Hood is stuck and won't open

INeedaDoctor

I've been looking around the whole forum and I can't find any good threads about this issue. When I pull the hood release, only the right side of the hood comes up and the left side doesn't move. After I installed my Stillen intakes, I had a friend close the hood while I started cleaning up. I've read through the forums that you have to drop the hood about 1-2 feet in the air so that the hood catches both the latches. I usually do this, but after the install I wasn't able to get my hood opened. I'm guessing my friend didn't close the hood properly??? Did this happen to anyone else? What did you guys do to solve this problem? I want to know if there's an easy way to fix this before I take it to the dealership. Your help is much appreciated.

SouthArk370Z

You may be able to reach through the grille and release the latch.

Edit: Maybe not - unless you have very small hands and arms. If you're not mechanically inclined, probably a job for the dealer.

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falconfixer

Sounds like it's a good thing to let the dealer mess with but whoever is saying you have to let the hood slam from 2 feet in the air to catch the latch needs their head examined.

Only thing I would do if it was my car and before heading to the dealer is to grab a friend and a pair of vise grips. Latch the vise grips on the hood cable under the dash (assuming you can get to it, I haven't looked) and yank the hell out of that while a friend tries to lift the hood and maybe it'll undo itself.

kenchan

yah, as falcon mentioned above, try taking a pair of pliers and pull the cable from under the dash. you will see the cable if you look up under the hood release lever.

once you get it open see what's causing the latch to bind.

SouthArk370Z

Yep. I let mine drop from 6-8". The few times it didn't latch, a firm push on the the hood did the trick. Except for that time I left the black cap from a spray can on top of the trim piece in front of the radiator.

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kenchan

on these hoods i would rather drop it from about 8-10inches vs pushing it down.

back in the steel hood days i would push down on it after the initial latch.

blackcherry20

Good point guys, was it mentioned if that was tried (pushing the hood all the way , carefully of course) to try to relieve the bind on it?

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falconfixer

This is a good point also! Maybe while you are pulling on the cable have your friend carefully apply downward pressure to alleviate any binding. Maybe you did get something jammed in there that shouldn't be there?

Akbubba47

The problem is the steel cable came off the locking mechanism so pulling it won't help. You need to get your hand in there and release the latch by pressing it to the side (acting like the cable with your finger). I had the same issue when I installed the intakes. However, I tested the hood latches before installing my bumper. If you put your bumper back on already, welllllllll you have yourself an issue.

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falconfixer

Not to thread derail but installing intakes cause the hood lock mechanism to not operate?

INeedaDoctor

I brought the car into my Auto class so my instructor could take a look at it. We tried pulling onto the hood release while he applied downward pressure on the hood and nothing happened :/. I think i might just send it over to the dealer for them to handle it.

MACSIMIZER

If it's not a Nismo just remove the under shroud and you can reach up and get to both latches from underneath and manually release the latch. If it is a Nismo you will have to remove the front bumper cover with an upholstery tool to remove the upper clips and then remove the rest of the front cover retaining hardware the normal way. Once the front bumper is off you can access the latches on the Nismo.

Passenger side latch with under shroud removed:


Driver side:

INeedaDoctor

I think I'll give that a try before I contact the dealership. Thanks for the help! It's greatly appreciated!

forza370z

Aha, google search helped me find this... I have the exactly same problem but after installing the radiator assembly. I am curious how you resolved this problem at the end and what's the cause?

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forza370z

Unfortunately I have a nismo. I don't think I can take off the bumper to reach the latch. However, If I can jack up the car, I can take off the nismo front diffuser and the undertray. That might get me the access to the latch.

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09 PW 370z Nismo | K&N Drop Ins | HKS Hi Power | Berk HFCs | Work Meister S1 3P | Project Kics R40 Neo Chrome Lug Nuts | KW V1 | SPC rear camber arms/toe bolts | Southbend Stage 3 daily clutch | Southband 19Ib Steel Flywheel | ZSpeed CSC