Cadder61

Casual User
Jun 20, 2018
42
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VetteCoins
882
Car
1975 CORVETTE L82
Well, been starting the list of repairs to the new toy and while cleaning 43 years of oil grime off the inside of the hood, found this the other day. I suspect the previous owner slammed the hood a bit too hard a few too many times - have not yet taken off the cowl induction cover but it appears to not have gone much further than the end of that.
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I have successfully done repairs to fiberglass trailers in the past - from what I have found online, the procedures to repair a Corvette are pretty similar and straightforward. Given where this crack is (inner hood panel) I am not going to be able to access both sides for a repair - anything I should be aware of in fixing this?
I was thinking of VERY carefully grinding out the crack (V the edges) plus maybe thin the panel on either side to give me some depth for a couple of layers of fiberglass cloth and then smooth out as much as possible. Would this give me enough strength? What else might I look for? Given my neophyte status with these cars, I would appreciate any advice from the forum.
 
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Ideally your thought on glassing both sides would have been the preferred method, but, you have to deal with what you have in front of you. By carefully edging out a V groove and glassing in and extra 'sheet' for added strength it sounds to me like your on the right track. In that area, I would be more concerned with the strength of the bond as opposed to the aesthetics of the bond. Good luck with your repair!
 
Thanks for the backup, thought I was on the right track but with something like this I wanted to be sure.

Now the second question. When looking at the car last night, noted that my rear hood corners were slightly higher than the fenders beside them. On the left, it just seems to be a bit of "curl" in the glass of the hood (seen many similar pics online) and the hood is solid in the latch and on the hood bumper. On the right, the hood is somewhat higher and once latched, I can still press it down (against latch pin spring resistance) almost a quarter of an inch before it contacts the adjustment bumper. Given how high the hood corner is, the latch pin would seem to be too high and/or the bumper too low.

The previous owner loved driving her car and tried to keep the appearance up but was not really mechanically inclined and the car suffers from a lot of what I call "benign neglect" - not really ignoring a problem but just did not know what might be an issue that needed attention. She relied on friends and a succession of mechanical shops to look after the mechanical end, some of whom were experts with Vettes and some who were much less so. The hood adjustment has obviously been altered; now I am wondering if that may have caused the crack with extra movement / flex or could it have been altered to lessen stress on the crack after it appeared? If I correct the latch pin, might I just induce stress that could bring the crack back (after repair) or would I be preventing another re-occurrence because it would be more solid. Thoughts anyone?
 
Oh man Cadder61..... I wish I could steer you in the right direction with your concern on the latch pin and alignment of the hood. However, I have never worked on a 75 Vette so I can't visualise the latch etc. But, from my prior muscle cars, my experience would say that the panel alignment of doors, hoods, trunks etc was always a bit lacking, but by playing around with spacers and bolts you might be able to get some improvement...... I hope some true C3 guys will chime in........
 
It has been too long since my hood was on to remember how it all fits. I will try to remember to look at the latches and see if I can get you an answer (unless someone beats me). Of course mine are in a bin and not on the car right now so it may not be all that much help.

T
 
Hey Cadder,

Well I’ve got the same problem with my hood as you. The corner on my driver side seems to fit pretty good but the passenger curls up. I’ve spent some time on it before but took another crack at it tonight to no avail. I’ve adjusted the striker (it’s not bottoming), and even tried removing the little coil spring. Nothing seems to help. It’s like it just needs to compress down more but can’t. If anybody has any idea I could use it as well.

Edit: I actually think it might be my new hood weatherstripping. I think I put it on a bit tight so it’s collapsing in the corners causing them to bulge up. Not going to do anything as I need a new hood anyway. Hopefully you get yours sorted out.
 

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Yes please, if someone has an answer it would be very welcome. Mine is the same driver side fits perfect, passenger side is high, I have tried adjusting and just cant get it even, I have had the hood off a couple times during the motor replacement process but it didn't fit right before, sometimes I wonder if the hood "moves" with engine heat ???
 
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