Hood pin installation?

[paul351w]

I've had a 4" cowl hood for my 86 for a couple years, and I haven't tackled installing it yet cause I wasn't sure where/how to install the hood pins.

I have a hood pin kit from Ford Racing with the over-center type pins with attached cables. If anyone has any info or pictures it would be greatly appreciated.

[2k2GT]

You should be able to mount the pins where the OE adjustable rubber stoppers are. Then, once they're mounted there, you can fashion up someway to transfer the drilling spot on the hood from the pin.

I dabbed some red paint on top of the pin, then slowly dropped the hood on it gently to transfer a paint mark where to drill.

I too have the FRPP pins. After rusting out 2 sets of the MOROSO's or MR GASKET's, I "learned" and got ones that won't rust.

I did not use the vinyl covered lanyards, just didn't care for them. Kinda/sorta a lil' dress up tip. I bought some large gauge heat shrink tubing and put over the pin up to the hole. Looks cleaner, and I dressed up the jam bolts/area with a black paint marker(not magic marker)

[paul351w]

Everything still sits ok without having the bumper pads in place? Did you put a nut above and below the sheetmetal then? I'll have to go out and look at mine to see if I can get at the bottom of it to put a nut on underneath.

[2k2GT]

Originally Posted by paul351w

Everything still sits ok without having the bumper pads in place? Did you put a nut above and below the sheetmetal then?

Yes. Use the OE rubber pads on the sides of the fenders.

I'll have to go out and look at mine to see if I can get at the bottom of it to put a nut on underneath.

You'll hafta drill it out. I used a Uni-bit I believe.

I am also STILL using the OE hood latch. I added the pins only for horror stories i've read of aftermarket hoods flying up while on-track. Multiply that with my luck and it was a no brainer to put the pins in.

[paul351w]

Yeah I was planning on using the latch as well, cause I don't want people to be able to get into my engine bay. I don't really trust that alone though which is why I got the pin kit.

[ModularSpeed]

Mine, I like it. It cost me $10 at Advance Auto Parts, and about 20 minutes of my time....







Only way you can see it, is from the front if you look for it.

[a79coupe]

A shot of flat black on the hood pin and retainer clip would make it disappear altogether.

[BULLITT1992]

Originally Posted by ModularSpeed

Mine, I like it. It cost me $10 at Advance Auto Parts, and about 20 minutes of my time....







Only way you can see it, is from the front if you look for it.

If I got with a fiberglass hood, that is the route that I want to go. The hood pin look doesn't bother me, but people who don't understand or aren't into racing will give me crap.

Is that metal on the bottom? In the picture it looks like plastic.

[ModularSpeed]

It is a very hard composite. (plastic)

I didnt want to have them shwoing on the top of the hood, so I thought of this in about, 2 minutes. lol

It is very easy.

[SteveL1994]

Originally Posted by paul351w

Everything still sits ok without having the bumper pads in place?

Try a short piece of rubber hose over the pin portion. You can trim the length to give the right amount of backpressure on the pin hold downs.

[drudis]

Its a matter of preference. Some like it closer to the edge of the hood, some half-way between cowl and endge, some elsewhere...

[paul351w]

Looks like you didn't put them where the stock bumper pads are at? I might have to look around your site again to see if there are any shots with the hood up.

[drudis]

Hood up:



A wee bit'o surgery going on... (installing radiator to my liking)

[smurfmobile8586]

Interesting, Putting the hood pins upside down was very different. I have a set from upr and have been debating on installing them for sometime now I think I might. Later

[Cellos88gt]

FWIW:

These are the only hood pins I like: http://www.aerocatch.com/

[a79coupe]

Originally Posted by Cellos88gt

FWIW:

These are the only hood pins I like: http://www.aerocatch.com/

Do you have pics of your install?

[Cellos88gt]

Originally Posted by a79coupe

Do you have pics of your install?

I don't have them installed on anything as I'm not running an aftermarket hood yet. However, I've seen several guys at the AutoX with them and they like them a lot especially for the fact that you can lock the latches with a key if you like.

[Maynor]

Originally Posted by drudis

Hood up:

Nice tweety bird there Darius!

[SONICBLUE4.6]

Originally Posted by ModularSpeed

Mine, I like it. It cost me $10 at Advance Auto Parts, and about 20 minutes of my time....







Only way you can see it, is from the front if you look for it.

I need to know how you put it in the underside of the hood.. Do you have a write up? And You have 2 pins right?

[ModularSpeed]

I have just 1 pin in. I figure if the hood pops, I will see it, and the 1 pin will be enough to hold it until I stop.

You drill a hole that the pin will fit in....and you make another hole to access the top of the stud to put a washer/nut/lock washer or whatever you use to secure it.....while being able to fit a wrench around it to tighten it.

[smurfmobile8586]

I think that I am gonna try the upside down idea anyone else done it?

[qtrracer]

FWIW, back in the day I had a lift-off 'glass hood using four pins - it was a one-off, home-made cowl induction hood for a Nova (circ '72). At speed, the hood would catch air and move around a little; I couldn't get the pins tight enough to fix this lift (should have used dzus fasteners). Anyway, my solution was four small springs that fit over the pin and pushed back when the hood was pinned down. The nice side benefit is that when I pulled the pins, the hood sort of popped up for easier removal.

[ramnstang]

I have a 03/04 Cobra lift off hood on my ITE car. To set the hood height I went to the local auto parts store and bought some PCV hose. It fits right down onto the four hood pins. I then cut each peice of hose to where it held the hood up at just the right height. Push down on the hood and it doesnt move, pins keep it from lifting. < This will be very important once the radiator ducting is vented out through the heat extractors. Hope this tip helps someone.

[drudis]

Ditto on the hose...

I used 1/2" rubber fuel line I had left laying around. Set the height, trim, re-measure... till you get the right height.
Then insert hood pin while slight pressure on hood.

[Stang Man]

I ha dhood pins on my old Mach 1 hood.

I drilled new holes in the radiator core support for the studs. I then WELDED the nuts onto the core support and painted them. This way I could have the hood own, and adjust the height of pin-hole, then lift the hood and use a jam nut to keep that height.

That AeroCatch looks slick as hell, though!

[chrism0966]

i got a 98 gt with a 2 1/2 cowl hood it flew up the other day and ripped the hinges out i was wandering how i should put those hinges in or should i just leave the stock latch and get hood pins for the front and would the back be ok without the hinges on it or would it fly up anyway?

[drudis]

The rear (cowl side) of the hood will flap in the wind.
You need "something" in the rear. You can either get other hinges off eBay... or install 4 pins, 1 in each corner of the hood (replace a hinge with a pin). Seen that done and posted somewhere...

[d90212]

i havent used hoodpins in over 8 years since i put on the hood..and its daily driven... i guess it depends what brand hood you put on....though my hood came with both primary as well as secondary hood latches... HO fibertrends FTW

[onebadyellow99]

i realy like how you put it under the hood im deff prob going to go with that idea when my hood comes in

[helios16v]

Do OE hoods have issues with the latches, or is it just the aftermarket hoods (F/G and carbon) that tend to flex more. I've got a '92 LX that I just picked up as my weekend toy/track junkie. I actually have a set of Sparco hood pins kicking around, from a Rabbit project that has since been sold, that I could install if it is warrented. I actually will be doing my first track day with this car in 2 weeks. Uprated brake pads (w/ ducting) and a new radiator will be going in this weekend. Added a new driver seat and Potenza RE-01Rs last weekend. Time to start driving!