Hello all. I am hoping someone can assist here. My son needed to change the front headlight of his car. When he tried to pull on the bonnet latch in the car, it broke. So, how do we open the bonnet now.
Thank you in advance.
EDIT: Bugger. Head light was changed and it worked. Now it does not work. What the ….
Thank you for your prompt response. Will follow with your suggestions.
The latch broke on my old falcon.
So I located the cable that the latch was attached to and used some pliers to pull the cable.
Pop! the bonnet was open.
Funny thing. The car concerned is a falcon. Were you able to fix the latch.
LOL! well there ya go.
Never fixed it, just left some pliers under the seat.
The tight arse way to 'fix' things.
Pull on the cable that the latch is connected to.
This was a very common problem on the b series falcons.
As others have said pull the cable with pliers.
I was going to say that if you can't open the bonnet, you really shouldn't be opening the bonnet.
But that was before I read that your falcon broke… Which is unfortunate because you'll be needing to open the bonnet a lot! ;)
Thank you all for your responses. RACV came out. He opened the bonnet with the plier method and changed the headlight. He said that this model ford is the worst they made and he regularly sees the latch broken on them.
Keep your eye out on OzB for a cheap set of pliers :)
LOL
Would have been much better if you said 'bonut'
I will edit it just for you.
As a mechanic for over 35 years, there are vehicles that make the 'worst of' in different categories. But to the untrained it may appear to be the cars fault or even the manufacturer. In fact it is due to lack of maintenance. Not so much the current owners, they are mostly ignorant on such matters(no offense intended), but the service people. The locks, latches, catches and hinges all need lubricating, and realigned periodically for wear and movement. Door handles and bonnet cables are most often blamed on the car design but it is 99% of the time lack of love….and lube. Most service centers do not care or know of the old methods of car servicing. They change the oil and filter and plug in a diagnostic tool for the rest and call it a service. WRONG people. That is called an oil only change. NOT a service. To all members here and particularly those keeping cars past the end of warranty. Tell your service guy to service the WHOLE car, and respect the moving parts that need love too. There are around 100 points to actually service and not just look at on average car built pre 2000, and only about 60 on later modern junkers. I would bet you, or the average mechanic with less than 10-15 yrs experience can not name half or more. Imagane these uneducated lot servicing your classic pride and joy. Errr what is a distributor,,,,and where are the wish bones? Ha Ha, I hope the many classic car owners do all their own work, part of the joy of owning old classics. I do not mean to upset people, but I am ex RAAF and we were trained to really turn spanners, not just replace assemblies, as young apprentices were saying as they come through my workshops. So, go buy a workshop manual for your car, and reap the rewards, cash and satisfaction of doing some love to your own car and knowing a bit of what you are talking about if you do need a professional. PS, keeping tools in the car is a missile in an accident. Simply get it repaired properly. Cheers.
Thank you very much for such a thorough explanation. This will assist many to look after their cars properly.
Lubricate the latch for the hood release…. Not really a high wear part. More like shitty plastic breaking down too fast. Or never built strong enough. You shouldn't need to lubricate that given how often it should be used, a few times p/year.
Doors, hinges etc. yes, they need lubing as they are used frequently.
I will not assume you are at all qualified to comment by either training, experience, or by the ownership of this model in question, as you have not stated as such to have this viewpoint taken seriously.
I am, and you sir are not correct in your unfounded statement. Any moving part/s including bonnet latches and or cables enclosed in sheaths, can experience dryness from a number causes.
Poor quality is only one, which is NOT the reason in this instance. The math on repairs prove this fact.
Please do not confuse the poor guy and the generally untrained or uneducated in engineering of plastics or design with irrelevant atrocities. Cheers.
Just a tip mate. If you want to reply to someone specifically, just hit the reply button on the particular comment you wish to reply to.
Welcome to OzBargain!
lol, I'm just assuming he's not qualified to comment by either training or experience.
You've spent bonnet wrong, please fix.
You've spent spelt wrong. No bonuts for you.
I originally spelt it right. Then I got this:
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/192457#comment-2721568
I couldn't help myself. I had to oblige.
Should never have purchased a Ford Falcon - or any other model they turn out. Also not a Holden either. Unless you only want a tinny baked bean car to trust yours & your families lives to - until the inevitable happens. Safety is far more important than looks in a car - just look at the new Holden adverts. - they're all about style & looks - not one sentence mentions safety. Sell it & purchase a car with a good mechanical & safety record.
The service manager for the make and model of car involved should be able to give free advice over the phone.
Or the RAC etc in your state.
Maybe even google will have some info.