Xantia bonnet catch ?

Sidewinder · Post by **Sidewinder** » 27 Nov 2008, 00:46

Hi everyone,

99 2.0HDI. Well, as they say, s**t happens ! That one job on the car that you think could be a right pig (heater matrix apart), the bonnet release cable, has finally given up the ghost and decided to snap, and of course just as you needed to charge the battery because 'someone' left a interior light on.

Anyone else had the misfortune of this happening to them and after struggling for hours realised that there was an easier way to get the bonnet up ? I've got the front bumber off and still can't see the catches let alone get my hands on them, short of junking the bonnet it looks like the only way round this is to drop the crossmember that the complete radiator assembly sits on, this should allow access to the catches.

Advice or opinions on this would be greatly appreciated.

addo · Post by **addo** » 27 Nov 2008, 04:21

Where did it break - at the lever end, or where it meets the connector cable to the twin latches?

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 27 Nov 2008, 08:01

cant you buy one of those battery chargers which charges the battery via the cigy lighter, at least then you could get the suspension up on high to try and attac it from between the engine and the coolant rad

regards malcolm

Sidewinder · Post by **Sidewinder** » 27 Nov 2008, 09:51

Thanks for that each, great minds think alike, i have got it charged and up and it is possible to reach up and feel the slam panel, trouble is as i remember the catches are bolted to the front of the panel and with the bonnet shut you just can't get at them plus there's the plastic cover panel which sits over the slam panel.

Not sure where the cable break is, i know it's still connected to the release lever under the column shroud, i guess i didn't think it would be this much trouble, my mate heard the 'twang' at the front of the car so i'm hoping the break is there, as i said if i could see the catches i might stand a chance of hooking something on. What's needed is to look at another Xantia and work out a plan of action instead of trying to work from memory. looks like a trip to the scrappy at the weekend !

Anyone got any pics of this assembly ?

addo · Post by **addo** » 27 Nov 2008, 10:12

They're not brilliant photos, sorry, but a Series II front panel:

At least here you can make out the rigid link between them and note the approximate position of your intermediate cable. Hope it's of some help.

Regards, Adam.

Post by **RichardW** » 27 Nov 2008, 14:15

One of the jobs I MUST do on my HDi is ease the bonnet catches - the pull is very tight, and I worry about the cable coming adrift...

Anyway - the two catches are lined by a bar, then there is a short cable from the LH catch which connects onto the main cable behind the slam panel behind the LH headlamp. If you can jack the car up and get the undertray off it might be possible to reach up and find the short cable and get enough pull on it to trip the catch.

The other option might be to feed in a hooked cable over the LH headlamp, but I think you might find that plastic shroud in the way again.....

Best get out and get mine freed off / adjusted before I am in the same boat!

jgra1 · Post by **jgra1** » 27 Nov 2008, 16:16

hi sidewinder

very earlier in my blog there may be a pic of the front end, probably not much use..

i cant see the blog because

Reason:
The Websense category "Social Networking and Personal Sites" is filtered.

damn co-orporate takeovers....

I am thinking of starting my own garage somewhere

John

meexi · Post by **meexi** » 27 Nov 2008, 19:35

try this i had to do mine twice
http://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/v ... highlight=

Sidewinder · Post by **Sidewinder** » 27 Nov 2008, 20:07

Great stuff guys ! Pics were helpful, as i thought, it would have been easy without the plastic cover, i now know there's a bar connecting the two catches. Looks like worse case scenario will be to smash N/S headlight out, yeah i know but sometimes 'needs must', getting at the short cable would be easy then, i like the idea of a hooked wire it might just be that easy ( ahh, hope springs eternal )

. At least i know there is hope, i think once i've done a dry run on one at the scrappy i'll get it sorted.

I bet some of you guys will be checking your cables soon , i shall be rigging an emergency wire up that's easily accessible

I'll let you know how i get on, cheers !!

addo · Post by **addo** » 27 Nov 2008, 20:12

If you were to break anything, I'd have thought the cosmetic grille and then the upper radiator cowling might be the "victims".

Trying to smash through a polycarb headlight with ABS backshell might be a rather difficult exercise!

Sidewinder · Post by **Sidewinder** » 29 Nov 2008, 02:58

Hah, Sorted !!

Didn't have to break anything and 5 mins with bumper off.

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 29 Nov 2008, 09:42

glad to hear your sorted, but if you look at addo's picy No. 2 there is a square hole just about underneath each of the lock catches, this is probably for this very reason, as you might be able to poke some ting up it to release the catch

thats if you can get to them when everything elss is in place
regards malcolm

Sidewinder · Post by **Sidewinder** » 29 Nov 2008, 14:09

Ok here's how you do it ........

Bumper off, raise front of car up and on blocks/stands, looking at it from front, underneath N/S headlight and 10 inches down is the oval hole for air pick up pipe to airbox, using hammer stale push this back about 4-5 inches, you may have to break fixing lugs but no matter, this gives you just enough room to get your hand up the back of front panel and front of battery and your fingers to the side of headlight where release cable comes through, i taped a hooked wire 12+ inches long to my finger and hooked it over the cable, withdraw arm and pull on wire ..... et voila ! bonnet opens.

However, if short cable has broken ( the one to the N/s lock ) then you're stuffed, i would advise attaching an emergency wire directly to the lock mechanism and have it hanging down somewhere just in case it happens to you.

Evodad · Post by **Evodad** » 30 Nov 2008, 10:01

Thanks for all this info.

As a precaution, I've taken a pedal bike inner brake cable with a soldered nipple on, passed it through a hole in the n/s bonnet catch lever & run it down pass the side of the radiator to act as a second release cable.