How To Open A Hood That Is Stuck Shut - Toyota

[@bigpappahemi4263]

As a battery thief I greatly appreciate this top tip! Thanks Mr. O!

[@toddinthemiddle]

More power to ya

[@maryfullerleykom3831]

This tip saved us real $$$$. Our 2006 Tundra was in the garage with a broken cable and dead battery after we were gone several weeks. We drilled out the hole to access the cable. One tip we needed was to have someone lifting the unlocking piece while another opened the safety latch. THANKS!

[@curtisj2165]

"If your hood is stuck shut, or if you are into stealing car batteriies" very funny😃🤣😂😁

[@TheTheomax]

Another Fine How To video for Honest and not so honest people. This goes to show you that Eric cares about everybody good or not so good.

[@sunshinepatsoph4219]

2002 Tacoma.....I just had this problem, but before the drilling, I stuck a piece of rebar through the grill and gave the latch assembly a few bangs. I pulled the hood latch and voila, popped right open. Lubed it up and is working great. So try this first.

[@toddinthemiddle]

Hopefully that works for my '04, because the technique in this vid looks like a blind prayer got answered 🙄 UPDATE: Your tip about whacking the assembly was gold. Just smacked a plumbers wrench 5 or 6 times and...boom!! Take a bow, buddy ✌️😗👍

[@mitchelljensen6088]

I personally appreciated the anti- destruction tip. Thanks man, worked like a charm.

[@spelunkerd]

I did one of these with the Jetta hood latch, and had some conflicted thoughts about whether I was teaching a few criminals quietly watching from the back. There's no doubt these videos help more than they harm, and it would be a lot of effort just to gain access to a battery. The only people motivated to learn how these hood latches work are those who forget to lube the latch mechanism at each oil change.

[@snoopdogie187]

Anyone that is looking to do no good already knows how to usually. They could be the ones teaching us things. They don't exactly care about damaging other parts though, so this cleaner method is probably more work than they want to do.

[@king49334]

Battery powered angle grinder with cut disc make stealing converter that much faster 30 second top

[@bartz118]

On an old vehicle like that. A criminal would probably just smash a window and pull the hood latch.

[@jaredstrehlein5605]

Drilling that hood latch would involve too much of a criminal's time. However. it depends on how responsive the local police are.

[@marwanmohamed4414]

watching your videos is part of my daily routine.. great tips as usual...... huge fan from Libya here.

[@adkancapadventures7738]

Those Toyota hood latches tend to seize up because they don't need to be used that often. Same thing with my Hondoo hood latches.

[@johnferguson7235]

You should be checking the oil, the radiator coolant, power steering fluid, brake fluid, belts and hoses at least once a month. So the latch should be used at least 12 times a year.

[@jhmsmarttv795]

My hood opens four times a year. Once by the Toyota mechanic that gives the car a service, and the other three is me filling wiper fluid. 15 years since I last checked the oil level on a Toyota (and yes, I drive fairly new, or new vehicles). Cheers!

[@kthwkr]

In the 80's after college I was buying my first car. I asked around at work about what was the best car to buy. All the US car owners told me that warranty service was great at all those companies. When I asked the Honda, Datsun, and Toyota guys about warranty service they shrugged and told me they didn't know because they never had a need for warranty service. I bought a new '87 Honda Accord. It's still on the road today.

[@THEGAMINGHELP101]

@@kthwkr When people ask me about warenty on products I always tell them that if the product they are buying needs warenty it's a bad product and they should not buy it.

[@Micko350]

On the other hand, Chrysler/Dodge /Jeep & Ford ones tend to wear out!

[@jakeschisler7525]

You are a wealth of information, just like the old Motor's manuals from years ago!

[@scuba422123]

awesome tip mr o! I usually take a 3 inch hole saw straight through the top of the hood then a little duct tape

[@billneu9520]

More great knowledge from the expert auto mechanic, engineer, inventor, developer, creator; master mind. Thanks Bill N

[@brandonrivard5843]

Great vid thank you!! Spent hours trying to remove grill, bumper etc to get to the hood latch. FYI this works on 04-09 Prius as well.

[@TheKillerMarine]

You should try CorossionX Eric! We use them at work for the military vehicles. When we first got it they sprayed a bearing down with it and then let it sit on our shop for 2 months in saltwater. They came back pulled it out and there was absolutely no rust at all

[@barrywhitley2535]

I think they should turn SMA Repair into a TV program. You are much more interesting and entertaining than the car programs they have on now. Nice videos Eric and Co.

[@justsomeguy8951]

Free tip Tuesday on a Thursday lol

[@jerrybungard7107]

Great tip! Worked at an auto auction for a few years and can't count how many hoods I had to get open or to stay shut....nobody seems to ever lube these things

[@351cleavland]

Thanks for the tip! This is going to help me soooooooooooooooo much in growing my collection of car batteries!

[@125sm3]

Thanks for the quick tip Tuesday series. 3 more days untill the weekend 🤣

[@johnhanson8450]

I did what you said to do, and it worked great flawlessly

[@peterparker371]

Thanks a lot for posting all these helpful videos. You are a real life saver. Second time you bailed me out of a jam.

[@fuel396]

Rock on Brother thanks for the Tip My 4Runner Right now as I type is stranded in a Parking lot with a dead Battery This should save my ASs thanks again

[@lamorena32002]

Life saver !! My car didn’t start and couldn’t open the hood with pry bar …had to drill hole .

[@gregwest6032]

Mine unlatched when I went to center punch it, so I just took it out, oiled the living tar out of it, reinstalled (sans anti-theft cover. I then cut some chunks of rubber about 3/4x3/8x3/8 and stuff it into the now compressed rubber springs on each side of the engine bay frame. Mine was stuck because of two things, 1) the extruded rubber 'push up' springs that help pop the hood open were flowed and tired. 2) the latch mechanism was pretty corroded. Now it works better as new and that pesky cover is out of the way for the future. Great vid, Thanks

[@darwindwelle5267]

Yup yer never to old to learn something new thanks Eric.

[@MichaelRobinson-up6fo]

Love your videos Eric, your not a normal mechanic as some mechanics want the easy way out and the most expensive way to do it so they can put ahole in the customers pockets. This has also happened to me on my 06 Ford Taurus and the shop said that I'll need a new hood and front grill and said a new hood would be 700$ + labor and the grill 80$. I was able to get it open by popping off the bumper to get a flat head screwdriver in and get it unlocked. And bought a new latch for 25$.

[@AP9311]

That's great tip!!! Thanks Dr O for the tip videos!! Appreciate it!!

[@Paul1958R]

Etic, I dont own a Toyota but thank you for this anyways. SMA#1 God bless paul

[@GOAP68]

Years ago I picked up an inexpensive set of 12" HSS drills. Paid for themselves the first couple of times I needed them.

[@cindybetten7573]

I just bought a 1990 Camry and it has a stuck/ inoperable hood latch. I immediately noticed that it’s hood latch looks just like the latch in this video. ( a2000 Tacoma truck) who wood a thought??? This is my first Toyota and I’m already finding cool stuff w/ Toyota engineering! Although this car is 33 years old, it’s former original owner and good mechanics have taken incredible care of it. That’s the main reason why I bought it! Please wish me good luck!!!

[@danlynndray6333]

Thanks / Same issue with a 05 Sequoia/ could not open hood/ . This *tip* did me access/Thanks again!!!

[@kevinbyrne4538]

Now I can begin a new career -- selling second-hand car batteries. Thank you for the tip !

[@brandonnoe2842]

Thanks for the tips and the laugh . I found both ends of a claw hammer to work but tends to alert the whole neighborhood

[@darrelllindsay8656]

Thanks for this. Got me started in the right direction. I was also able to monkey a pick in from the right side of the latch assembly. A shorter pick is best as there's not a lot of room to work...but there's quite a bit of space in the latch mechanism to slip the pick in from the right (and towards the front of the vehicle). Small patience test as its all blind. This was for a 2000 tacoma...not sure how much space there is in some of the other years...

[@shauno3697]

Lmao @ or you're just into stealing car batteries....½" drill, just above the hump, drill at an angle, etc...Remember kids, you can skip this step most times when you want to steal the catalytic converter, but it will still come in handy for those four cylinder RAV4's. Just remember: If I can do it, you can do it.

[@JPilot2]

G'day, Mr. O! Another great quick tip Tuesday! In regards to the hood latch. I've had a similar issue. It was very sticky, so it wouldn't "pop" up, and even rusted shut. Thank you for doing how to open a hood latch (Toyota 4Runner) that is stuck closed! Cheers! 😊🛠❤️✌🏼

[@chriskozlarek8013]

This also worked for 2002 LS430. Took me 10 min. Used long 3/8 drill bit and a pick.

[@benjaminstockton3917]

Nice Eric O. I like the quick tips thanks for video's

[@baxrok2.]

Life before picks - Was it even possible? lol Thanks Dr. O!

[@SouthMainAuto]

No... you'd burn the car down ...🔥👨‍🚒🚒

[@billyyoder8171]

Thank you Eric. Good job. Have a good night and weekend.

[@BADHABIT571]

Two Free Batteries from the Local Walmart tonight . . . THANKS ! ! !

[@Blazer02LS]

Just dress nice for the cameras.... LOL

[@mistermatsuda]

Thieves just break the glass, no drilling required. Thanks for the tip, the dude doing my safety check unhooked my latch, now I have to do surgery. I'll clean up the latch and relube so it doesn't stick open anymore but the hole will be covered up with black gorilla tape just in case. Thanks!!

[@briansierzega]

I don’t ‘own’ a Toyota, but with tips like this....I just might soon! ..lol 😜

[@AMStationEngineer]

My family had been in the auto body repair business for 80+ years; my cousin, Ray, would have sworn at it for 15 minutes, then told the painter's helper to "give it a shot, there's a fiver in it if you can get it open".

[@wildnmild]

thnaks for your time and info! i'll try that on my friends toyota tundra.

[@jrneff9773]

dang is my internet bad only video for a minute great video thk you

[@MichaelDoerner]

You guys are moving up in the world! SMA, LLC??!?!? Looking forward to bigger and better things Eric and Vanessa! :-)

[@billygreenhorn9275]

My '98 Lexus GS400 hood is stuck, Im gonna try this...btw I just subbed

[@tcifusion4497]

QUICK TIP FRIDAY....WELL EXPLAIND!!!!GOT IT....

[@rickgaine3476]

That is a good tip, will come in handy if people need to get a new battery and all the stores are closed. You just have to disconnect the battery very quickly so the alarm doesn’t go off for a long enough period of time to draw attention. :-)

[@davidbehr2327]

Great video- with the needed info and not the extraneous baloney

[@cubey]

On my old Ford truck, you can release it by hand. The cable was broken when I got the truck and I still just open it at the grill. One finger can release it as if you pulled the cable.

[@CubasAutomotive]

Torch to open the hood? Lol hmm. Good tip!

[@tam1381]

Yeah it makes light work of a stuck bonnet.

[@adobo8383]

Was hoping for big nasty or the super air hammer. Lol

[@CubasAutomotive]

@Joe Johnson I've heard it both ways... lol.

[@Chris-Fennimore]

If you dont have a long drill bit, can't you just use a ratchet with a long extension to remove the hood latch bolts?

[@ehsnils]

I had a problem with a broken trunk latch on an Audi sedan once. And I couldn't get in through the back seat because it was a full steel sheet all across between the wheelhouses. But a very long socket extender and a 14mm socket saved the day because then I could remove the piece the lock latched on to and remove it and get the trunk open. There was a small square hole behind the back seat after that, but that wasn't visible when the back seat was in place so no big deal.

[@montestu5502]

Not sure you could access the top two bolts and the cable would have to be totally disconnected from the latch as well.

[@98ek9]

@@ehsnils what does this have to do with a hood latch?

[@colestowing8695]

@@grandmasmalibu - i like to work from my couch while i'm drinking a beer with the other hand :) PS. I was gonna mention this technique of removing the bolts..I've done it a few times. Yes the latch is still attached to the hood but you can raise the hood up enough to get access to everything. No need for drilling etc, and you can lube and reuse all the parts afterwards if you want. I'm actually quite surprised eric o doesn't do it this way.

[@danishghostrider]

@@98ek9 It is the same problem, just in the other end of the car ;)

[@spresc2180]

I was lucky. My 99 4runners hood would open just fine, but would not close. When the inside lever was pulled it would stay extended out, with the latch mechanism stuck in the open position. Pushing the inside hood release lever back into its normal position was a nogo. So I kept a screwdriver in the cab to insert into the latch mechanism to pull a a lever back to where it should be, and the inside hood release would be pulled back to where it belonged, and the hood would latch closed. I did that for perhaps 4 years.

[@fuel396]

me too it works

[@fuekue3440]

Thanks for the post. I had use your method to get the latch to open. But I still don't understand why the puller inside doesn't pull the latch and it is so hard to pull.

[@michaeldunagan8268]

I'm pricing a new grill and a new hood for my stuck broken cable on my 1999 Toyota Solara. You may have saved me $300.00. 😘

[@stf2400]

And if you have a 1996 Buick Century, remove the front grill and with a nice set of needle nose pliers pull the hood release cable. You need a decent star head screwdriver to remove the grill but I’ve been doing this for several years now and that old car runs as good as new (if not better than new now days).

[@gregkillick4261]

Before you start drilling get a long screwdriver on the newer latches that don't have a drill rivet and tap it with a hammer and that jogs the latch go from there 2010 on Toyota trucks Thanks for the video

[@toddinthemiddle]

i got a similar tip from a 2002 tacoma owner in these comments. just banged on a plumbing wrench against the assembly of my 2004 a few times, and i was in. 😙👍

[@NEMURIJAGA]

Not sure if you have the fords we do in england ,but the hood latch is a nightmare ,you have to insert the ignition key ,turn it one way . then turn it the other way to open the bonnet , Well everything gets stuck inside the mechanism , leaves , salt ,grit . i almost snapped the key trying to get those things to move , Great design

[@bartz118]

Usually just a lever on the inside.

[@fredflintstone8048]

Thanks! Great help for my battery stealing business.

[@danlevesque5437]

Only hood latch failure I had was my 99 grand cherakee in cab handle failed but I could still pull cable thru the grill

[@wysetech2000]

Good tip, Eric.

[@Jim-tz9lj]

So once its drilled, you don't need to replace the new latch! Just carry a pick.

[@alnewell31]

Do you have to replace latch if your just trying to get hood open to replace broken release cable ?

[@roadkill5333]

I can see grandpa now!! Out by the barn, with his hand auger, trying to drill into the hood of the old Chevy pickup, to see if the remains of the 1972 battery are still good!!

[@andrewkirwin6629]

Nice tip Eric

[@MattJonesYT]

And yet another day that my Jaws Of Life sit in the corner unused, unloved and forlorned.

[@stephenbay9564]

Excellent videos!! This one was super also. Can you please share - where did you get that 1/2" "hyper-stepped" drill bit??? I have looked all over, and can't seem to locate anyone selling them. I looks like it would come in handy for a number of different jobs. Thanks in advance!

[@derrickcarter354]

The older ford explores have a similar issue and with a long enough pick or flathead screw driver they pop open every time

[@Ivo--]

I had this problem once. It was great because I was about to drive for two hours but my low coolant light came on. Went to check th level but the hood latch was seized solid! Lots of panther pee, a big screwdriver and lots of swearing later I managed to open the hood and replace the coolant.

[@juweekhan]

other toyota have gone in long extension unbolted bolts through grill wobble extension but yours is another option

[@lonwillis783]

Thanks gotta steal some batteries now! Good Tip!

[@lfratta]

Good time for a hood scoop!

[@tage202]

NASA need to hire you as the spaceship technician

[@AntonioClaudioMichael]

I own a 2000 4runner never had a hood latch problem

[@PrinceoftheCityNY]

Helped me today!

[@k-evinshighshowcantonese9922]

Hey Eric. Since you have all the big 3 aftermarket scanner: Verus, Launch, Autel. I think we would all like to see a video from you about your thoughts and experience with these scanners. Not so much about which is the 1st, 2nd, 3rd. Just things like pros and cons. I have an Autel Elite and I’m getting a Verus Edge mainly for drivability troubleshooting + guided components test information + handheld 4channel scope. Maybe a little overkill, but ever since I watched you, keith, Ivan, ScannerDanner, I’ve always wanted one for myself. I like the graphing and datalog buffer on the Verus.

[@petemedina8446]

Great tip never heard of that before

[@enceladusfox2247]

Awesome tip, thank you very much :)

[@VWWRENCHIE]

News Flash...Toyota truck battery thefts are up 38 percent due to an instructional video. lol Why not just soak the new latch in Fluid Film and fugget about it.?

[@finaltheorygames1781]

I'm having this same problem right now and its way harder than it looks when the hood is shut.

[@edwardwbenesjr.5608]

Just knocked this out. I thought I was F'ed.. Thank you!

[@greenleaph5145]

I am sure there is another way as oppose to drilling the hood latch.

[@toddinthemiddle]

There is.. whack on the assembly with a stout piece of steel, using a hammer. Mine opened right up

[@AntonioClaudioMichael]

Great video Eric o

[@AlbertaPatriot1985]

quick tip Tuesday, on a Thursday 👍👌

[@carlbarnes4293]

AWESOME tip!!!!

[@davidmeyers3549]

I have to give mine the Fonzi thump sometimes when its cold out.

[@pv7524]

I always thought that the hood didn't open because it was engineered that way. That being they're so damn reliable, you don't ever have to open it!

[@63256325N]

Thanks for the video.

[@garyalbitre701]

Thanks for the help.

[@hoganhogan952]

How do you not have a million subs yet? I don't get it

[@moavic5087]

Thanks Eric now my Insurance on my Taco went up. Lol 😂

[@mrb1864]

I find a mac-10 good for popping stuck hoods :-) stuck or busted cables can be right pisser deal with .

[@jaredstrehlein5605]

Good Tip

[@edwardmartinez199]

Eric where is the video you did on Mrs O sisters car you pulled it??? Why???

[@omarkuika]

Heres bueno en tu trabajo, me gustan tus vídeos gracias por compartir conocimientos

[@Mr92cadi]

Great tip

[@randyhughes5160]

This is good information but I want to see all the failures from oh I got this or the just move

[@tiredagain6722]

Hillybilly version: large hammer to smash grill, pry bar to destroy latch and Bob's your uncle.

[@roadkill5333]

Bobs also the owner of the truck!! And that's how you went to jail!! For stealing your uncles truck battery!!

[@roadkill5333]

Bob McCabe I KNOW RIGHT!! It just don't make any sense at all, Uncle Bob!! Whyyyyyyyy!!!

[@forbeshutton5487]

Use a pickaxe.

[@BP-bx6si]

Fannie's your ass

[@chrisfinds7745]

How about drilling a hole in the new one before fitting it to the vehicle saving the hassle if problem arises again.