'95 Isuzu Rodeo Hood Problems

[tr0n]

Hey everyone. I just recently purchased a '95 Isuzu Rodeo and not a month after I bought it, I have had troubles getting the hood open. The first time I had troubles with it, I just sat on the hood and had a friend pull the release cable inside and it popped right open. I tried to get into it the other day and I tried the same little trick and it didn't work. I tried it many times and it just won't budge. I have the front grill off of it from earlier and I can see that the secondary latch does work. The release cable inside of the cab still has tension and when I pull it I can hear a noise under the hood. Any advice towards getting this thing open would be greatly appreciated.

[surferfletch]

Hi. I've posted about this problem before. The problem is the hood bumpstops. They have either disintegrated or need to be screwed out a bit. They are on the under side of the hood near the grill on either side. Does your hood jiggle and squeak a lot, too? This will take care of it. If the bumpstops have wiggled their way into the hood, there is no force to pop the hood up when you release the hood. I've tried to order new ones without success from St. Charles Isuzu. Good luck.

[surferfletch]

To get the hood to come up now, have someone pull up gently on the hood while the release is pulled.

[Ramblin Fever]

Have had the same problem on and off for several years; think it happens more in the winter - just from experience.

Get a stick, or a snow scraper works good too, angle it just right to hold the latch down under the steering wheel, run around to the hood and lift up. Works everytime, if you're by yourself, otherwise, that extra hand works great!

That's 1 of only 3 complaints I've ever had with this truck!

The worst offender - NO CUPHOLDERS! Mild offender - truck EATS headlights for breakfast! Irritating, but not always a problem, is the darn hood!

[tr0n]

It worked perfect. Thank you very much. I will look into seeing about the hood bumpstops. Thank you both very much for the help. I hope to see you around the forums. Happy Holidays.

<edit>The preview button is your friend</edit>

[surferfletch]

Let me know where you get them. I wonder if a local GM dealer would handle Isuzu parts...

[johnsm]

I have a 2000 rodeo ls with the same problem. I read this thread and checked my bumpstops. There adjustable. I unscrewed them to get more height and it works perfect now. If yours are not adjustable I would think you could carve up a hockey puck and make new bumpstops.
As you can tell we Canadians are innovative. We made the space shuttles arm out of hockey pucks and duct tape.

John

[stantony1]

Hey SUPERFLETCH

THank you so much for all the pointers and advice. Your experience is truly appreciated.

I had this problem today and it worked like a charm. And I've also followed other advice from you and things have been great.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

Originally Posted by surferfletch

Hi. I've posted about this problem before. The problem is the hood bumpstops. They have either disintegrated or need to be screwed out a bit. They are on the under side of the hood near the grill on either side. Does your hood jiggle and squeak a lot, too? This will take care of it. If the bumpstops have wiggled their way into the hood, there is no force to pop the hood up when you release the hood. I've tried to order new ones without success from St. Charles Isuzu. Good luck.

[FL 3.2L]

Ha! I just checked an old e-mail account and saw the notification that a new post was made in this thread. For the life of me I couldn't remember posting here. I saw my old AF screen name and figured it had been awhile - 2004! Glad it is still of use to someone! Happier still that my bumpstops are still good in 2008! Some holiday cheer back at ya for making me feel good!
Rick

As a side note, I did eventually get the bumpstops from St. Charles Automotive. Just had to talk to Merlin. I wonder if he is still there...

[MrMGA]

Originally Posted by surferfletch

Hi. I've posted about this problem before. The problem is the hood bumpstops. They have either disintegrated or need to be screwed out a bit. They are on the under side of the hood near the grill on either side. Does your hood jiggle and squeak a lot, too? This will take care of it. If the bumpstops have wiggled their way into the hood, there is no force to pop the hood up when you release the hood. I've tried to order new ones without success from St. Charles Isuzu. Good luck.

My '95 Rodeo recently developed the same problem. After reading Surferfletch's post, I checked my bumpstops and found that they were screwed down as tight as possible. I unscrewed (raised) them about a half a turn AND cleaned and lubricated the latch hardware. Now the hood pops up like new. The combination of unscrewing (raising) the bumpstops and cleaning and lubricating the hardware is a very simple fix to an annoying problem. It should be added to a FAQ list somewhere.