Hood support arm failure.

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gwittman

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Is the failure of a hood support arm a common occurrence at the age of these cars? Yesterday mine broke off near the weld that ties it to the tube the runs under the hood. I took everything apart to see if it can be repaired by welding. Upon inspection of the arm on the other side I found it is cracking and is in the process of failing also.

If this is not a common occurrence then I expect it may become one as these cars get older. I suggest inspecting these arms near that weld area. Welding a crack is much easier than one that has completely broken. I do think mine is salvageable but the tube is not very thick and will take a good welder to repair.
 
gwittman said:
Is the failure of a hood support arm a common occurrence at the age of these cars? Yesterday mine broke off near the weld that ties it to the tube the runs under the hood. I took everything apart to see if it can be repaired by welding. Upon inspection of the arm on the other side I found it is cracking and is in the process of failing also.

If this is not a common occurrence then I expect it may become one as these cars get older. I suggest inspecting these arms near that weld area. Welding a crack is much easier than one that has completely broken. I do think mine is salvageable but the tube is not very thick and will take a good welder to repair.
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+1 i had the same problem, a crack starting on the weld runing on the tube
inspection is good idea, but you can inspect the whole car...
 
gwittman said:
Is the failure of a hood support arm a common occurrence at the age of these cars?
Click to expand...

Yup, it's very common. Those parts are under a lot of stress, and aren't that heavily made.

Note that a completely new assembly, with new springs, is only $130 or so. By the time you weld up your old one, and then have the torsion bars give out in a few months, it's better to just get a new assembly.

Note that you have to pre-load the torsion bars before installing a support assembly.
 
New bars are black and we can show you how to pre-load them as Jay says. They seem to break on driver's side first.
 
I had no idea these bars were still available. I will check with Mesa Performance.

Yes Chris, the driver side broke first with the passenger side not too long to follow. It doesn't look too complicated to pre-load the torsion bars but good advice is always better than trial and error.

Thanks guys for the heads up on not having to weld repair. I thought I knew everything about this car after 32 years of ownership.
 
I welded mine.

I believe it helps to lift the hood as close to the center as possible and not from the corners (which will twist and stress the torsion bar components).

Reinstalling them is always fun.
 
Sven said:
I believe it helps to lift the hood as close to the center as possible and not from the corners (which will twist and stress the torsion bar components).
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Hmm, that's an interesting thought. I agree that lifting the hood from one edge would cause it to twist, displacing the two arms differently, resulting in fatigue. However, just for the sake of debate:

- The hood isn't that flexible. I doubt that it twists very much.
- The arms attach to the hood fairly far down toward its hinge. So the amount of differential movement resulting from hood flex at the point where the arms attach would be minimal.

Reinstalling them is always fun.
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Oh yea, just like root canal surgery!
 
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Mine broke with a loud bang on the passanger side,was cracked on the drivers side.I welded it and re-assembled. It was a real PITA! I would
spend the $130 !!!
Lonny
 
I don't mind a challenge so that would not stop me. However, the pieces of metal inside the tube that hold the short end of the torsion bars are worn considerably. Even though I have access to a machine shop, it would take a lot of work to fabricate these parts. I will happily spend the $130 to by a new replacement.

BTW, mine also broke with a loud bang when I opened the hood. It scared the hell out of me
 
Who sells new ones

My Turkis car came with a broken support (on the passenger side).
I was lucky to find a new, black one, but here in Europe they are NLA. My mechanic in CH had one in his large stock of parts.
Installation was difficult and at times dangerous with so much force on the end arms.
I suppose that we missed the pre load bit....

Who in the US has them for sale?
Thanks,
Peder
 
pmansson said:
....here in Europe they are NLA. ....Who in the US has them for sale?
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I got mine a couple of years ago. At that time, I just walked into Mesa Performance, and asked to buy two new springs. They said "you're crazy - replace the whole assembly while you have things apart". My understanding was that they just order these supports from BMW North America.

They are still shown on the Maximillian Importing website, their current price is $155. See part #1 at: http://bmwmobiletradition-onlinecom...el=3425&mospid=47810&btnr=41_1219&hg=41&fg=35

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$138 at GetBMW parts.com, I still think Max is too expensive. Why do you think he won't list part numbers?
 
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assembly form BMW dealer; 85 euro's, about 1 year ago.

My springs have been welded by the previous owner, I never liked the look of it. So i investigated to replace them one year ago.

The BMW dealer in the netherlands could deliver one for about 85 euro's for the assembly.
In the end, i did not replace them. If it snaps, i know how to solve it and i'll deal with it then and there.

I am now aware of the "big bang theory", so i won't be surprised when it happens; thanks for that !

Erik.
 
eriknetherlands said:
My springs have been welded by the previous owner, I never liked the look of it. So i investigated to replace them one year ago.

The BMW dealer in the netherlands could deliver one for about 85 euro's for the assembly.
In the end, i did not replace them. If it snaps, i know how to solve it and i'll deal with it then and there.

I am now aware of the "big bang theory", so i won't be surprised when it happens; thanks for that !

Erik.
Click to expand...

price now at bmw is 130euro
 
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