Open the bonnet (hood) without using the catch.

[stig rotax]

My catch managed to disconnect itself, leaving me with just a floppy lever. Does anybody have a clue how to open the catch without breaking the car?
Thanks

 

[Mikefrank]

I had same problem with my catch as they are flimsy but I managed to get the catch to work again and spray loads of wd40 etc over bonnet lock mechanism etc and been fine since….thank god..

 

[stig rotax]

me and my tame welder had the car on a lift and the only way to do this is to take the flooring out under the nose of the car. Then the cable just has to be put into it‘s guide. No worries, it‘s a simple job and takes 10 minutes.
He reckoned it happens with some cars when you drop the bonnet to hefty. Nothing broken or snapped, it just slips out of the guide. In future I shall just drop it from a few inches, it‘s heavy enough anyway.

 

[stig rotax]

I managed it after having the detour to make a car support to lift the vehicle in the first place.

I took the opportunity to take some photos while putting the cable end back in place. This is a very bad piece of engineering and will happen time and time again, so clearly needs an alternative. I checked the Peugeot 206+ latch mechanism to compare them. The older 206 has a reinforced end of the cable which is bent in a Z form and slips in to the latch hole. It would never fall out unless the cable snaps. The RCZ. has a cheap idea using a plastic pin which will obviously wear out after the cable is pulled “n“ amount of times.

The mending job. You‘ll need a TX20 screwdriver, 10mm socket ratchet, a small eletrical screwdriver and around an hour all in all. Don‘t forget to have a cup of patience, as always.

Put the car on its axles stands, ramps or lift if you are lucky to have one.

The flooring at the front has to come out to get into the area in front of the radiator. There are bodywork pins holding the flooring which have to be eased out. Do this by carefully easing the small electricians screwdriver into the sides of the pin, not underneath it, and ease the pin part way out. The whole thing will then come out of the hole.
The TX20 bodywork screws and 10 mil bolts come out easily enough. The flooring itself might not come out until you press the two latches, forward central position, backwards to release the flooring. (this was a good bit of design work to help keep everything in place).

Now you can get up into the gap in front of the radiator. The loose cable will not be seen yet … there is a casing over the mechanism held by 2x 10mm nuts. Remove it using your ratchet set. The loose cable can be seen and the cheap bit of plastic which needs to be put back into the latch hole. I wouldn‘t use WD40 or any lubrication here as the plastic will only slip out again. Check your handywork by opening and closing the bonnet (hood) before you put everything back together again.

Greetings
Stig