1949 Buick Roadmaster Hood

L

LeeN

Member
I am 94 years now. Like to drive my '49 Buick but now am a little afraid that if I have a little engine trouble, I will not be able to lift the hood. It is a one piece hood and lifts from the side. There is only one holding bracket that is almost always on the other side where you can't reach it to hold up the hood. Not the worse of the problem however. Procedure is to pull the lift handle which hopefully will release the hood if the cable is adjusted properly. But once released, it is still very hard to get your fingers under the hood far enough to be able to lift it. Needless to say to get it raised far enough and to hold it with one arm and to grab the holding support with the other and hopefully be able to stab it into the support hole. A trick for a magician.
Well with that long dissertation I know everyone that owns one of these autos feels the same as I do I'm sure. Reason I am writing is what can we do about it?? I would like to install some
lifting struts. Finding some long enough however is a problem and also how or where to mount them.
I am wondering if anyone has successfully done this difficult task. If so, I would certainly like to know how they did it. Sure would help me out and others also I am sure. Would like to hear from anyone regarding this problem.
 
Finding the parts you need is not a problem. Contact tech line for brand of lift support with length you need. Stabilus is one of many.
You can look at a 4th gen VW, 1999.5 to 2004 to see the locations. They have struts under hood and hatch.
 
I took a look at my 52 Special hood, I'll attach a picture.

With the hood up, it's about 30-31" from the area near the 2 hood prop "clips" to the middle of the hood (where the prop goes).
Looks like it's about 16-17" from those same spots to the center pivot for the hood prop.

That looks like something that could use a couple of e.g. McMaster Carr Pneumatic Cylinders, from near the hood clip spots to the center of the hood. Something like this: McMaster-Carr

Your hood is longer and presumably heavier than mine, so you'd want to weigh (like with a fish scale) how many pounds of force the hood needs to stay up, and buy struts that have more force than that. Since you're using two, they'll be additive, but the "downside" strut wouldn't add a whole lot. Also wouldn't help very much with initial opening force since the struts would be somewhat horizontal. Something like this (black or red locations):

52SpecialHood2.jpg

For initially opening the hood - I wonder if you could use hood pop-up springs to help get your fingers under the edge? No idea how to mount them.

1745782369100.jpeg


Another thing that might help - take off the lower hood prop bracket, drill out the rivet holding the single hood prop, replace it with an appropriate bolt, and stack *2* hood props on there - that way at least the hood prop wouldn't always be on the wrong side.

(Honestly? I think I'd make sure I had good auto assist policy and then drive.)
 
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