Hood Gap... Have I bent my hinges?
#21
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#22
JK Junkie
I wouldn't rush into the painting expense if I were you. It looks like the part of the hinge that is bent is where it is only half as wide. The spacer doesn't address the strength of that point...it just puts the hood back where it belongs. The hinge could possibly bend some more from the increased pressure of the strut being shortened again. So I would wait until I know that's not going to happen before I paint them.
Nevermind if that's what you meant by "if all goes well".
Nevermind if that's what you meant by "if all goes well".
#23
JK Junkie
Agree with the above. If you are going to get something painted, just pull the hinges, straighten them out and then gusset them so they don't bend in the future. I can't recall if that hinge pin can be removed or if it is permanent, but if you can pull the pin, you could make that side of the hinge out of thicker steel.
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It looks like the part of the hinge that is bent is where it is only half as wide. The spacer doesn't address the strength of that point...it just puts the hood back where it belongs. The hinge could possibly bend some more from the increased pressure of the strut being shortened again. ... Nevermind if that's what you meant by "if all goes well".
As to the paint... I've got a rattle-can of OEM, no real investment there!
#25
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Agree with the above. If you are going to get something painted, just pull the hinges, straighten them out and then gusset them so they don't bend in the future. I can't recall if that hinge pin can be removed or if it is permanent, but if you can pull the pin, you could make that side of the hinge out of thicker steel.
#26
JK Junkie
That may work. Since you don't weld, you could try to bring the shim up as close as possible to the hinge pin housing. You could use a file to create a 45 degree angle along the top edge, make the mounting holes slotted, and slide the shim as close as possible to the hinge pin casing. The 45 degree angle should allow you to get it pretty close. By re-assigning the stress point closer to the pin, you reduce the leverage of the lateral force across the hinge.
Think of the hinges on a door. Close the door almost to a point where the catch latches. Now push the door open with your pinky finger from right above the door knob. Easy. Now close the door again to the same position and push it open with your pinky again but this time, do it from the hinge side. That is the effect of leverage.
That said. I'm not a mechanical engineer. In other words, that's what makes sense to me and what I would try, but I'm not sure it will work.
Think of the hinges on a door. Close the door almost to a point where the catch latches. Now push the door open with your pinky finger from right above the door knob. Easy. Now close the door again to the same position and push it open with your pinky again but this time, do it from the hinge side. That is the effect of leverage.
That said. I'm not a mechanical engineer. In other words, that's what makes sense to me and what I would try, but I'm not sure it will work.
Last edited by 14Sport; 08-04-2015 at 12:37 PM.
#27
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Just an update here, I made a 2nd shim and primed/painted them both with some Rustoleum bed liner I had laying around. I've been running them for about 30 days, the gap is .25" and holding strong. Looks like I found my answer.
Last edited by BAJA TYM; 11-09-2015 at 05:41 PM.
#28
Update
Hello, I have a 15 Sahara and I have a larger gap on the drivers side than the passenger's. It's a brand new jeep with less than 1,000 miles and i never installed hood struts. In my case, it looks like it's a factory defect. I even went to the dealer to look at new 16 models and a few also had the same gap as mine. I think your struts had nothing to do with your gaps, they most likely came from factory. I am sure many jeepers out there have the same thing but don't notice it or don't care. I am also OCD. So I need to find a fix.
I called the dealer and they said they will fix it for me since I'm under warranty and the jeep is new. How? Don't know. Hopefully they fix it, and maybe they get this type of complaint and dealt with them before. Anyway, I'm glad you found a solution. I may end up doing the same thing. Do you think I can take care of this by just installing one plate on the drivers side and not the passengers?
Thanks you so much for any advice and for this long post.
I called the dealer and they said they will fix it for me since I'm under warranty and the jeep is new. How? Don't know. Hopefully they fix it, and maybe they get this type of complaint and dealt with them before. Anyway, I'm glad you found a solution. I may end up doing the same thing. Do you think I can take care of this by just installing one plate on the drivers side and not the passengers?
Thanks you so much for any advice and for this long post.
#29
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In the end I tried the shims and it completely solved my problem. As to your issue, my guess is that the dealership will simply loosen the hood bolts and shift things around until the gap looks symmetrical enough. I'm very OCD... In fact I'm crippling OCD at times, so if the technician doesn't make it perfect I'd also end up doing it myself.
If they're unable to fix your gap... ...man that sounds wrong... ...let me know and I'll post up the template I drafted for my shims.
Hope this helps.
--James
#30
I'm going to the dealer on Thursday and see what they say. My fear is that they mess something up, and then I come out worse.
New Jeeps are not made like most cars and trucks. The body lines and gaps are not all perfect. Us having OCD, and being jeep owners, does not help. I literally had to stop myself from looking at all the details of my new jk because the more I looked, the more imperfections I found. LOL! Nonetheless, I love my Jeep, I would buy it again in a heart beat.
Thanks for the quick response. I will post on Thursday after they "fix" it. I will take you up on the
offer regarding the templates for the plates.
Carlos
So Cal.
New Jeeps are not made like most cars and trucks. The body lines and gaps are not all perfect. Us having OCD, and being jeep owners, does not help. I literally had to stop myself from looking at all the details of my new jk because the more I looked, the more imperfections I found. LOL! Nonetheless, I love my Jeep, I would buy it again in a heart beat.
Thanks for the quick response. I will post on Thursday after they "fix" it. I will take you up on the
offer regarding the templates for the plates.
Carlos
So Cal.