I bought my FD blown and in rough condition. After rebuilding the engine and getting it running in top condition again, I had it completely stripped and repainted professionally, as well as putting on rims and aftermarket body parts. Among them was a CF vented hood. After getting it back, I drove it around town a day or so, noting that the fitment of the hood wasn't so good and it needed hoodpins behind the headlights to hold from vibrating at speed (one corner lifted about 1/4" at speed).

I parked it in the garage that night planning to get hoodpins the following day, and while I was working on something else some friends came over to see the new paint. During their visit, he asked to see the enginebay, so I told him to go ahead and look, since my hands were full, I didnt think anything about it.

Fast foward to the next day, when I take the car out to go get my hood pins. I get out onto the main 4 lane and drive slow until the car comes up to temp, then I increase speed to just over 50mph, at which point the hood shutters and promptly flies up, busting my windshield all to hell. I pull off safely and try to figure out what happened...the latch was still intact on the hood and the car. I lowered the hood back down and it latched perfectly. I raised the headlights and tried to pull up on the hood and it wouldn't budge. So wtf happened? Then it hit me...my dickbeater friend must have not latched the hood all the way. It appeared to be down, but hadn't completely clicked shut.

The hood sustained minor damage, and I just left it in place...installed my hoodpins and a new windshield, and life was good. I kept the stock center latch too, so I had 2 pins (the type that stay on the hood, and cannot be lost or forgotten) and the stock latch.

Fast foward to the end of last summer. I had a lot of work at the time, and there was a big car show about an hour from here. ONe of my other good friends wanted me to show my car, but I couldnt go to the show, so he offered to take it and show it. Since we'd driven each other's cars before, I didnt think twice about it, and let him take it. SO, the next day, he brings it back, and is noticeably disturbed. HE tells me that my hood came up while driving. After asking how the **** that was possible, he explained that he was showing my engine bay to one of his friends and somehow got distracted, and let the hood down, but not latched...none of it. Not the stock centerlatch, or the 2 hoodpins which are bolted to the top of the hood, and actually rattle when left loose. This time, it didnt hurt the windshield, but it caused more severe damage to the hood...it was still useable, though, but it obviously had a big crack in it.

Not long after my twins died, and the car was off the road all fall and winter. This week I finally get my single conversion and new engine installed, and get the bugs ironed out. I put the broken hood back on, since the stocker won't fit with the hoodpins installed, and this one still doesn't look all that bad. When I go to raise the hood back up after driving it, the latch won't release. I was able to reach up through the front bumper opening and grab the cable which released it. I found that the cable end which is plastic had broken. So, I remove the latch altogether, thinking that the hoodpins will do a fine job of holding the hood down. This is an evil omen, though it had no actual effect on the events to come.

I wash the car really well and clean it up, and I raise the hood to polish the IC core and pipes (smic), not thinking anything about it (I see a pattern here). I go in the garage to get some things, during this time I hear a loud noise outside. I walk back out to see that a big *** gust of wind has come from nowhere and blown the hood backwards, off the prop rod, into the windshield, and busted the **** out of the windshield.

I think it is not meant for my car to have a vented hood, or a windshield.

I have prepared myself for the flaming and mockery soon to come in this thread...

 

get some hood dampeners and you will never have this problem.

 

Also i would suggest you get some friends with enough brains to secure the hood properly in future. I would have bitch slapped both those guys and they would have been getting me new hoods at their expense.

Real friends pay for their fuckups on this side of the world.

Good story though

 

Both "friends" did agree to pay for the damage caused at the time. However, the first one has never come back around, not even once. I think he fears that I will kick his *** (he was not present when the hood came up as a result of his actions). The second guy I still talk to, though he left for college about 1-2 weeks after that incident. He never sent me any money, but did manage to send me some t2 parts to put towards the screwup..about $100 worth.

And what exactly are "hood dampeners"?

 

http://www.rotaryextreme.com/fdindex.html

I don't really see them helping the problem?! The hood has been thrown up with MANY cars that don't have hood pins installed. Most aftermarket hoods say to install them for safety.

-Alex

 

wow, i hate to say but i actually laughed at the end with that gust of wind.. :o

just unreal..

sorry to hear about the unfortunate events though

 

Your FD is mad because you let your dizo friends touch her. She only wants you. Consider it a good thing on her part.

 

Ah, what the hell...it's just MONEY, right?

 

well, as the hood flies back, the dampners will decrease the speed of it flying back, and will eventually lock back and prevent the hood from lopping off into the windshield.

also kevin, your story is so rediculous with your bad luck its funny as hell

 

If you was on the highway and it flew up, I don't really see the dampners decreasing the speed enough to not cause damage. With how his luck is going, he'd spend the money on them, and then if it happened again, it'd screw up his windsheild, hood, and the new dampners he just bought! Sorry to hear about all the problems though!!

-Alex

 

yeah seriously now that i think about it with his luck, he could bolt his hood onto the car and the thing would probably still manage to fly off and maul his windshield

the only solution?

revert to the stock hood.

 

why dont you go ahead and sell the hood to wes? you know how much he wants it. just talk him into buying it and not spending money on the woman for that week.....

 

IN my defense, even a stock hood would have come off the hood prop with the wind tonight...seems the stock hinges are made so thin/lightweight, they offer no resistance to backward movement. In contrast, I've parted out tens (or probably hundreds) of FC's, and since FC steel hoods aren't worth anything, I usually leave them on the car. To get the engine out quickly, I just sling the hood back against the windshield rather than take time to remove it and then try to stuff it into the hatch. And I usually have to climb up and use my weight and foot to force the hood backwards, the hinges are so strong.

 

that's unbelievable...

for the last one...the stock hood prop is bent at the end to prevent the hood from being blown backwards it catches the hood after about 1/2 inch of movement

 

I am using the stock prop rod. The hole in the CF hood is the same as the hole in the stock hood. Guess that's just my luck. The wind happened to blow exactly into the direction of my car, as well. It's one of those things that couldnt happen again in 100 attempts.

 

holy sh*t that's one hell of story. i think ur right ur car just hates cf hoods

good luck with whichever hood u choose to use

 

Take the hint the car is giving you and get a new hood

good story

 

No further needs to be said...you are subject matter expert and hood damage professional.

 

you don't need a hood....... don't all the backwood race cars down there run without them?

 

awww man i felt bad about reading that story lol

better luck with your next hood/windhsield !!!

 

I'm sorry to hear that. But I must say, it was pretty funny when you finished your story with a "gust of wind" at the end.

 

What do you tell a Seven owner that had it hood fly up 3 times?

Nothing he's obviously not changing the hood !

 

I don't get it...

but as long as it made you laugh, that's okay

 

Like I said if you purchase a new hood or keep and repair the old hood just buy some hood dampeners and that will keep it from swaying back too quick and it will stop it before it reaches the windshield...

 

not so yanni. . . while at a tuning event in birmingham, one of the cars there. . . a very nice one i might add. . . had its hood pushed back by a gust of wind. it was stock with a scoop built in. . . he did it himself. anyways, it was a nice hood and pretty much stock. . . using the stock prop.

man, thats just too bad kevin!!!! i dont know if id be able to deal with it if that kept on happening to me!!!! i get freaked out when the smallest thing goes wrong and threated to sell the car!!!! hahahaha

paul