My car was disassembled for painting many years ago and put together hastily. Most things I dig into need hardware, or adjusting or replacement. The front trunk handle is the latest.

It never looked like a stock handle should. There is a chrome cylinder, 5mm to 6mm in diameter sticking up a bit from the handle. That stops the handle from going into the handle mount so the whole handle sticks out a bit and wobbles. When I took it apart, I noticed the small stop screw on the handle slider is not installed.

It does function correctly, just with a wobbly handle in the holder, the holder mount is tight to the car body.

Questions
Do I just press that small chrome cylinder down until it is even on both sides? What does it do?
What are the specs for that stop screw? Cant see any details in the PET.
Will I have adjust the cable or sleeve when I get it put back together correctly.

Cheers

Wow! I did not know I was playing stump the World today. 100 views and no suggestions yet. How about a pic? Maybe that will help.

Click to view attachment

I’ll comment that handle needs some ghetto paint. I think the stop pin is further down the shaft

First things first, I need it to function correctly. If by stop pin you mean the slotted screw at the other end, that is the one I need the specs for so I can buy one. If not, does that pin just push in place?

What year is this handle, it's nothing like the frunk release handle on my original 73?

1974

Maybe a picture of the other side of it??

It's the same handle I have seen in most later cars. Just in a more deconstructed format.

@NARP74 Went out into the garage. Here is what mine looks like installed on my 74 1.8. When the hood is closed the handle should be recessed in the cylinder/mounting bracket. I can pull mine apart if needed to get the stop screw dimensions as it's not listed in the PET. That exposed pin is the lock pin when the key is turned to the lock position that prevents the front trunk from being opened.

second photo of orientation of the release handle when the hood is closed.

See if anything here helps

http://www.914world.com/specs/rekey.php

Is it just locked? Looks like the lock pin is out blocking it from going back in.

@L-Jet914 thanks for the pics, that is what I am trying to get to.
@GregAmy , some pics in there showed what I needed to see.
@East coaster I think that is exactly what is going on.

Now to see if I have a key for it.
The specs for that stop screw would be a big help, and maybe some tough paint...

42

The ultimate answer?

No way to write this without it sounding like a steamy novel, there was insertion, fiddling, lube, full penetration and manipulation, then success! I found a key that works, got the lock barrel to move and then I could slide the handle fully into the receptacle. Need the specs for that little stop screw and then I can see if the cable and sleeve need to be adjusted and put it back together.

Thanks for the help so far.

Yes, but what’s the ultimate question? Still calculating……

That's what I was thinking.

Yep, probably like that from the DA2PO, a very long time. I had tried the key but was never able to get it to work, didn't want to force it and worked on other problems.

Need small stop screw specs to complete this project.

Pm me please. I have what you need, and can walk you through this. Not a big deal

Looking for info on this screw. Where the screwdriver is pointing.


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I have been told by @TheCabinetmaker that the specs are M4x0.7mm size and thread pitch and 4.5 mm long, it has a slotted head

Well, I have a good update and an epic fail update.

I was able to find a suitable stop screw, the one I was missing and got it installed. I was even able to get the handle tightened back to the body all by myself using a piece of wood as a third hand to pry it up against the body to start the screws. I thought that would be the hard part.

Because I was now able to push the handle back into the holder more, I had to loosen the cable clamp on the latch. I pulled the slack cable through and tightened the cable clamp. I had some extra cable cover slack that I was able to move as well.

I tried the latch and handle operation a few times with the frunk open and it all worked great. I had a sense of foreboding as I decided to fully close the front trunk but I did it anyway. Back into the car and tried the handle, nothing! The handle pulls out to the stop screw and does not open the frunk. I feel some cable resistance but cant tell if it is slipping or what.

I am Fuched! I have a fiberglass front bumper installed, came that way, hate on, so I don't see any way to get in. I am low on gas, I was going to get some right after this project.

I'll do a search, but this is now a how do I get in the frunk thread. I am pretty disappointed and taking a break from it for a few, had to walk away...

Help!

You remove the front bumper and stick a flat blade screwdriver through a hole in the middle of the front panel. Wiggle it around and you will be able to trip the latch. The first time I did it took me a minute or two to trip the latch and pop the trunk but it’s pretty easy. Sometimes the hole has a rubber plug in it.

In my case, the cable slipped because the amount of tension required to pull the latch was too much. I lubed every moving, sliding and pivoting component from the latch to the pull handle and most importantly, the cable inside the plastic sleeve. After that, it only took a light pull to trip the front latch.

I think my fiberglass bumper is mounted from the frunk. I'll look more carefully but I was looking at it before I closed the lid. I saw some bolts in there, not sure what they are for yet.

I guess it could be but most are mounted at the front of the wheel well. You turn the wheel to one side to have the room to access the two bolts.

And I have an oil cooler in that area...

The cable must be screwed in till it stops. The adjustment is done in at the trunk latch. The Screw that limits the travel of the handle also clamps on the cable to keep it from unscrewing itself. The fasteners you saw inside the trunk are the attachment points for the front valance. Pull the 4 bolts from inside the wheel wells and the bumper will fall off. Literally fall off, if you don't catch it.

Sounds like I have some work ahead of me. I think the oil cooler mount hardware has nylocks on them, inside the frunk. Might be time for a nutsert tool.

I think I figured out what might have happened. Because my assembly was not put together correctly during the previous reassembly, I do not have a stop on the cable guide sheath. They must have taken it off to get it to work the latch. When I put it together correctly, the guide sheath just pulled through the tube at the firewall and did not open the latch. I still need to start disassembly to get into the frunk to verify this.

I'm in! Necessity is the mother of all shortcuts! I figured the cable housing was slipping in the metal tube on the firewall. When I got underneath to look at the handle assembly and saw the stop screw pointing down, I decided to take it out. That allowed me to pull more cable and sheath until the frunk latch opened, et voila! Frunk opened without major disassembly, which I should still look at some time later to be ready for this again.

Now tell me what this is all about?
Click to view attachment

Broken sheath repair. 914 rubber has them, I think.

That is where I got the idea that the sheath was just pulling through. It looks like it has a stop, the black ring, but it is too far up the sheath to be effective so they made an extender of some sort. Must be the wrong cable sheath to begin with. They are out of stock at 914 rubber ATM.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvbQ4wJak_c



Channeling Kevin Kline here...
So while 914 rubber was out of stock I spent a lot of time coming up with a nifty solution to the outer cable housing problem. I almost had it but my vertical lathe, AKA drill press could not handle the work and the part I started with was running out of metal. Then the part was back in stock so I just ordered one and it got here quick.

I started fitting it and it was very tight. The tube is roughly 6mm plus a bit. The old cable housing I had that was bad was 6.05mm, it slipped in pretty well, tight but it went in. The new cable housing was 6.35mm and was too tight to get in the tube, even with lube and some firm hands.

I started looking at the tube and decided it had some slag in it or something that was making entry difficult. I carefully drilled out the first part of the tube from the trunk area, cleaned it out and lubed it again.

I got the new cable installed up to the stop on the housing. I fed the wire in from the front seat and did a test fit, everything seemed good. I started to take it all apart to route the cable and lube it and the stop on the cable housing broke free and now I am back to the very beginning again!

@Mikey914 I know you are very busy and shorthanded, do you have any suggestions how I can repair the front trunk cable guide tubing I just bought?

Small set screw from under dash side.

Have it, thanks. Specific details are in a post above for those searching.

Thanks, I'm showing these in stock and the version with the cable as a kit is too
https://914rubber.com/guide-tube-for-front-...release-cable-1

The stop is welded to the body of the tube. If you got a defective one from us we will be happy yo replace it. Our failure rate on these is pretty low, and with the process we use (if done properly) it should be non-existent.
You can PM me the specifics and I'd be happy to take care of this.

Msg sent, thanks