1950 Pacemaker hood release cable

[Deleted User]

Hi. I am new to this forum, and after reading many of the posts, I can tell that there is a lot of experience and information shared here. I have a problem with my 1950 Hudson Pacemaker hood release. The handle broke off the cable, and the cable is so rusted that I cannot pull it to release the hood. I have tried in vain to lubricate the cable. Is there a way to open the hood without using the cable? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Deleted User]

This has been a problem ever since stepdown Hudsons started putting some age on the hood release cables. The story is that you will have to back off either 4 bolts with nuts or 4 screws with nuts that hold your hood latch plate onto the tie panel. The best way is to attack this through the front grill. It is tedious and frustrating. Use plenty of PB blaster, Kroil or Liquid Wrench to help. Once the latch plate is detached, you need to obtain a new hood release cable (bowden wire) . Once you have repaired/replaced the cable,do yourself a favor. Get a length of stout wire ,make a loop with it and attach one end of it to the hood latch actuating /release lever on the back of the hood latch plate. That way if your cable snaps again, you will have a back up. We've all been there. lol. Good luck

[Deleted User]

I have been able to go in through the grill and get ahold of the cable . Then pull hard on it till in slips in its holding clamps enough to pop latch
Roger

hoggyrubber

i tried and tried to get a used one freed up, i bought for my car. the original one had been cut- prob one of you guys. ) i never could get it. i couldn't believe it when they told me you could get a replacement at oreillys. i was even able to attach original handle and use orig bracket. there was 2 choices and i got the heavy duty one.

Richard E.

The way to open the hood when the cable breaks is to take a long handled screw driver and work it up into the bottom of the latch through the front of the grill and then tap on it gently but firmly until the latch pops open. It takes some patience! Then go get a new cable at your local auto parts store and install it. However it is always a good idea to put a pull wire on the latch, hanging down into the grill where you can grab it. One never knows when one of these cables is going to fail!!!

[Deleted User]

Order a new one from Jason at Albright's, you will never break the ones he sells. Walt.

SuperDave

Does Jason's have a "T" handle like original?

SuperDave

Sounds like a 49-50 Ford part

Jon B

A friend had this happen with his '51 Studebaker. We first had to unscrew and remove the "shark's mouth" grilles in order to get up toward the top of the radiator surround, but we found that we could slide the latch -- the part that grabs the stud (that looks like a Christmas tree light) on the hood -- from the underside with a screwdriver, just enough so that it released the stud. I don't know if the StepDown latch is similar to the Studebaker's (my Hudson is from a kinder, gentler era in which one didn't need an internally controlled latch!). But it might be worth a try.

Jon B

Here is what "Shadetree" suggested last November to someone else with the same problem. That person had a '51, but possibly this could work with a '50 like yours:

Reaching thru grill with pocket flat blade screw driver,center and behind probe mounted to hood, push screw driver in to small slot. when in slot push to side either direction, this releases hood same as cable pull. with a little practice this as quick as pulling cable release in side Hudson. arm thru grill may be a problem on some models but not on 51 up stepdowns. hope this helps --- melvin

[Deleted User]

I am not having any luck with the hood release problem. I can't access the nuts to unscrew the latch plate unless the hood is open. Pushing a screwdriver sideways is not possible because the grill opening is too small to allow me to get any leverage on the tool. Any more suggestions?

53jetman

If you can get your hand in the grill far enough to get a good hold on the release cable and give it a hard pull, it will probably release.

[Deleted User]

53 Jetman, it worked! My brother-in-law pried on the cable between the latch and 1st cable clip, and the hood just popped. If we had pulled the cable toward us from that same section of cable, it would have worked just like you said. Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. The Hudson project is officially underway!

Jon B

Vinny: now get yourself a new cable, without delay!!

[Deleted User]

Thats what I said in the first place ,allways works for me..........unless cable is messed up near the end,
Roger

[Deleted User]

You're right Roger. I misread your post the first time and thought I had to pull the cable straight away from the latch. Now that I've opened the hood, it's clear what you meant. Thanks for the great tip. I was able to look under the hood today for the first time since 1974 when I took it off the road. This car originally belonged to my grandfather so I'm the second owner. I hope to leave it to my grandson some day (he's only one year old, so it will be a while).
Bud

[Deleted User]

You may be able to fee the old cable up. The place they generaly get rusty is along the inner fenderwell where it is bundled up with the wires. Tends to hold moisture in there . Good idea to dribble oil along the whole length of the cable every now and then . Keeps it working ,
Roger

[Deleted User]

The old Bordon tubes were just coiled wire and quite prone to rust. Later years they learned to put plastic coating on them an got much better results,
Roger