Hey all

seeing if anyone else has had hoods that don’t lay flush with the front end piece. I bought this 2001 sport a couple months ago and noticed while the hood latches closed securely, it pops up to a resting position that’s up to a half inch on one side. From the front: the hood line is “/“.

I can push it down to flush, but it pops right back up when released.

I know that these jeeps aren’t known to be geometrically perfect by any means, but I’ve seen other stocks that lay much more flush. And I’m just seeing if anyone’s got suggestions!

latches look good and rustless (after some pb blaster, wire brushing)

Pics below. Appreciate any and all input!



Passenger side - not bad!

Drivers side - popped up

Passenger side - good!

Drivers side - popped up

View of how front end is aligned with side/hood

Good latch

Spring/bracket

Good latch

Other good latch

Other spring/bracket

 

To me it looks like the header is sitting a little low on the drivers side . I see it in the 2nd picture .where the fender sits the same as the hood so if you move up the header it should all line up .

 

This was my first thought.

My second thought is move that earth lead away from the latch. If that ever got caught up in the mechanism it may make opening the hood rather tricky if it jams.

 

Looks like it was in a fender bender at some point as the driver side fender isnt sitting even with the header panel. IMO, its off quite a bit. Same side youre having issues with, too. The hood latches and looks even with the top of the driver side fender which leads me to believe the header panel is low on that side, not the hood sitting too high. If the header panel were moved up on the right side, the hood would probably sit flush and even. Is the gap between the header panel and bumper the same left and right? If the gap is smaller on the driver side, the header panel is likely too low and making it seem as tho the hood is the problem when its not. If the gap on the driver side is the same, the header panel can still be low on that side and the bumper is twisted down a little on that side.

Im leaning more towards the header panel being off due to a fender bender that still needs work. Thats my take on it.

 

Thanks for the quick input! As I understand it the header panel is held on via torques. How much movement/flexibility would I even have there to move/correct the panel since it’s just pre-drilled holes? Not much right?

 

The threads are M6 bit the holes are about 8/9mm so theres a bit of movement.

 

you guys were right. The header panel was lower. The nut next to the turn signal was surrounded by worn out fiberglass. A washer and a lift/retightening of the nuts at the top cut the sag in half and we’re basically flush!

 

Yup that looks a lot better .good work .