Does anyone know how to go about opening a engine cover on a post 73 911 where the release cable has snapped!!
It snapped when it was pulled to open the engine cover. The cable conduit runs under the near side rear wing and then dissappears into the engine bay. I have been trying to work out how to get to it..
I got this from the great pelican parts forum that Luke kindly posted.
You don't have to remove the muffler. You do have to remove the rear bumper. There is, IIRC, a panel behind there that just clips in place. Remove it. Then use a small hole saw-say 1in- and cut directly under the latch area. You'll have to go thru 2 layers, with a gap between. Once that is done, you can look up in there, and use a screwdriver to either pop the latch or lever the pin over enough that it opens. The later is the more likely solution/problem. If you had the pin off for the repaint its easy to get it off a little, to the point where it will latch with some effort, and then not release. Mine did this twice, once when the bumper was already off for the paint while I was fitting a rear lid, and again after the car was assembled when I was fine tuning lid adjustment. Leave the hole-you'll be glad its there.
Greg
That was one good solution..
However this is the winner!
Well, got the stupid thing open! I used a very thick cloth to protect the engine lid and a long screwdriver and a lot of effort, and it popped.
I had put a piece in one of the holes, to keep the latch, shut. Won't do that again.
Turns out the latch wasn't broken. Neat design. If the cable breaks, the lid opens. I guess it wasn't properly adjusted.
Works great now.
Anyone need an almost new latch?
James
So I am going to try this. Porsche are really smart by designing it so the lid opens if the cable breaks. Very good stuff.
Also anyone searching on DDK can now also benifit from these reply's.
Still not opening.. tried prising it open but it seems that it would damage the engine lid.
Not sure what to do without butchering the engine lid or the valence.
Would I be able to cut through the engine cover grill and then reach down into the engine bay and somehow reach the cable and tug it to realese the lid?
What do you guys think?
Alam
77' 911 Carerra 3.0 'The Beast'
58' 356-A Coupe
55' Chevy
51' AP17
Drop the engine out: then you'll be able to get to the back of the latch
Supposedly this catch is designed to release when the cable is broken so have you tried pushing down hard on the engine cover to try and give the latch some freedom to retract and then pull up?
I'm off into the garage in a bit to play whilst the wife is away so i'll study the latch and see if any ideas that don't involve butchering come to mind.
One last thought is that the cable runs through a steel tube in the LH rear quarter panel. Have you got the snapped cable so you can tell were it is broken? An option would then be to cut into the tube just before it turns to enter the engine bay, find the end of the cable and pull with mole grips.
Chances are it snapped right at the latch though, this is just how life is .
Other than that the only the only non sheet metal damaging method is the engine grill as you suggest. With this out you should be able to get your arm in and push the connector that the cable screws to over to one side.
Forgot your car had a whale tail, so reaching through the grill will be a challenge to put it mildly. Lets hope your friend comes back with some good information from JAZ tomorrow.
If you do go for it the catch release lever has to be pulled from right to left as you look at the back of the car. It's a small square block with a screw in to clamp the cable.
Doubt you will be able to reach over the exhaust as the rear engine mounting crossmember and engine bay tinware seal the area off. Unfortunately you can only remove them from inside the engine bay...
Maybe time to bit the bullet and get that hole saw out?
Just a really silly thought: do you know where the cable snapped, if the bulk of the cable is still there then what about this: see how well outer tube is attached to inner wing right at back of arch. Mine was so rusty it just pulled off, if yours did this then you could pull the outer back, expose the inner and get some pliers on it there.
I have already thought of this idea and mate its not silly at all. My car is very solid and and so no joy. I have decide to cut through the grill, but I am going to undertake it nearer the time I strip the car for its new retro mods.
Thanks tho fella..
Alam
77' 911 Carerra 3.0 'The Beast'
58' 356-A Coupe
55' Chevy
51' AP17
If you're using the car at all I'd recommend sorting this problem out sooner rather than later.
I'd want to be able to at least check over the external bits of the engine - fuel hoses/pipes, fan belt, filters, wiring, etc - you need to consider the worst case scenario such as if something caught on fire in the engine compartment & you weren't able to open the engine lid...
I'd also want to check the oil level.
Andy
“Adding power makes you faster on the straights; - subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere”
Very good stuff.
No Joy the engine cover won't budge even with two hefty blokes yanking it up. I am afraid that if I use a pry bar it may cause serious damage.
Snif snif dont say that mate... 