ghia front hood locked down

[cyclonehol77]

I spent a portion of my last Sunday with the same situation, i.e., latch in the glove box moves freely but hood doesn’t open. Just put your arm up through the horn hole and use your fingers to engage the lever. Your fingers work the best compared to a screw driver. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be pushing/engaging as the lever so make sure you are pushing the right part of the lever to the right.

If it still won’t go, then try taking up some WD40 into the hole, put a flashlight up the hole with a magnet so you can see where to spray and make sure you have eye protection on and lube up the lock a bit and try again. It is a surprising simple yet effective locking mechanism. Once you get it open, lube it up real good and before you shut it have someone push forward the lever in the glove box and look at the lock from the top down and make sure the cable is working and engaging by seeing if the metal piece inside the circle is moving.

[Push]

Holy Mother of all Resurrections! I have a '73 Karmann Ghia, trunk latch in the glove box moves freely up and down but lid will not open. I've reached through the horn hole and can feel the cable move when someone cycles the lever. I located the "pin" with the slot in it and tried by feel to see if I could feel the slide that engages the pin was moving, hoping to put a screwdriver in the opening and force the slide back, but no go. I've pushed the lever down with such force but still cannot get it to pop open. The lid is flush with the body. Is there a way to detach the lever, grab the cable with pliers and pull? Any ideas welcome. Thanks

[xzener]

[futhark]

After my first '72 Karmann Ghia coupe was totaled in a rear end collision Easter Sunday of 2007, I bought a second '72 coupe in 2008 as a replacement. One of the first things I did was to install a wire between the front hood latch and the "shelf" above the air intake duct passing through the drain hole tube on the right side, as described in my November 24, 2004 posting in this thread. Over the years I have found it generally more convenient to use this mechanism for opening the trunk than using the lever inside the glove box, except when wearing a heavy coat, which makes getting my arm between the front tire and the rim of the wheel well difficult. I cannot recommend this easy to install modification strongly enough.

[andk5591]

I need to read this Monday LOL
_________________
D-Dubya Manx clone 1914. Ex wifes car.
Rosie 65 bug - My mostly stock daily driver.
Woodie 69 VW woodie (Hot VWs 7/12).
"John's car" 64 VW woodie - The first ever
Maxine 61 Cal-look bug - Ex-wifes car.
66 bug project - Real patina & Suby conversion
There's more, but not keeping them...

[Jeromerino]

Mission accomplished in about ten minutes, which was mostly spent on cleaning and adjusting the latch mechanisms.

Time to go ride my bicycle above treeline in the dirt.
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[BerneseMtnDog]

That hole that the rip cord is going through is actually where your hood channel drain tube ought to be.

Steve

[Jeromerino]

[swavananda]

[O2COOLED]

[Jeromerino]

Hey Y'all, it's been a while. I've been living life and driving my Ghia without any issues...until the other day. I noticed the hood would not close all of the way anymore and the pin assembly was loose. Apparently I tightened things up a little too much because after closing the hood, it was lower than flush with the nose. I pulled the release, heard and felt the cable move, but it didn't pop. I'll be reaching through the horn boot the next time fuel is needed, doh.

Hope everyone and their Ghias are doing well.
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[NOVA Airhead]

I have a back up system in my car. I have another cable attached to the latch it exits through the fender on the passenger side behind the headlight. There should already be a hole there. Its pretty much a straight line. If my glove box lever does not open the hood that will.
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Ghia Owner Emeritus

[sdinges]

Success !! Thanks

Is there a way to reinforce the cable stop at the latch to keep it from bending and collapsing?

[NOVA Airhead]

While you manipulate the safety latch have someone push on the hood a bit. Sometimes it needs a little help. If that doesn't work you will either need to go through the glove box or try unscrewing the latch.
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Ghia Owner Emeritus

[sdinges]

I realilze this is an old thread but I am experiencing this same problem and haven't had much luck reaching up through the horn boot and releasing the hood. I can move the safety latch and I pull the cable but the hood isn't moving; its stuck.

Is my next step unscrewing the locking pin?

Thanks

[thebluse]

thanx Guys, we just had to move the glove box out of the way 'cause the cable wasn't disconnected, as I thought. The plastic tube had broken and the cable stopper had nothing to resist. We dodged, that one!

[John K]

I know this is an older thread, but I would want to add something to it anyways for anyone who is reading this. The hood latch cable does come loose sometimes and even stretches ( HMM, imagine that)
What I did as a precaution was on the end of the cable,after you tightened it with the standard clamp there, attach what is called a pin keeper. You can but them at any motorcycle shop. This is what bikers use on the back of their jacket pins to keep from losing them. it's a real small like a donut where the cable fits perfectly through the center. Position it where you want it on the end near the latch, and tighten it with the set screw on the side. They cost about 5 bucks for 10 of them at your local neighborhood motorcycle place. It's basically a backup if the main cable clamp loosens somehow. FYI real tiny allen wrench to tighten the set screw always comes with the keepers.

[das skiver]

In my case the aftermarket plastic sleeve on the threaded adjustable latching post broke (imagine ThaT!?).
So my front hood would only lift about 1'.
It wasn't the release mechanism - I could reach that... and i could see the threaded post - so I disassembled a hack saw and using just the saw blade I cut my post to open the trunk.
tape the paint on the hood and leading edge of the nose where the blade may scratch.

[garyrowland]

beauty is in the eye of the beerholder!

[Buggeroff]

Mmmmmmmmmmmm cold beer. the mother of all ingenuity.
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"Chris of the Ozarks"

Headlinerless 57 Ghia
Thread deleter extrordinaire.