WTB: Hinges and spring for hood
- Thread starter SoCalE9
- Start date
hinges
Hi<
Find out on the interchangeable site if they are the same as a 2000cs? If so I believe I have hinges,not sure about spring.
Koopman
Hi<
Find out on the interchangeable site if they are the same as a 2000cs? If so I believe I have hinges,not sure about spring.
Koopman
jmackro
Well-Known Member
The hood torsion bars, tube, and arms are available new as an assembly, and they aren't all that expensive. I bought one a few months back from Mesa Performance for $100+.
I was just going to replace the two torsion bars inside the tube, but Spence advised me to just get the whole assembly. The bars are about $38 each, so by the time I bought two I would have spent most of the price for the whole assembly. And, the welds where the arms attach to the tube tend to fatigue crack, so an old tube-arm piece with a fresh pair of bars is likely to fail from the increased force.
Note that installing these things is sort of an adventure.
I was just going to replace the two torsion bars inside the tube, but Spence advised me to just get the whole assembly. The bars are about $38 each, so by the time I bought two I would have spent most of the price for the whole assembly. And, the welds where the arms attach to the tube tend to fatigue crack, so an old tube-arm piece with a fresh pair of bars is likely to fail from the increased force.
Note that installing these things is sort of an adventure.
Last edited:
jmackro
Well-Known Member
Uh, I didn't even know they had a site. I just walked into their store and talked with them. You might try calling them.
I guess it was a special order, in that it took them a week or so to get it. But, most e9 parts are that way.
I assume that Mesa sources parts like this from BMW, so even your local dealer might be able to order a hood torsion bar assembly. But the guys at Mesa are way more knowledgable about e9 parts than your typical dealer parts counter guy.
nashvillecat
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For part numbers and suggested retail prices try this: http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=7011&mospid=47806&btnr=41_1219&hg=41&fg=35 I have also dealt with Mesa over the years and found them most helpful.
nashvillecat
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I experienced a broken weld and considered going with the gas struts as you described. I recall seeing an E3 which had a hood prop consisting of one gas strut, but did not carefully examine the setup to form an intelligent opinion about it. In my case, even though I had available two gas struts, I was unsure about where to mount them and whether they were of sufficient length. I was also concerned about enough clearance for the hood to properly close. So, I ultimately rewelded the fatigued metal.
Because this is bound to reoccur, could you please explain exactly where and how you mounted the gas hood support struts?
Thank you.
Gas struts to replace tube and hinges
My first attempt at attaching JPGs, so I hope they show alright.
A guy with a mobile strut supply and regassing service supplied the struts, helped me judge the mounting points and, after fitting, pressurised the struts the right amount. For that and regassing the eight seat struts on my E28 he charged about $240.
I used a strut on each side. The pin on the hood is screwed into the forward hole of the hinge mount bracket. If the thread doesn't hold, you can get a nut and washer inside the bracket.
The pin on the inner wing/wheel arch surface is as shown, with a washer underneath to spread the load. We used a slightly angled fitting on that end of the strut and located the pin by peeping under the almost-closed hood to see where the strut end sat, also bearing in mind the required open angle of the hood. The location was chosen to get the mounting such that, once the hood is almost shut, the strut goes 'over centre' and acts to hold the hood shut. I don't see any metal flexing when I open and shut the hood, so don't have any concerns about cracking the body metal.
The open strut length is 585mm from mounting centre to centre.
Despite my claim to prefer originality, you'll see Pertronix wires, fused relays, and battery moved elsewhere.
My first attempt at attaching JPGs, so I hope they show alright.
A guy with a mobile strut supply and regassing service supplied the struts, helped me judge the mounting points and, after fitting, pressurised the struts the right amount. For that and regassing the eight seat struts on my E28 he charged about $240.
I used a strut on each side. The pin on the hood is screwed into the forward hole of the hinge mount bracket. If the thread doesn't hold, you can get a nut and washer inside the bracket.
The pin on the inner wing/wheel arch surface is as shown, with a washer underneath to spread the load. We used a slightly angled fitting on that end of the strut and located the pin by peeping under the almost-closed hood to see where the strut end sat, also bearing in mind the required open angle of the hood. The location was chosen to get the mounting such that, once the hood is almost shut, the strut goes 'over centre' and acts to hold the hood shut. I don't see any metal flexing when I open and shut the hood, so don't have any concerns about cracking the body metal.
The open strut length is 585mm from mounting centre to centre.
Despite my claim to prefer originality, you'll see Pertronix wires, fused relays, and battery moved elsewhere.
