stuck engine lid

Tonyakavw · 11-11-2002, 02:14 PM

Has anyone had a problem with the engine lid creeping back such that there is no clearance between the trunk and the lid? When I bought my car, the trunk had been adjusted back a touch, but recently the problem has gotten worse. I removed the lid to inspect and there is no apparent reason for it being worse.

The only thing I can see is that the fire wall has bowed out towards the back by a bit less than a quarter inch. This has been the case for a long time, but I cannot see any evidence of it having increased.

I'm considering abandoning the use of the hinges and springs and instead, making a bracket to hold the engine lid in place, so that its completely removable. I'm thinking of using some high powered magnets to hold it down, or maybe cotter pins.

-Tony Long
_________
1973 914 (AKA VW)

DAS914 · DAS914's Garage

Tony
Check to see if the "L" shaped engine lid hinge brackets have come loose from the firewall. This is a common problem, which can be easily fixed by re-welding them.
Good luck
Mike
73 914 2.0

Tonyakavw · 11-11-2002, 02:41 PM

I have checked those and they appear okay. There is some flexibility in them, but I think its just the flexing of the firewall metal. When I had the lid off, they seemed okay. And the complement to those (the metal fitting on the lid) is pushed as far back towards the firewall as possible and securely bolted.

DAS914 · DAS914's Garage

I don't think there should be any "flexing" at that attachment point. If you believe the firewall is bowed, straighten it and then you may want run a continuous weld around the entire L bracket attachment point. I'm quite sure the bracket will firm up, and more than likely you'll be able to adjust the lid adequately. If the bracket itself is faulty, I'm sure you can buy them aftermarket.
Mike

norustscott · norustscott's Garage

too bad it is not a Honda...I hear you only have to open them every 10,000 miles...

Tonyakavw · 11-11-2002, 02:59 PM

hehe. So I guess that implies that I should just leave the engine lid off, since it needs to be opened every day

pbanders · pbanders's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by Tonyakavw
hehe. So I guess that implies that I should just leave the engine lid off, since it needs to be opened every day

Same reason you don't need a gas cap on a Hummer.

VARam1500 · 11-12-2002, 04:20 AM

Tony--

I take the cover off a lot so I've kicked around the idea of making "handles" for the lid bolts so they can be screwed in by hand. If the bolts had a piece of rod welded to the head that was about an inch and a half long and knurled (or even had a wing nut welded to the end of that) it would make it easy to hand tighten them and make it easier to get the lid off. I always have to make those position adjustments, too, when putting it back on; shifting it a little here or there to prevent rubbing in back and make it align with the latch.

If anybody makes millions off that idea......send royalties!

--Case...

philinjax · 11-12-2002, 07:58 AM

Next time you take the engine lid off, cut slots in the lid mounting tabs just wide enough to clear the thickness of the bolts that attache the tabs to firewall. That will allow removing the lid without removing the bolts. Makes it easy to remove and replace the lid.
Phil

Tonyakavw · 11-12-2002, 08:29 AM

It would definitely be nice to have a easily removable engine lid. Working on things is so much easier with the lid completely off, and it seems to be a pretty simple modification. The one difficulty I see is that the springs that hold the lid open are pretty strong. It might be difficult to keep those and at the same time have detachable hinges.

This is why I came up with the idea of setting the lid down onto 4 brackets that would hold it in place with either magnets or easily removable pins.

The weight of the engine lid is significant and I'm not sure how easy it would be to routinely position the lid back into place by hand, without running into the leading edge of the trunk.

I think I'm going to try it anyway, as this 914 has enough rust that its going to be replaced in a year or so. So its decent for experimenting on.

-Tony
___________
1973 914 (AKA VW)

Dave at Pelican Parts · Dave at Pelican Parts's Garage

Look at the L-brackets again. They may be cracking and bending at the bend of the L. That's what happened to mine, and it produced the same kind of symptoms.

If the firewall is moving backward, you really really need to fix it.

--DD

Tonyakavw · 11-13-2002, 09:26 AM

So how would one fix a migrating firewall? Seems like a problem that would require tremendous amounts of cutting and welding to fix.

John Rogers · 11-13-2002, 10:29 AM

That is what prompted me to buy a mig welder a couple of years ago. The metal behind the back pad was rotting and you couldn't see it but the symptoms was a moving lid. The cost to have bad pieces cut out and replaced was over $300 total so a welder was a better buy. After I got done I just left the spring rods off and use a rod to hold up the lid when I'm working. Good luck.

Tonyakavw · 11-13-2002, 01:38 PM

Okay I think I've figured out what I should do, but I'm not sure if it will actually work.

Since I plan on replacing this car within 6 months, all I need is a temporary solution. So what I'm going to do is get a steel bar and bolt it to the firewall maybe 6 inches from the top. This bar will span the entire width of the firewall, and if it works as I hope, it will straighten things out.

I suspect what is happening is that water got into the seam between the firewall and rear window. The PO had filled this gap with some kind of goop, probably caulking, and it has lots of holes, so it probably makes a perfect "water goes in, but don't come out" passage.

So any thoughts on whether this might work? I'm wondering how thick the bar has to be in order to provide the rigidity to force the sheet metal back into place....

-Tony