Rattles from Bonnet Closing Latches, Have I Got The Right Bits ?

[rfs1957]

Sunday evening in Europe, should be a good time for lots of views

I don't remember having rattles from here before I rebuilt the car, but both sides now generate a right racket so there's something I've not grasped.

The noise is from the operating pig-tails and not from the bonnet itself, nor from bonnet-body interaction.

Could someone look at these shots and make a suggestion ?



The above one I found on the Forum, and I certainly don't have the funny clips (C18306 ?) that are shown where the operating stem meets the arm of the catch spindle.

Can't be off my car, the newspaper is in English.

Nor do I have the rubber pad on the oval stop, nor any sleeving where it's shown.

Which of these is standard fit, please, and do the parts on my car look right ? Both L+R pig-tails fold to the right when shut ?









Should the stems be unscrewed from the Zamac pig-tails such that the peg on the bonnet goes right full-depth into the throat of the hook mechanism ? Does that matter ?



Is that oval plate meant to carry some sort of rubber buffer, then, so that the swinging-closing movement of the pig-tail overcomes some resistance so that it can't rattle ?

UPDATE - as usual, answering my own questions as I type ; this is the "neoprene seal" BD19895 that behaves as the buffer.









Fire away lads.

[Gfhug]

First comment, neither of mine have those clips, but I did have to be careful to make sure the correct parts were fitted left and right. It was easy to fit them the wrong side then wonder why something seemed wrong. It makes the oval plate fit properly against the firewall.
Yes, they both rotate to the right to lock. Our friend Simon Wood being OCD had to modify his to go one to the left and one to the right
The foam certainly helps to hold the rods steady and provide a seal against hot air coming in from the engine bay. As above, the plate holds the foam against the slot in the firewall.

Not all your questions answered but I hope that’ll help a bit

Geoff

[mgcjag]

Do you have the rubber buffers on the bonnet pins that drop into the bulkhead brackets?...Steve

[265bhp]

Will be interested to hear how this thread evolves as I too have the same rattling syndrome

[MarekH]

Put a bit of bitumen between the two halves of the rod. I expect the neoprene seal probably also dampens vibration if fitted.

If you look at the latch, it obviously can only be tight when fully twisted 90', i.e. the last few degrees are when you pull the bonnet down onto that rubber buffer.

kind regards
Marek

[1954Etype]

Don’t forget the O rings on the chrome hooks.

[rfs1957]

Don’t forget the O rings on the chrome hooks.

WTH are those ? (we don't use the F on this Forum).

[rfs1957]

It was easy to fit them the wrong side then wonder why something seemed wrong. It makes the oval plate fit properly against the firewall.

The only parts, aside from the scroll-hooks that actually pull the bonnet hard against its buffers, that are handed, are the "Bonnet Release Rods" BD19978 and BD19977.

SNGB show them as thus, and apparently equipped with some sort of "pad" :



Above being the LH, below being the RH :



and the only difference must reside in the orientation of the oval plate.

I haven't yet looked to see what the right way round means, on the car, but on the above pictures it looks like they are the same, which is not possible.

Daylight will presumably make things clearer.

[abowie]

I slid an o ring over the chrome handle so it sits next to the escutcheon.

Great for rattles.

Edit. Ah I see Angus has beaten me to it.

[caveman]

I have the clips (#38) on mine and as per the parts manual. O Ring not shown as part of picture but clearly listed in parts manual:

.

[mtnjag]

O rings here too.

[Robbiee]

Me too for o rings

[Bob.]

Hi Rory,
This should show the difference between LH and RH. (The original image in Post #1 doesn't show an O ring as it had disintegrated when I removed the handle from my S3).



I would not like to omit the spring clip holding the operating rod to the latch as the difficulty of opening the bonnet if they do part company is something I would rather avoid.
Hope this helps,
Bob

[Gfhug]

Yes, it’s the bonnet release rods as Bob shows. With the pad on they block the hole in the firewall.
Looking at comments from others I shall have to find those clips and ‘O’ rings. This forum provides lessons everyday.

Geoff

[caveman]

SNGB Have both although the O rings are used for other things too and have new part no.

[mtnjag]

I just pulled an O ring out of my O ring assortment. No reason to go to SNG

[Heuer]

Yes, any suitable O rings on the chrome pull handle. And don't make the rookie mistake of mounting them other than pointing downwards when locked. Sideways when locked means they can open with vibration and gravity.

[rfs1957]

Thanks for the various inputs.

A couple of observations.

There are no O-rings that I can see in my (original ?) J30 parts book for the early cars, maybe they were added at some point ?



Regarding the orientation of the pig-tails when the bonnet is locked, mine can only ever be horizontal, not drooping, as the escutcheons just respect the 3 o'clock / 9 o'clock orientation of the nut-plates.

So newbie I will remain.

Like most things on an E-Type, things are often more complicated than they appear.

Many owners can be dismissive of the need to delve any deeper, and they won't need to read any further.

For those that are interested, this is what I think I've understood.

Firstly, it's necessary to establish how far the operating rod needs to be pushed fully forward to fully engage the pawl or claw that clamps the bonnet pin - this being done with no escutcheon, of course.

I tested this with some bits of Plasticene to make sure what was happening, and that I was deep in the throat.





(Unfortunately on my car, which has several "outer-tolerance" components (sills, sill closing panel etc and a slightly bigger battery) the LH mechanism is very close to the regulator, so might be worth checking no interference here.)



Having established those positions, you need to measure what the gap is - at that moment - between the oval plate and the far fire-wall, as this is where the rubber pad is going to do its best to seal the orifice.





On my car, these were quite different distances - 8mm on the LHS, and 1mm on the RHS.

Next, by screwing the operating pig-tails on and counting the turns, you can establish how far they go on before touching their respective escutcheon plates - 10 turns on my LHS, 6 turns on the RHS.



I cut 15x25mm from 10mm closed-cell foam for one side, and 3mm EPDM for the other, with a punched 5mm hole some 5mm up from the base.



This shows them compressed against the firewall.





The best O-Ring I found for a convincing clamp on the escutcheons was an 11mm ID and 2.5mm tor. Whether the shoulder on the pig-tail is adequate to keep those in place remains to be seen .........

Once assembled, then, the idea is that the escutcheons lock at the same time as the pawl/claw is rotated as far as possible on the bonnet's peg, and the foam is compressed enough to seal the hole, as well - perhaps more importantly - as stopping the rod vibrate against the bottom of the slot.

[Gfhug]

And don't make the rookie mistake of mounting them other than pointing downwards when locked. Sideways when locked means they can open with vibration and gravity.

Sorry David, surely you mean the handles should point UP when unlocked and to the RIGHT when locked? Or are you referring to another part being downwards?

Geoff

PS started to post just as Rory posted his reply, which is a very good description of how I went about setting mine. And to 3 o’clock when locked is it. 9 o’clock could allow gravity to let them unlock.

[Heuer]

Nope, you are right, which is why when my wife says turn right here I go left!

Anyone want to volunteer to take over the Admin role?