Bonnet lifting, locking, and adjustment

Catbert

Catbert

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I find the way the engine bonnet stays in place to be a bit strange. The hinge will collaspe in either direction if you are not careful. It doesn't lock into a lifted position, but instead will hold in place when the bonnet is lifted in just the right way so the hinge holds and doesn't move. The bonnet is one heavy piece of sheetmetal. I certainly don't want it to slam shut on its own or worse do so while I am leaning over into the engine bay with my head the first point of contact. Ouch!

I would be much happier if the German engineers included a lift rod to secure the bonnet while opened. Either that or dual lift pistons. So, do we all struggle with this or are my hinges out of adjustment? I tried to tighten the hinges but found that the bolts just rotate in place. They seem secure, but again I find this design to be strange.
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Your lift stops aren't placed correctly. This thread details the same issue you have, along with some pics showing how they should be oriented. The foot of that "L" should sit underneath the hinge. As you open the hood the hinge starts to straighten out and stops when it hits that L. Yours is scraping past that foot, I believe, as it looks like I can see the marks on the paint on the hinge in pic 2 where that foot is scraping. Have an assistant (or piece of wood) hold open the hood at less-than-fully-open position and loosen the two bolts on that L and drop it down towards the engine bay and rotate it towards the center of the hood so that the foot will limit the hinge travel. I can't tell, but it looks like the one on the driver side may be completely broken without any foot on the L. This part isn't the strongest so you want both working correctly.

TG-2002-320i-328ci

Thread 'Floppy Hood (Bonnet) Hinges'

So, I'm actively working on my to-do list of E9 bugs while my car is in "Arizona Summer" mode (garaged until September).

My hood hinges have been an issue for years now. Finding the perfect balance to keep the hood up without a stick of wood is an art form, and frankly, not worth the effort. Even if I get them to hold up on their own they either bend outward at the slightest bump, slamming the hood down, or inward and onto themselves, which could cause damage to the hinge. So, I keep a 3 1/2 foot, one-inch dowel in the trunk at all times.

Any tips to revitalize these hinges and get them...
 
Or try this method….curtesy German E9 forum

Basically you should do this with two people, otherwise you will scratch the whole hood.

Loosely mount the bearing block, torsion bars and tube with struts, but do not mount the end stop yet. Insert the complete stand and screw it tight. Then fix the end stop by turning the struts slightly, which results in a slight pre-tension when open, and then attach the struts to the fender. You have to attach the bonnet stand to the bonnet without tension, as in the first two pictures. Then you have to tension the stand away from the bonnet, approximately at a right angle, bring the stop bracket into position and screw it tight.

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e9Leveque said:
Your lift stops aren't placed correctly. This thread details the same issue you have, along with some pics showing how they should be oriented. The foot of that "L" should sit underneath the hinge. As you open the hood the hinge starts to straighten out and stops when it hits that L. Yours is scraping past that foot, I believe, as it looks like I can see the marks on the paint on the hinge in pic 2 where that foot is scraping. Have an assistant (or piece of wood) hold open the hood at less-than-fully-open position and loosen the two bolts on that L and drop it down towards the engine bay and rotate it towards the center of the hood so that the foot will limit the hinge travel. I can't tell, but it looks like the one on the driver side may be completely broken without any foot on the L. This part isn't the strongest so you want both working correctly.

TG-2002-320i-328ci

Thread 'Floppy Hood (Bonnet) Hinges'

So, I'm actively working on my to-do list of E9 bugs while my car is in "Arizona Summer" mode (garaged until September).

My hood hinges have been an issue for years now. Finding the perfect balance to keep the hood up without a stick of wood is an art form, and frankly, not worth the effort. Even if I get them to hold up on their own they either bend outward at the slightest bump, slamming the hood down, or inward and onto themselves, which could cause damage to the hinge. So, I keep a 3 1/2 foot, one-inch dowel in the trunk at all times.

Any tips to revitalize these hinges and get them...
Click to expand...
Great info! It's good to know that my hinges aren't working as they should.
 
Keshav said:
Or try this method….curtesy German E9 forum

Basically you should do this with two people, otherwise you will scratch the whole hood.

Loosely mount the bearing block, torsion bars and tube with struts, but do not mount the end stop yet. Insert the complete stand and screw it tight. Then fix the end stop by turning the struts slightly, which results in a slight pre-tension when open, and then attach the struts to the fender. You have to attach the bonnet stand to the bonnet without tension, as in the first two pictures. Then you have to tension the stand away from the bonnet, approximately at a right angle, bring the stop bracket into position and screw it tight.

View attachment 227809
View attachment 227810
View attachment 227811
Click to expand...
Thanks! I won't attempt this alone once I completely understand what has to be done to get it right.
 
Keshav said:
Or try this method….curtesy German E9 forum

Basically you should do this with two people, otherwise you will scratch the whole hood.

Loosely mount the bearing block, torsion bars and tube with struts, but do not mount the end stop yet. Insert the complete stand and screw it tight. Then fix the end stop by turning the struts slightly, which results in a slight pre-tension when open, and then attach the struts to the fender. You have to attach the bonnet stand to the bonnet without tension, as in the first two pictures. Then you have to tension the stand away from the bonnet, approximately at a right angle, bring the stop bracket into position and screw it tight.

View attachment 227809
View attachment 227810
View attachment 227811
Click to expand...
BTW, what is the German E9 forum site? With google translate at least good to know that there's another place I could look for some esoteric questions...
 
e9Leveque said:
Your lift stops aren't placed correctly. This thread details the same issue you have, along with some pics showing how they should be oriented. The foot of that "L" should sit underneath the hinge. As you open the hood the hinge starts to straighten out and stops when it hits that L. Yours is scraping past that foot, I believe, as it looks like I can see the marks on the paint on the hinge in pic 2 where that foot is scraping. Have an assistant (or piece of wood) hold open the hood at less-than-fully-open position and loosen the two bolts on that L and drop it down towards the engine bay and rotate it towards the center of the hood so that the foot will limit the hinge travel. I can't tell, but it looks like the one on the driver side may be completely broken without any foot on the L. This part isn't the strongest so you want both working correctly.

TG-2002-320i-328ci

Thread 'Floppy Hood (Bonnet) Hinges'

So, I'm actively working on my to-do list of E9 bugs while my car is in "Arizona Summer" mode (garaged until September).

My hood hinges have been an issue for years now. Finding the perfect balance to keep the hood up without a stick of wood is an art form, and frankly, not worth the effort. Even if I get them to hold up on their own they either bend outward at the slightest bump, slamming the hood down, or inward and onto themselves, which could cause damage to the hinge. So, I keep a 3 1/2 foot, one-inch dowel in the trunk at all times.

Any tips to revitalize these hinges and get them...
Click to expand...
Great catch. Yes, the hinges aren't seated right. I also found that the upper bolt on the driver's side hinge doesn't tighten. The bolt or worse the female threads may be stripped. I'll have to look at this carefully. I am super nervous about losening the hindges as the clearance between the front hood lip and the front of the car is maybe 2 mm. :rolleyes:
 
Question... Do the lift stops, the bonnet hinge assembly parts that are not aligned on my car, adjust the hood in any way when losenend or tightened? The gap clearance on the front of the hood is really tight. The thought of it rubbing when I close the hood gives me shivers, although the hood gaps are perfect before I discovered the latching lock problem.
 
I do not think the stops will adjust anything. I have adjusted the hood by loosening the three bolts to the hood on each side leaving one tight as a pivot and then moving the other side up or down as needed, tighten, check and repeat for each side. For height remove grilles and loosen bolts holding the hinges and tap up or down as needed.
 
Last night I assessed the bonnet stop assemblies and two bolts that won't tighten. Well, they're stripped. So, a quick look into my hardware inventory and voila! A perfect match.
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