Hood cross cable fix

damoroso

damoroso

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 7, 2008
Messages
409
Location
Middleburg, FL
Funny thing happened to me today...my hood wouldn't open on the passenger side!!! :bomb: This was a new cable (less than a year old) and the SECOND one I had to put on. The first one lasted about a week, one of the plastic tabs broke off. I bought the cable from Ecklers, and they stood by it, told me to send the broken one back and they'd send a new one, which they did. Both cables broke at the plastic tabs that bolt to the the car. Problem is these things are junk (made in China) and since this is all that Ecklers carries for this part I'm not going back for another. (I hope the Chinese build their millitary equipment with the same frigg'n quality they seem to build everything else with!!!)

Well, I think I figured out a permanent fix for these. For $1.75, I went to Lowes and picked up two 1/4 inch rubber lined clamps. I put them on the cable where the plastic is and bolted them down. The clamps hold great, and I don't think I'll have this problem again...


DSC02668.jpg


DSC02669.jpg
 
Mine broke at the same location.... cheap junk.... I fixed mine with a homemade bracket that clapms onto the cable, your fix looks better :)
 
Thanks Karsten, the rubber gives them good grip, pluse they're just a bit smaller than the cable where the broken plastic is making them clamp well too. For $1.75 and 10 minutes, I'm happy!

Gene's just pissed he didn't think of it first!! :rofl:
 
damoroso said:
Thanks Karsten, the rubber gives them good grip, pluse they're just a bit smaller than the cable where the broken plastic is making them clamp well too. For $1.75 and 10 minutes, I'm happy!

Gene's just pissed he didn't think of it first!! :rofl:
Click to expand...

BULLSHIT LITTLE EVA!!!

BTDT on my cable decades ago.....you youngsters think you the first guy to do a fix on a car.....:twitch::eek::tomato::rofl:
 
You guys do things the hard way. Get a choke cable and cut it to fit, then bend the "Z", and clamp it down. That cable is some tough stuff. No Idea what they get for the "real" cable, but a generic choke cable is cheap
 
Where did the cable come from. I make one, and if there is an issue I would like to know about it to get resolved. The factory ones had a tendency to snap over time but if we can improve it then that is the goal.
Justin
 
J. Abbott said:
Where did the cable come from. I make one, and if there is an issue I would like to know about it to get resolved. The factory ones had a tendency to snap over time but if we can improve it then that is the goal.
Justin
Click to expand...

I got mine at Ecklers, it snapped at the same location that you see in the two photos in the first post in this thread that the OP posted ... it's the plastic piece at the driver's side, it breaks between the bolt that's holding it down and the cable.
 
I got both of them from Ecklers, the bags had "Made in China" stickers on them. You could see the plastic tabs didn't have enough plastic injected in them, there were large voids in both tabs and on both cables. But hey, I'm sure they saved money by using less plastic and having them manufactured in China. The cost of warranties and reputation simply doesn't seem to be part of the calculation.
 
Well,
If you would like to try another, we have ours made for us here in the states. I would prefer to stay away from anything made in China, Tiawan, or even Pakistan and India. There are some quality parts coming in from India and even Pakistan, but it really depends on who is making it and how close they are keeping it to specs. The sad thing is when you go to SEMA and Appex in LV, it seems they all sell themselves on having the lowest price, but last year I did not hear one company say, we are more expensive because we make quality items. I try and have everything that we make done here in the US, and I would say that we are about 90% that with what we are making. We do sell things that we don't make also, and those are 50/50 on origin between the states and overseas. I try very hard to make sure that the cheap stuff does not come in our doors, which makes it difficult to price match sometimes because we are talking apples to oranges on part. That cable for example I have to price match all the time, mine is made in the states and you say theirs is made in China. Well I can tell you theirs is probably less then a 1/3 of what mine costs, but I still have to keep the prices close. Then you have the issue of AC/Delco doing the same thing now and going overseas, has anyone seen a new Delco vacuum relay, the import is nicer and to me that is saying allot. Let me know if you want to get a cable.
Thanks
Justin
 
well...


have a look at my "lingenfelter bumper C6" thread in the "modern corvettes" section.... there seems to be a lot of garbage "proudly made in the US"... you know, I bought some China made C6 headers that fit just fine... bottom line: you can find quality and junk on either side of the pacific...

now, there are a few US vendors who don't give a $hit and sell inferior crap to increase profit. These hood cables are a good example, cheaply made garbage that might last a year or so depending on how often you open the hood... I guess if I only open the hood once a year to change the oil the cable would last a lot longer :lol:

Can't this cable be made with a nice aluminum or stainless bracket and "hold down tab" ?? How much more would the manufacturing cost be ? Would a high quality cable that actually fits and does not break sell ?? Very likely yes....
 
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Justin,

I appreciate your offer, I'm going to stay with my fix for now, but what other products do you carry? Karstin, you're right you can get good and bad anywhere, but if I trend the parts I've seen as "junk" from China, the analysis isn't good. I'd just as soon stay away from them if at all possible. I'll pay more for quality because I much prefer to do a job once, doing it two or three times takes all the savings out of it anyway.

Another example of bad parts is the GM Performance fuel pump I have. It's dead. Not mostly dead, all the way dead. Left me on the side of the road with a dry carburetor. It's been on "order" now for 3 weeks and still no ETA. If the damn thing hadn't been so expensive to start with, I'd be going another route by now, as the warranty will cover it. If it's not here in another week or so, I may still go another route!!
 
damoroso said:
Justin,

I appreciate your offer, I'm going to stay with my fix for now, but what other products do you carry? Karstin, you're right you can get good and bad anywhere, but if I trend the parts I've seen as "junk" from China, the analysis isn't good. I'd just as soon stay away from them if at all possible. I'll pay more for quality because I much prefer to do a job once, doing it two or three times takes all the savings out of it anyway.

Another example of bad parts is the GM Performance fuel pump I have. It's dead. Not mostly dead, all the way dead. Left me on the side of the road with a dry carburetor. It's been on "order" now for 3 weeks and still no ETA. If the damn thing hadn't been so expensive to start with, I'd be going another route by now, as the warranty will cover it. If it's not here in another week or so, I may still go another route!!
Click to expand...

I assume that was a mechanical pump?? the one on the camper died last month, ran the electric booster pump straight to engine....
another thing to mess with....to prove it being good for the road....
I had my fill of GM mechanical fuel pumps years ago and went electric on all my cars for years, my favorite pumps were the Carter, but they too strong for a Qjet in full 12 volt application....I used to put a series resistor to the pump, limit the power to keep the seat from coming off on the float.....

that was before inline regulators....

:shocking::beer:
 
The cost of making the tabs out of aluminum would be way too expensive. The plastic end is fine as long as it is made out of the right type of plastic. I have not had any complaints about our cable and we have had them out for a couple of years now. I wish all the imports would stop, I would love nothing more then for everything to made in North America. Hopefully this economy will open more eyes and bring manufacturing back to the U.S. and Canada. Even Mexico is hurting now that almost all the US manufactures bailed out and went to China.
 
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