BlazinLow_inORE
11-11-04, 04:41 PM
NOTE: If you have a 4.3 you might need to relocate your coolant reservoir
**First off ya need to make a trip your local junkyard and get the hood hinge assembly from a Buick LaSabre (there are a couple other models that have them as well but I don’t remember what they are), I know '84-88 LaSabres have the hinge. Anyway, they aren't hard to find, most junk yards have the hoods open on all the cars anyways. While your there, pick up an extra set of hood snubbers.(I bought my hinge kit for like 30$)
**After you get the hinges home, first thing ya need to do is measure the distance between the inside of the fenders…. Also measure the width of the new hinge assembly. The new hinge assembly should be about 2 inches wider than your fenders when you buy it. You'll need to cut a section out of the support bar for the hinge assembly, which keeps the hood from twisting when you open or close it. What I did was cut the support bar in the center… and put a 8†long bolt that had a tiny bit smaller diameter than the support bar on the hinge into the support bar and re-welded it together to make it fit on the water runoff lips.
http://njsr.org/pics/albums/userpics/normal_IMAG0015.JPG
**Set your hinge assembly on the water runoff lip of the fender and mark where your gunna mount your hinge. The rubber stop bracket should almost touch the radiator support. Mine is about ¼ away from the support. After you get your holes marked and drilled, mount the hinge from the BOTTOM of the lip and attach with bolts. I used bolts that I got at a local hardware store like Home Depot. I used 5/8 bolts and I used nuts to go along with it. I used 2 washers on top of the water runoff lip and 2 washers under it to have a little more support on such a thin piece of metal (the runoff lip is very thin.. but holds very well when washers are used).
http://njsr.org/pics/albums/userpics/normal_IMAG0014%7E0.JPG
**After both sides are installed. Fold the hinges down into the closed position(Removing the spring from the hinge may help in allowing it to stay closed). Remove the inner fender wells, and jack the truck up to have access to the bottom of the hood. You can remove the front wheels if you want to give you more room I did and it makes the job easier this way. Others have done it without pulling the fender wells… I prefer pulling them.
**Close the hood (that is still attached to the stock hinges). From the fender wells, position the new hinges so they are in contact with the bottom side of the hood. Mark your holes on the hood with a marker or a scribe. Raise the hood and drill your holes. The holes should line up with one of the support beams on the hood. I also took a cutting wheel and make 2 slots in the side of this support beam for clip nuts(or speed nuts whatever you call them .. like the ones on the fender wells and rad support). This is where I removed my hood completely from my car. Leaving the stock hinges attached to the hood so that they can still be used later on(a couple bolts were taken off of the stock hinges that attached it to the bracket located under the cowl for remove of the hood) At this point I would remove the cowl completely.
**Once you have your holes drilled and clip nuts mounted… put the hood back into it original position( like the stock hinges were still connected to bracket. At this point… close the hood and from the fender wells line up your new hinge with the drilled holes and mount using bolts( I used same size that I used for the runoff lip) Make sure your cowl has been removed for next step.
**Release the hood latch and pop the hood open, pull up/forward and fold the hood down in front of the grill to make sure everything operates properly. Also check to make sure the hood is not banging into your grille or bumper while it hangs. If everything looks ok… you are ready for the next step.( if the hood bangs into the grille or bumper.. you might need to go back and re position where your new hinge is located. It would have to be moved closer to the rad support).
http://njsr.org/pics/albums/userpics/normal_Hood4.JPG
**First off ya need to make a trip your local junkyard and get the hood hinge assembly from a Buick LaSabre (there are a couple other models that have them as well but I don’t remember what they are), I know '84-88 LaSabres have the hinge. Anyway, they aren't hard to find, most junk yards have the hoods open on all the cars anyways. While your there, pick up an extra set of hood snubbers.(I bought my hinge kit for like 30$)
**After you get the hinges home, first thing ya need to do is measure the distance between the inside of the fenders…. Also measure the width of the new hinge assembly. The new hinge assembly should be about 2 inches wider than your fenders when you buy it. You'll need to cut a section out of the support bar for the hinge assembly, which keeps the hood from twisting when you open or close it. What I did was cut the support bar in the center… and put a 8†long bolt that had a tiny bit smaller diameter than the support bar on the hinge into the support bar and re-welded it together to make it fit on the water runoff lips.
http://njsr.org/pics/albums/userpics/normal_IMAG0015.JPG
**Set your hinge assembly on the water runoff lip of the fender and mark where your gunna mount your hinge. The rubber stop bracket should almost touch the radiator support. Mine is about ¼ away from the support. After you get your holes marked and drilled, mount the hinge from the BOTTOM of the lip and attach with bolts. I used bolts that I got at a local hardware store like Home Depot. I used 5/8 bolts and I used nuts to go along with it. I used 2 washers on top of the water runoff lip and 2 washers under it to have a little more support on such a thin piece of metal (the runoff lip is very thin.. but holds very well when washers are used).
http://njsr.org/pics/albums/userpics/normal_IMAG0014%7E0.JPG
**After both sides are installed. Fold the hinges down into the closed position(Removing the spring from the hinge may help in allowing it to stay closed). Remove the inner fender wells, and jack the truck up to have access to the bottom of the hood. You can remove the front wheels if you want to give you more room I did and it makes the job easier this way. Others have done it without pulling the fender wells… I prefer pulling them.
**Close the hood (that is still attached to the stock hinges). From the fender wells, position the new hinges so they are in contact with the bottom side of the hood. Mark your holes on the hood with a marker or a scribe. Raise the hood and drill your holes. The holes should line up with one of the support beams on the hood. I also took a cutting wheel and make 2 slots in the side of this support beam for clip nuts(or speed nuts whatever you call them .. like the ones on the fender wells and rad support). This is where I removed my hood completely from my car. Leaving the stock hinges attached to the hood so that they can still be used later on(a couple bolts were taken off of the stock hinges that attached it to the bracket located under the cowl for remove of the hood) At this point I would remove the cowl completely.
**Once you have your holes drilled and clip nuts mounted… put the hood back into it original position( like the stock hinges were still connected to bracket. At this point… close the hood and from the fender wells line up your new hinge with the drilled holes and mount using bolts( I used same size that I used for the runoff lip) Make sure your cowl has been removed for next step.
**Release the hood latch and pop the hood open, pull up/forward and fold the hood down in front of the grill to make sure everything operates properly. Also check to make sure the hood is not banging into your grille or bumper while it hangs. If everything looks ok… you are ready for the next step.( if the hood bangs into the grille or bumper.. you might need to go back and re position where your new hinge is located. It would have to be moved closer to the rad support).
http://njsr.org/pics/albums/userpics/normal_Hood4.JPG