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Okay, I know this is blaspehemy to post regarding Buicks here, but we are having a heck of a time struggling with this. I posted the question on a Buick forum, but have not received a reply yet. Just possibly someone here might know.

If we can get the hood aligned right, we can finish the paint, and I can scoot on down the road.

When lifting the hood, as you begin to raise it and get to around 30-degrees high, the back corners nearest the doors rub both fenders. We don't see anywhere to adjust it. "We" means the guys at the body shop and me. So, this is even confounding the pros.

If it should work like my Packard, it doesn't. In the Packard, the back of the hood lifts straight up and clears the fenders by the time you reach about 5 to 10-degrees. In the Buick, the hood stays down in the back too long.

This has been driving us nuts for about 3 months. Anyone by chance know what to do?

Thanks.

I don't know anything about the Buick hood but knowing GM I assume it is the same as a 53 Olds which I've had occasion to examine. A key observation is how the hood fits when closed at the rear corners. If it is lower than the surrounding fenders/cowl, I'd guess that shims were used for adjustment and they are missing.

Thanks, Owen, but the hood does not sit too low. I'm going to drive my Packard up there, so we can study its hood workings and compare. In the meantime, any other suggestions would be great.

The exterior resto has been a year in the works, and it is almost finished. I am ready to drive.

What's a "Buick"?

No idea what a Buick hinge looks like but if anything like this 54 Cad, can provide those alignment instructions.

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My friend with the 53 Olds suggests your problem could be due to weak hood hinge springs. Not having seen the hinge, I can't say if he's right or wrong.

EDIT: The Olds hood scrapes the top of the rear end of the fender on one side because one of the pivot pins on the hinge is missing. That hinge looks nothing at all like the Cadillac hinge picture posted above.

Jeff,

A couple of pic's, hood closed and open and the hinge and spring mechanism may assist.

Get a load of this!

We were messing around trying to tweak the hood, and a pivot bolt broke. It's not really a "bolt," but instead looks like a riveted piece with a shaft to allow two parts of the hinge to pivot against each other.

This freaking car! It's so close to beautiful, but man, the horror (to steal a line from Marlon Brando).

I will get pics.

I am of the mind to find some replacement hinges, but they don't just bolt on to the hood or screw on with nuts. They look like some big-ass industrial rivets. There is no access from behind the support frame of the hood to convert.

I will take a set of pics and post back. I know you guys are very savvy when it comes to problem-solving this stuff. When we get this solved, I will be immensely grateful.

Exactly what I just suggested a few moments ago. On the Olds it looks like a rivet but really isnn't. It's a shoulder bolt with a flattened button head, milled on two sides for a wrench grip. The problem I'm facing with the Olds is how to stretch the spring enough with the hinge on the car to reinsert a new shoulder bolt, or whether to remove the hinge completely and try it on the bench. It's a pretty hefty spring to say the least.

Let's clarify, Owen. That spring is crazy to put on! The least tension will be experienced when the hood is fully open - and I mean all the way open (not just open "as usual"). The most tension is in closed position.

If you try to remove the spring and put it back on, you will want the hood fully open, and you had better be very careful if you have good paint. That hinge will tend to try to pop and fly and do anything but go on when you are trying to put it on. I know because we had to do this, and needless to say, we will have to repaint some sections.

While we were struggling, I was scratching my head, saying to myself, "They must have a tool for working with these springs."

Good to know about the shoulder bolts. I didn't know they unscrewed.