Jammed hood latch

[02mcoupe]

After spending $400 to repaint the dings and nicks on the front end of my 2002 MCoupe (the new water based BMW paint chips far to easily), I purchased a colgan bra for roadtrips. I installed the bra, shut the hood and now my hood latch is jammed. I can't open it. Is there some way of releasing the hood or am I going to have to cut this $100 bra off of my car (I figure that's my last resort as it will cost me more to take it into a shop).

[jbz3]

Just curious, did you ever figure out a way to use that Colgan bra? I had exactly the same problem on my 2002 Z3 3.0i and had to have my son lean all of his weight on the end of the hood while I worked the latch lever. It finally popped open and I took the bra off. I'm afraid to put the thing back on. The latch lever is plastic and seems like it might snap right off if you put too much pressure on it.

[jay148]

I also have the Colgan 2 piece bra..Have the same problem. Had my son push up and down on the front center of the hood while I pulled on the hood release. Works every time. Tried it once without any help, and thought for sure the hood latch would snap. It opened, but won't try that again..I take the bra off everytime it gets rained on to dry the hood. I live in Florida, so I do that quite often. And your right about the paint."Very soft" The nose is now protected, but got more chips in the middle of the hood..Just make sure you have someone to help when your ready to open the hood.. It's a pain, but worth the trouble.

[jbz3]

FYI...I found out you can also simply adjust your hood latches to provide a little more gap when you use the bra. There are 2 posts sticking down from the inside of the hood that latch when the hood is closed. Loosen the nut at the bottom of each post, unscrew the post 1/4 - 1/2 turn and then tighten the nuts. This will give you a bit more play to accomodate the bra when the hood is closed. Good luck!