Front Hood Shox; Don't Always Hold The Hood Up As Expected, What's Wrong? Options

[Spoke]

I have the popular front hood shox kit on my 914 but I have issues with it. The shox do hold the hood up in the garage quite well. But in the environment with wind, it fails to hold the hood up. The geometry seems off as if the hood is pushed down an inch or 2 it loses all shock resistance and falls very rapidly.

I find it embarrassing to have to put a length of wood to wedge the hood open while I fuel but even more embarrassing to pump with one hand and hold up the hood with the other.

These are new shox. Just purchased and installed a few months ago.

I think I've installed them correctly. If the hood is pulled down a couple of inches, it flies down with no resistance. The kit seems well designed but the geometry seems off. The shocks on my 911 front hood provide resistance no matter how open the hood is.

Question then: What do I have to do to eliminate the "falling hood" syndrom? Add the original spring? Did I do the installation wrong? Help!!

My car as it sits. The gas station I stop at always has wind blowing the hood closed. The wooden stand is absolutely necessary with this shox kit. I've gotten hit too many times with a falling hood while refueling.




Here's Camp914's installation. Mine is the same as this.



Here's how Sir Andy solved the hood shock. The geometry here looks better than mine.



Here's another shock (I think it's a shock) solution.

[SirAndy]

I've never had that problem but i also didn't buy a kit, i made mine before anyone was selling kits.

The shocks i used are 911 engine lid shocks and they put out quite a lot of force when fully extended.
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[dlee6204]

Has it always been this way? Possibly you got a bad shock?

[r_towle]

It looks like you could fabricate a six inch (guess) piece of wood and stick it underneath the passenger side hood bracket right underneath the u shaped section when it's up, so the wood rests on the inner fender.

To make you feel better, I bought new Pistons for the 911, they do not work.
I am told I can buy special double Pistons that do work,

Makes me wonder why people sell shit they know won't work, in that case pelican parts...

[Spoke]

Has it always been this way? Possibly you got a bad shock?

I bought the kit several years ago. About 2 years ago one of the shocks lost it's gas and I've been using the wood stick ever since. Finally this year I got a new set of shocks.

The ease of hood dropping was always there. When pushed down about and inch or 2 even before the hood shocks loose all of their ability to hold the hood up.

On my 911, the shock is mounted vertically and pushes up on the hood no matter where the hood is in its travel.

[forrestkhaag]

It looks like you could fabricate a six inch (guess) piece of wood and stick it underneath the passenger side hood bracket right underneath the u shaped section when it's up, so the wood rests on the inner fender.

To make you feel better, I bought new Pistons for the 911, they do not work.
I am told I can buy special double Pistons that do work,

Makes me wonder why people sell shit they know won't work, in that case pelican parts...

Agreed....... with the issue of ..won't work.. the wood block?....NO.

This solution is only as good as my 356SC hood catch system designed by, ............arguably, the finest engineers on earth.. / contrary to every biomechanics dynamic learned from birth - the inverse WTF factor ..., one must lift the lid to lower the lid... hence, a thousand tweaked 356 lids.. hence Stoddard. Can you say Booming Bidnez..

In summary: Shocks are good alternative if not in the resto-concours area -

And, having just assisted Larmo63 in a replacement of trunk rollers on his pristine bodied (not him) 914 - shocks are a good alternative to relieve clutter and weight .. all four corners of my trinket work fine every time - with shocks on all 4's - as long as you hold on to the lid being opened. Opening can be aggressive on the opening move if not aware..

[Mark Henry]

Does you 914 sit in the cold and have you opened the hood on a super cold day?

I've had a few hood shocks fail due to cold weather. A bit of moisture on the seal freezes to the rod, tearing it when opened and then the whole shock fails.
Often the failure is the exact weak shock condition you are describing.

[mepstein]

Does you 914 sit in the cold and have you opened the hood on a super cold day?

I've had a few hood shocks fail due to cold weather. A bit of moisture on the seal freezes to the rod, tearing it when opened and then the whole shock fails.
Often the failure is the exact weak shock condition you are describing.

Its been warm on the east coast until this week. It was 65 degrees just last Sunday.
We open up our 911 hoods all year round and don't see failures.

[Spoke]

Does you 914 sit in the cold and have you opened the hood on a super cold day?

I've had a few hood shocks fail due to cold weather. A bit of moisture on the seal freezes to the rod, tearing it when opened and then the whole shock fails.
Often the failure is the exact weak shock condition you are describing.

Its been warm on the east coast until this week. It was 65 degrees just last Sunday.
We open up our 911 hoods all year round and don't see failures.

From day one years ago when I installed this I noticed I had to physically lift the hood up to about 2 inches from full travel before the shocks took over. I guess I've been hit on the head enough times and had the hood fall on my open tool box and get dented enough times to want to improve this system.

The 914 is in the garage all the time with my 911. The 911 front hood shocks are designed correctly such that pulling the hood release results in the hood popping up till the safety latch catches. The 911 hood is assisted in opening by the shocks in its full travel. Closing the 911 hood requires pushing down on the hood the whole way. For the 914, I have to hold up the hood when closing it.

I'm thinking of a way to reinstall the original springs to assist the shocks. The original springs were stretched and at full open would allow the hood to droop but not fall all the way closed.

[JmuRiz]

Mine stopped working too, going back to stock springs when the car is put back together.

[jasons]

My just failed. My car is a garaged project. I installed them maybe 2 years ago? Lifted the hood yesterday, no bueno. Mine are the fiberglass hood version. The rears seem to be fine.

[Steve]

I have rear trunk shocks because of the 3.2. I am on my second set of shocks. PIA.. I will leave the stock springs in the front.

[Larmo63]

I agree (IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

I think the springs that Porsche sent with both of my cars work fine.

[Eric_Shea]

I don't like any of the hood shocks.

[r_towle]

I don't like any of the hood shocks.

Good solution for an 84 carrera?

[MJHanna]

I use one of these on the front of one of my 911s. I have no issues with it . http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911...oot-struts.html
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[larryM]

i had same experience as O.P. - would hold hood up, but not control it slamming down as soon as the shox came off full-up position

our supplier said there were 2 versions - one for light hoods, and sent me a replacement set for steel hoods

(no markings on either set that would indicate purpose or difference)

- no joy - same problem with "stronger" replacement set

THEN - I McGivered my problem by reinstalling old tired springs along with the shox

- works great this way - (tho it offends the Concours crowd - my answer "it's just an old race car, for goodness sake)

p.s. - 911's have them from factory ( Part #: 911-511-331-00) so they should work as designed for 911's -

[boxstr]

Some of the trunk shox have failed, and if I am contacted I have replaced them as needed. If someone has purchased the front or rear trunk shox from CAMP 914 and they are having an issue with them, let me know and I will do what I can to take care of the problem.
Craig at CAMP

[mgp4591]

I like Eric's solution front and rear - prop rods generally don't fail, they're lightweight and cheap. Take some measurements, head to your local wrecking yard with yer tools and do some looking... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

[r_towle]

I use one of these on the front of one of my 911s. I have no issues with it . http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911...oot-struts.html
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Sweet solution, I hope he is still making them