markkr64 Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 When I open the hood of my car, it doesn't stay up very well. There isn't a lock or anything. Do I have to replace those supporting bars (I don't know what they are called) or can I just tighen them somehow? Its so annoying to be working and then have the thing fall on your head. thanks. I have a '90 ls 400
SW03ES Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Thats extremely common on the LS, run a search for Hood struts.
jzz30 Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 yup got to change them but are like 100 bucks a piece. but yea do the search you will find a cheaper way to do this.
my ls430 Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 what about just putting a broom stick up while u work on the car
silvermate Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 the OEM hood shocks might be 100 bucks a piece, but the universal hood shocks at autozone are about 30 total i believe, thats what every uses to replace the worn oem ones. i believe there is a tutorial for you some where around here, but its a pretty simple DIY
wandawoods Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 just order a pair from eBay about $88 shipped. it did specify 97 LS400, but i'm not sure it's OEM or not. will see.
Lexusing Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 go here :http://www.cureline.net/lex/howtos/howto_hood_shocks.htm Good luck..
markkr64 Posted June 17, 2004 Author Posted June 17, 2004 Thanks. I'm going to give that autozone solution a try. Can't beat the price.
chips229 Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 what about just putting a broom stick up while u work on the car :D :D :D Thats what i do :D ;)
markkr64 Posted June 18, 2004 Author Posted June 18, 2004 acutally doing that WOULD beat the price! :)
flanker271 Posted June 18, 2004 Posted June 18, 2004 I went to my local crafts store and brought a wooden stick....perfect for holding the hood up.....when not using it simply hide it under the carpet in the trunk. I also glued magic tape at the ends so it will stick to the under carpet. Very nice!
chips229 Posted June 18, 2004 Posted June 18, 2004 what about just putting a broom stick up while u work on the car :D :D :D Thats what i do :D ;) I tell people when they comment about the stick holding the bonnet(hood) up,its because in its life time the bonnet has hardly been lifted cos nothing really goes wrong with them,and its not used to being lifted up :D
lctothe3 Posted June 18, 2004 Posted June 18, 2004 I replaced the OEM hood shocks on my 98 LS, my brother's 91 LS and my other brother's 92 LS. I used the tutorial I found here, and got the shocks at Autozone. The nice thing is that the shocks cost $16 each and have a lifetime warranty, the Lexus shocks cost $80 to $110 each and don't have the warranty. It takes about 30 minutes a shock, and once replaced if you need to do it again (which I doubt) it will take about 10 minutes a shock. After the replacement, you can just release the hood and use 1 finger to lift it.
srgilbert Posted July 24, 2004 Posted July 24, 2004 I just completed the AUtozone $32 fix for both hood shocks on my 95 LS400. I have seen the tutorial with drilling and perhaps I can make a recommendation. If you put the old hood shock in a vice and take a hack saw to the end cutting almost all the way through until hitting the swivel and pry open with a large screwdriver you will not have to drill at all. Following the procedure I ended up braking a bit and it took 30 minutes to do only 1 side. By cutting with a hack saw I finished the other 3 sides in 15 minutes. I put the struts on the hood (12mm wrench) and it is like new. This is an excellent fix and not too painful. I was really tired of the broom prop.
retiredmxer Posted November 21, 2004 Posted November 21, 2004 I just completed the AUtozone $32 fix for both hood shocks on my 95 LS400. I have seen the tutorial with drilling and perhaps I can make a recommendation. If you put the old hood shock in a vice and take a hack saw to the end cutting almost all the way through until hitting the swivel and pry open with a large screwdriver you will not have to drill at all. Following the procedure I ended up braking a bit and it took 30 minutes to do only 1 side. By cutting with a hack saw I finished the other 3 sides in 15 minutes. I put the struts on the hood (12mm wrench) and it is like new. This is an excellent fix and not too painful. I was really tired of the broom prop. ← I just bought a pair at AutoZone part number Mighty Lift 95029 for my 98 LS400 and they came with the studs with the right threads etc. Just unbolted the old ones..screwed in the supplied studs and popped the supports on. Took about 15 mins and less than $30 to have it back in business.
srgilbert Posted November 22, 2004 Posted November 22, 2004 I should of known better but I do not have the Autozone shocks in the same direction - one has the shock and one has it down. Can someone share which is the correct orientation? Obviously I have one on correctly.... The hood works fine but I would like to visually correct this. Thanks
lexus400 Posted November 22, 2004 Posted November 22, 2004 I have done the Autozone hood shock upgrade too and would recommend only replacing ONE of them. The new ones are really strong and if you replace both it's pretty hard to close the hood. I think just doing one might be more like the OEM setup.
RCRFAN3 Posted November 23, 2004 Posted November 23, 2004 If you only replace one it can bend the hood when you try to close it .The autozone Mightystrut works the best for little money, Search for MEIST21 He has the correct part numbers. A very nice fix!!!
bicol-ini Posted November 23, 2004 Posted November 23, 2004 hello, ive also done this hood strut replacement with the one by mighty lift found at autozone, its only during the first few months after install since they are still new and gas hasnt been compressed or used up yet eventually theyll be just as fine as an OEM for less 30. bucks, just my .02
razahyde Posted November 23, 2004 Posted November 23, 2004 lol i wish i had known there wre lexus shocks at autozone because whenever i had asked the guy at pepboy or autozone theyd gimme a look like i was crazy asking them somehting for a lexus lol so i spent around 230 or so on the OEM shocks there not hard to install my 14 year old son did it for me he does most of the work on my cars due to the fact im so busy amaisingly he took apart the lexus radio and figured out how to remove it and everythin i was kind of surprised he even got it to worked and changed the bulbs in it because they had blown out
92Lex Posted November 23, 2004 Posted November 23, 2004 lol i wish i had known there wre lexus shocks at autozone because whenever i had asked the guy at pepboy or autozone theyd gimme a look like i was crazy asking them somehting for a lexus lol so i spent around 230 or so on the OEM shocks there not hard to install my 14 year old son did it for me he does most of the work on my cars due to the fact im so busyamaisingly he took apart the lexus radio and figured out how to remove it and everythin i was kind of surprised he even got it to worked and changed the bulbs in it because they had blown out ← Oh, they're not really Lexus shocks...MightyLifts are universal.
VBdenny Posted November 23, 2004 Posted November 23, 2004 I put the Autozone shocks on my 90. They work great the only difference being is that the extension is slightly shorter than the factory lifts. Watch your head!
ARTGLA Posted November 23, 2004 Posted November 23, 2004 When I open the hood of my car, it doesn't stay up very well. There isn't a lock or anything. Do I have to replace those supporting bars (I don't know what they are called) or can I just tighen them somehow? Its so annoying to be working and then have the thing fall on your head.thanks. I have a '90 ls 400 ← I attached a small, slotted adjustable hose clamp to one of the hood struts. When I open the hood, I lift the clamp up the shaft and tighten the screw with a dime. Works fine. Cost: 50 cents.
srgilbert Posted November 24, 2004 Posted November 24, 2004 Let me ask as I'm afraid my question got lost in this thread. What is the correct orientation for the Mighty lift shock - in other words which end goes up? Thanks!
bicol-ini Posted November 25, 2004 Posted November 25, 2004 hello, the body of the shock goes to the hood and the other goes to the car,
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