How to Replace Hood Struts
Hood struts are the small shocks that hold the hood up when it is open to allow access to the engine bay. Because of their small size, it is not uncommon for hood struts to fail, in which in case they will not hold the hood up safely while it is open. Having non-functioning hood struts means that something else (baseball bat, etc) needs to be used to prop the hood open, which is both inconvenient and dangerous if your head is stuck under the hood while you check your oil or perform routine maintenance.
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Instructions
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1
Open the hood up. If the hood struts are completely blown, they are probably not doing a good job of holding the hood up and you will need to brace the hood while you remove the struts. Use the aforementioned baseball bat or something similar.
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2
Locate where the hood strut or struts, if there are two, are fastened to the hood and where they are fastened again in the engine bay. The hood struts will attach to the chassis at the rear, outer corners of the engine bay. They will be held in place with a clip and a pin that they rotate on.
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3
Remove the clip that retains the hood strut pin with a pair of long, needle-nose pliers. This should allow you to remove the pin and release the end of the hood strut.
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4
Disconnect the hood strut where it fastens to the hood. The strut will usually be attached with a bolt and nut or with a pin and a clip. Inspect where it fastens to the hood to determine how to remove it.
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5
Install the new hood strut in the reverse order of the removal. Fasten the strut to the hood with the proper hardware. Install the pin and the clip where the strut fastens to the chassis.
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6
Gently close the hood to make sure that the hood does not bend and that the struts allow it to close fully and easily.
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