pull the latch back and pull up the hood.

When closing I have to make sure the lever is pushed back up and the latch is sticking out, normally I have to pull it out. Then half the time it doesn't latch and I have to start over.

At first I thought it was because of two springs so I removed one and it still acts stupid.

Any of you guys have any experience with funny acting hood latch on 71 72 Endro front ends. Thanks

Hard to believe no has had a hood latch problem or has any advise on how I might fix it. But it has only been a day

I don't have a '72, but my '70 is pretty much the same thing. To open the hood, you have to pull the hood release rod forward, the hood will pop a little, then you reach under the hood, lower the hood just a little and pull forward and hold onto the release rod while lifting the hood up.

Essentially, the hood latch is a two stage mechanism as a safety against the hood blowing open if it's not entirely closed.

Closing the hood is another matter. The hood should be pushed rearward and only then should you try to close it. The downward movement of the hood should be continued until it latches. Ya gotta slam it. Seriously, it takes a little practice to balance getting it to latch the first time, and too softly to latch properly.

When I first got the car, I used to ease the hood down and push it closed to respect the machine. Unfortunately, when you push it's really easy to introduce dents in the hood where you're pushing.

In your case, I'd suggest lubing up the hood latch so it works smothly with little effort on the release rod.

One other thing that may be happening is the hood may not be hitting the latch at just the right location. If you don't have the hood properly aligned, and your fender gaps are uneven, or the hood isn't aligned with the front of the fenders, you might experiment with making small adjustments to the hood.

If your hood alignment is OK, I'd loosen up the latch a little and try to move it around to a better spot. All you have to do is loosen the three bolts around the latch and you should have a small amount of slop you can work with.

Good luck and let us know. -Matt

I have the same problem with my 71. I don't know what the problem is and never figured it out. The car is being restored now so hopefully I will get it fixed when it goes back together. I was wondering if I was missing some part because the release rod wouldn't retract without pushing it back manually, which doesn't seem right. Tomorrow I will compare it to my 72 Lemans GT with the Endro front and see if they are different.

I had this issue w/a 72 I just bought. There were two problems, first where the rod connects to the latch, one of the tabs was broken off. After I TIG welded it back on, I was still having the same issue.

I solved mine by looking at the mechanism and each piece had just a little wear. When it all added up, it was enough to prevent the secondary latch from clearing. Plus those hoods jump up really fast w/both springs. I solved it by welding a little more material on one of the levers to make it so the secondary moves sooner. You have to be careful not to add too much.

Now my hood opens w/out having issues 90% of the time. When it does get stuck, all I have to do is gently push down and pull the rod to release the secondary.

Good luck w/yours

Well, it has been 11 years since y'all gave good information on the 70-72 hood latch problems. My BaT auction '71 GTO just arrived yesterday from CA to NY. The hood 'pops' OK but I cannot get the secondary to release the hood so that it lifts. Will try your suggestions. Thanks, and in the coming weeks and months, might have a fair number of questions and comments. A special note of 'Praise' for your BaronVonZeppelin, who has been and is, a big part in my GTO search. GameWarden

Here's a related thread..

Stuck Hood and Latch Discussion