OK heres another silly question... I dont even know if ppl would want to do this but It seemed like a cool idea to me... I was looking under the hood today.. and I mean I was looking at the bottom side of my hood, not the engine. I noticed a series of holes along both sides and began to wonder..

Would it be possible to hook up or attach those "shock like" thingys to it? You know what I mean.. I see them on hatch-backs and campershells, I think even my rear Door has em. They hold up the door once I open it.. Can that be done to my hood so I dont have to prop it up with that annoying metal bar? Wouldnt it be cool to just open the hood and have those "shock thingys" handle the work? or is that just plain dumb?

 

yeppers, i know what ya mean, ive thought about it myself, a few times, but not knowing what size to get, ive never really looked into it, im sure it could be done, now that you have me thinking about it again, lol im gonna have to look into it. thankx man,, j/k
Ric

 

Are you talking about hatch shocks like in the rears of most SUV's and Vans? That would be pretty cool... if you were creative you could probably snag a pair out of the back of a wrecked vehicle at a junkyard for pretty cheap. The only car I can think of that I "know" has them up front is my friend 94 Thunderbird, maybe you could look at one to see how it is set up under a hood.

If you do anything with that let me know how it turns out... definately sounds cool in my opinion.

-Keith

 

I remember seeing a company that sold them for jeeps in Fourwheeler magazine before. Not sure of the company's name now though.

It would be cool, but definately if you do it, do a longevity test so you're not working under the hood for 45 min when

 

I had them in my 93 camry ... but if you were outside working on it, and the wind blew, it would blow the hood down on your head.

 

Jason Burtman has had them on his "coming soon" list for a few years now. You may want to e-mail him to see if/when they will be released.

http://www.burtmanindustries.com/4runner.html

 

I know Chevy Silverado's have them as I work on my dads a lot. And these are not wimpy enough to be blown down from wind...I have to put some force to even budge them...one of the nicer features on that truck as far as convenience when working on it. Maybe look for a wrecked Silverado and see if they would fit.

Fink

 

Yeah, it is a good idea. I'm not sure when they caught on, but my '03 has the lift shocks for the hood instead of the prop bar. There are a few problems with trying to retrofit them on an older ride that have to be worked out. Because of where they have to mount on the hood, you have to be sure the sides of the hood are strong enough to handle the bending load they will put on it. Also, those lift shocks are rated differently, depending on the load they have to support. If you try to use ones that are too strong, the hood might buckle when you closed it. And if they are too weak, they wont support the hood when the wind blows, like someone mentioned earlier.

 

Good points. FWIW, my Volvo 850t has a short stubby hydrolic shock but the amount of compression I can almost swear, is adjustable by a spring. My dad drives it these days, I will see if he can snap a pic. It would be a sweet (and helpful) mod.

-Stu.

 

Not to be devil's advocate, but isnt' the main reason we all own Toyotas so we don't have to work under the hood on daily basis? Just a thought...

 

Ah yes.......... But there are those of us who, once in a while, just like to open the hood and gaze at that thing of beauty under it

 

You check you fluids regularly don't you?

 

I was thinking about the shock thing as well. My chevelle just had these big ass springs on the hinges that held the hood up. But It would probably easier to put shocks on than springs. Granted, my truck is not made in Detroit so I don't have to open the hood every two weeks, but when I do it would be cool to not have that ˟˟˟˟˟˟ing bar in my way proping it open while I mess aroung.

 

This is a mod I've been contemplating a long time. I even have the lift cylinders taking up space in the parts drawer of my toolbox.

 

I dunno how much this helps, but I know someone made a kit to do this exact thing to fox bodied mustangs. I remember reading about it about 3-4 years ago when I had my mustang (I don't miss it one bit).

 

Personally, I like the "so simple it's elegant" solutions to problems. You can't get much simpler than a prop rod. And when have you ever had to replace a prop rod? Those gas cartridges eventually loose their pressure and have to be replaced. Save your money and buy some TRD decals.

 

ive thought about this two, since my Acura Legend has them in the well but im not sure if theres enough room on the sides when you but the close the hood for the shocks to sit in, anyways gwhayduke: the shock last a long time, it was 12 yrs before i had to replace them on my Acura.