Fastening the hood down

[dmclvr]

My DeLorean's hood only fastens in the middle, at the mechanical latch. The two nobs built into the car at the corners of the trunk cavity (near the windshield- Green circles) don't actually fit into the v-notches on the underside of the hood (Yellow circles).

How hard is this to fix?
How does it actually lock into place? Does the v-notch actually bend the rubber nob to fit over it?

[Michael]

They are not supposed to fit, if they do you are in trouble. Those are catches to keep the hood from coming through the front windshield in the event of a collision. The stops do need to be adjusted so the up and down play is out but the only catch is the one in the middle. Once you get that sorted out and the stops adjusted, report back with any fender/hood alignment issues and we can address those if need be.

Judging by the "clean spot" on the underside of the hood, they look to be set correctly.

[dmclvr]

Ok, that sounds not so bad. I've just noticed that the hood doesn't seem to settle down fully when shut. The rear corners seem to sit a quarter inch or so above flush. It's a little concerning to me since recently after heavy rain, I got some moisture in there.

[Michael]

Fixing alignment issues:

http://dmctoday.com/showthread.php?1...Hood+alignment

[Andrew]

Michael is 100% correct. Those little hood catch brackets are your best friend in a front end collision. If you've ever seen a DeLorean that was involved in a front end collision with a buckled hood, those brackets are the reason. Without them your body and head could go their separate ways! They literally are a lifesaver.

[Jonathan]

Ok, that sounds not so bad. I've just noticed that the hood doesn't seem to settle down fully when shut. The rear corners seem to sit a quarter inch or so above flush. It's a little concerning to me since recently after heavy rain, I got some moisture in there.

If the corners are sitting a bit higher than they should be, it could also be that the middle is being pulled down a little too far. You might be able to adjust the latch mechanism up slightly so that when it grabs the hood and locks it down, it isn't so far down and doesn't lead to the corners flaring up.

You can do a similar adjustment with the lower engine cover in the back, except back there you can make the hook extend further or shorter. Up front, I don't believe you can adjust how much the hook extends, but you can manipulate where the receiver end (latch mechanism) sits vertically.

Striker pins do something similar as well with the doors. When the latch grabs the pin into that second click position, if the pin is too far inwards but still close enough for the latch to grab it and lock it, it can suck the door in a little too much and you'll see the door edge not sitting flush with the quarter panels.

[dmclvr]

Thank you, everybody.

[Mike Griese]

This can happen if you open the hood by grabbing the corner of the hood and lifting instead of reaching over and grabbing the center where the catch is. The twisting force from lifting at the corner bends the hood a bit over time.