2007 v8 vantage bonnet not closing

[Ahsan24]

Hello,

My v8 vantage roadster has been idle for a while, the front bonnet doesn’t lock, the latch in passenger side to open bonnet is in the released position too and loose. Anyone tell me if this is an easy fix or how I can fix this myself?
Many thanks

[AMDownunder]

I would open the bonnet fully, you will then see the bonnet latch. try to close the bonnet latch with your finger, is the latch spring loaded? Then try to release the latch with the interior handle. It should work normally. If it doesn't either the spring inside the bonnet latch has broken, or the bonnet release cable has come out of the bonnet latch. The cable is secured to the latch by a silicone grommet which perishes and allows the cable to slip out of the latch. Mine failed when the bonnet was closed and it was a nightmare to open the bonnet!!!

regards,
Raoul

[Ahsan24]

Thanks for the advice. How do I open up that area of the latch to inspect the cable and everything else related? Do I have to take off the big cover that’s over the latch?

When I press the latch down there is resistance but it doesn’t lock or click, it comes straight back up, so given that what do you think the issue is?

[AMDownunder]

Not sure! Remove the cover and the front grill, you will have to remove the microswitch below the bonnet latch before you can see what's going on. Its easy to break the microswitch when removing it, its a Jaguar/Ford part so dont pay AM prices. If it won't latch it sounds more like the latch spring is broken, but you will have to pull it apart to be certain.

[Ahsan24]

Can you direct me to a video where I can do this please if possible?

[AMDownunder]

sorry mate. no I can't but you will be able to download the manual. Hope thie helps!

[LTP]

Ahsan24 said:

Thanks for the advice. How do I open up that area of the latch to inspect the cable and everything else related? Do I have to take off the big cover that’s over the latch?

When I press the latch down there is resistance but it doesn’t lock or click, it comes straight back up, so given that what do you think the issue is?

I think there are two possible reasons for your problem:

1. The latch has failed
2. The cable has jammed and is stopping the latch from working

To make the latch lock you have to push it down against the spring and you'll then need to push on the back of the pawl to rotate it far enough so that it latches in position. If you've rotated the pawl far enough that it won't rotate any further then it may be that one of the latch sprinbgs has failed and it wont click shut

As I said, another possibility is the cable has jammed. You say that the release lever is open and "loose"; I think this lever also has a spring that should make the handle return unless the cable isn't running free and is stopping it.

You can test the latch itself with just the bonnet open - I just checked on my V8V. To do more investigation you will need to remove the large slam panel that covers over the top of the grille - it's easy to do - just a lot of screws. Remember that, if you fix the latch or it starts working, and you close the bonnet without the slam panel on then you'll need two people to open the bonnet as the bonnet uses the slam panel to push against to pop up.

If you've tried to manually close the latch and it doesn't click latched then remove the slam panel. Have a look to see if you can see the end of the cable where it attaches to the latch; see if it's jammed in the "open" position. If you can get to it then try pulling it with some pliers to see if you can get the inner cable to pull through a little more and see if the release handle goes back into it's normal closed position.

This picture is a still from this video on how to remove the slam panel - it's actually for a DB9, but the process is the same
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3fwDq_NK60



This picture shows what you'll see when you remove the slam panel - the Vantage is almost identical. The red arrow is pointing at the bonnet release cable. If you look in the direction of the yellow arrow you'll be able to see where the inner cable comes out of the outer where it fixes to the latch body and attaches to the lever of the latch and see if the cable is holding the lever open. You need to make sure the inner cable is pulled fully out of the inner (to the left on the image). If you can pull it out, then recheck the latch by locking it manually. If it then clicks closed the cable being stuck is the problem.

If the cable sticking is the problem then the best thing would be to remove the cable from the latch (you may have to take the latch off the car to do this) and try to lubricate the inner by using something like WD40 and working the cable by pulling the inner, then pulling it back by the lever in the car. Repeat this until it runs free., then lubricate the inner with some light oil and work that in. If the cable is sticky and you can't make it run free then a new cable might be the best option.

If you find that, even with the cable fully extended, the latch won't click shut, then it looks like you need a new latch, as they are not serviceable. The best final check would be to take the latch off, disconnect the release cable, and the electrical connector, clean and oil the latch, then try to make the latch click shut. If it doesn't then time for a new latch.

Hope this is clear and helps., but by all means ask questions if it isn't

clarification added

Edited by LTP on Monday 4th November 15:16

[Ahsan24]

Thank you for that in-depth advice and guidance. I am struggling to take off 4 more screws from the plate- the screws are rusted below and spinning when I try to undo it. It’s hard to get the bottom of the screw to hold with pliers. I’ve sprayed a lot of wd40 but no luck. Any advice?

[LTP]

I think it depends which screws are spinning. I've only taken my slam panel off once to tighten a grille fastener and I can't recall accurately, but looking at Aston1936's video again (link in my original post) some appear to be in spire nuts, which won't spin, some are in rivnuts, which might, and I'm not sure what the ones down the wing are into - probably also rivnuts.

An issue for you is once you spin the threaded nut, it'll always spin, and spin more easily the more you spin it. If it were me I'd try:

• First, see if you can get some upward pressure on the screw, either by getting a slim blade or screwdriver under the head, or some sort of lever under the slam panel right next to the spinning fastener. Upwards tension will pull the captive nut against the panel it's attached to, which might stop it spinning so you can then undo the screw. It will also help the fastener out if the threads have stripped and the screw is spinning in the nut, rather than the nut itself spinning
• If this fails, you could try putting the screwdriver into the T30 screw then tapping it with a hammer - this might break the fastener free and you could then unscrew, or try putting tension on the nut, as described above
• The "last-ditch" solution is to drill out the heads of the screws that are spinning. You'll need a (or several) good sharp bit and run the drill fast, with not much pressure - if the drill bites too deep then it could just spin the screw. Use a light oil as a cutting lubricant, and take your time. You might need an assistant to hold the head in something like pliers or Mole grips to stop it turning while you drill

Once you are successful in getting the screws out you'll need to fix the spinning nuts before you reassemble, or you'll get the same result next time.
if the problem is a spire nut, then these are easily replaced as they just unclip and you clip a new one in its place. If it's a rivnut then you're probably going to have to drill it out and fit a new one. You can buy rivnuts and a hand tool to apply them to replace yours.

I'm sure if anyone else has any ideas they'll chip in

typo fixed

Edited by LTP on Thursday 14th November 13:57