Hood alignment (front) on my '68
01-14-2013, 12:55 PM
#1
Racer
Thread Starter
Hood alignment (front) on my '68
The hood closes and latches, and the height is good on the backside. I'm positive this isn't an original hood. The front of the hood is too high, and the sides of the hood stick up about 3'4" too far. I don't see anyway to adjust the front of the hood height-wise. Help!
01-14-2013, 03:04 PM
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The hood closes and latches, and the height is good on the backside. I'm positive this isn't an original hood. The front of the hood is too high, and the sides of the hood stick up about 3'4" too far. I don't see anyway to adjust the front of the hood height-wise. Help!
Miles
01-14-2013, 03:26 PM
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Hi dkd,
Did THIS hood fit well before you took it off?
Can you see if there's anything odd going on where the hood hinges bolt to the inner fenders and metal supports.
Can you see anything odd where the hinges bolt to the hood?
Here's a typical hinge from above and below. Does yours look different than this?
Regards,
Alan
Did THIS hood fit well before you took it off?
Can you see if there's anything odd going on where the hood hinges bolt to the inner fenders and metal supports.
Can you see anything odd where the hinges bolt to the hood?
Here's a typical hinge from above and below. Does yours look different than this?
Regards,
Alan
01-14-2013, 03:48 PM
#4
Melting Slicks
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You can shim the hinges up if the hood is too low, but if it is too high and there are no shims present, that's a much more difficult situation to address.
When I was putting my '68 back together after the repaint I noticed that I could affect how well the edge of the hood matched the contour of the fenders by adjusting the shim height of my radiator core support. This is the main forward support for the front clip attachment to the frame. I was surprised at how much a small change here could affect the overall hood fit because of the flexibility of the front end. You will have to loosen the bumper supports before you can play with this. I wouldn't expect this adjustment to change if your hood fit well at one time and you had never messed with the core support or the shims.
When I was putting my '68 back together after the repaint I noticed that I could affect how well the edge of the hood matched the contour of the fenders by adjusting the shim height of my radiator core support. This is the main forward support for the front clip attachment to the frame. I was surprised at how much a small change here could affect the overall hood fit because of the flexibility of the front end. You will have to loosen the bumper supports before you can play with this. I wouldn't expect this adjustment to change if your hood fit well at one time and you had never messed with the core support or the shims.
01-14-2013, 05:07 PM
#5
Racer
Thread Starter
Hi dkd,
Did THIS hood fit well before you took it off?
Can you see if there's anything odd going on where the hood hinges bolt to the inner fenders and metal supports.
Can you see anything odd where the hinges bolt to the hood?
Here's a typical hinge from above and below. Does yours look different than this?
Regards,
Alan
Alan, then is pretty much exactly how mine looks, minus the rough hardware that needs to be replaced. Where it is bolted to the metal supports looks exactly like yours. I have never taken the hood off the car since I have owned it, so I have no idea if it has ever fit right.
Did THIS hood fit well before you took it off?
Can you see if there's anything odd going on where the hood hinges bolt to the inner fenders and metal supports.
Can you see anything odd where the hinges bolt to the hood?
Here's a typical hinge from above and below. Does yours look different than this?
Regards,
Alan
Alan, then is pretty much exactly how mine looks, minus the rough hardware that needs to be replaced. Where it is bolted to the metal supports looks exactly like yours. I have never taken the hood off the car since I have owned it, so I have no idea if it has ever fit right.
You can shim the hinges up if the hood is too low, but if it is too high and there are no shims present, that's a much more difficult situation to address.
When I was putting my '68 back together after the repaint I noticed that I could affect how well the edge of the hood matched the contour of the fenders by adjusting the shim height of my radiator core support. This is the main forward support for the front clip attachment to the frame. I was surprised at how much a small change here could affect the overall hood fit because of the flexibility of the front end. You will have to loosen the bumper supports before you can play with this. I wouldn't expect this adjustment to change if your hood fit well at one time and you had never messed with the core support or the shims.
When I was putting my '68 back together after the repaint I noticed that I could affect how well the edge of the hood matched the contour of the fenders by adjusting the shim height of my radiator core support. This is the main forward support for the front clip attachment to the frame. I was surprised at how much a small change here could affect the overall hood fit because of the flexibility of the front end. You will have to loosen the bumper supports before you can play with this. I wouldn't expect this adjustment to change if your hood fit well at one time and you had never messed with the core support or the shims.
01-15-2013, 10:21 AM
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Do you have the assembly instruction manual (AIM)? The AIM shows the reinforcement rod from the base of the radiator support to the point of the nose.
Hood fit sometimes improves when the rod is tweaked.
Presence or absence of shims under the hood hinges may be a moot point; some cars had them, others did not. The AIM shows them and, if memory serves, has a note about "As required."
Hood fit sometimes improves when the rod is tweaked.
Presence or absence of shims under the hood hinges may be a moot point; some cars had them, others did not. The AIM shows them and, if memory serves, has a note about "As required."
Last edited by Easy Mike; 01-15-2013 at 10:24 AM.
01-15-2013, 07:37 PM
#8
Melting Slicks
Mike, most 68's do not have the nose rod. My end of March 68 # 14,842 did not have it.
I added mine. The OP might not have the rod, and should get one. They added it because the headlight weight cracked the fiberglass by the ends of the hood opening. Mine did, before I found out about the rod and the other missing brackets on the front bumper ends and the inner fender "triangles". Lou.
I added mine. The OP might not have the rod, and should get one. They added it because the headlight weight cracked the fiberglass by the ends of the hood opening. Mine did, before I found out about the rod and the other missing brackets on the front bumper ends and the inner fender "triangles". Lou.
01-16-2013, 12:54 AM
#9
I'm far from an expert, and this is something that may be frowned upon, but it worked for me. I thought I was dead-in-the water until I made this happen. In my case the nose was drooping...
Need more/larger pics to help....
Hopefully the link works...?
r,
Rob
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c3-t...t=hood+fitment
Need more/larger pics to help....
Hopefully the link works...?
r,
Rob
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c3-t...t=hood+fitment
01-16-2013, 08:46 AM
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