# Ditch the Prop Rod



## SilverSentra99 (Oct 23, 2002)

Im sick and tired of the proprod, its not broken but i like how the maxima has the lifter, hydrolic bars in it , can we do it too , and if so how and if you got some pics show em please, i want to get some from Autozone but id like to know before i try.
thanks


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## andre (Apr 30, 2002)

It can be done. I haven't gotten around to doing it, but it would just take a little geometry. I've seen guys put it on their VWs.


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## Black200SXSER (Apr 30, 2002)

cool..then you can send me the little black rubber boot thats at the end..mines all fubar...


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Yeah I would definately be interested in doing that. Its the little things I like. I love my car but there are some cheap things around like not having a hood light. I may invest in hood lights and some lifters instead of that damn rod always getting in my way!


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

I've been thinking of doing this as well...after looking at my mom's maxima...I've just never tried it. I may do it next time I get a chance. The geometry isn't too difficult, just make sure you get a good pressure hydraulic bar. 

BTW, how much does the stock hood weigh?


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

1997 GA16DE I know you have to have something up your sleeve on this one.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

If those lifters can hold a Cherokee trunk open they should be able to hold up our hoods. Is there enough room on the edges of the hood to put them there?


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

SoMissSentra said:


> *1997 GA16DE I know you have to have something up your sleeve on this one. *


neah, nothin up my sleve.

BTW, they're technically called pneumatic struts. I think I'll get them at autozone or something. I'll take pics if I do it.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Definately. I'm sure there will be several interested people, inluding myself.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

SoMissSentra said:


> *If those lifters can hold a Cherokee trunk open they should be able to hold up our hoods. Is there enough room on the edges of the hood to put them there? *


well, there are many different types, they mostly go on size and the amount of weight you plan on lifting. You don't want them so strong that you have to sit on the hood to gewt it closed, yet you don't want a weak one that will drop the hood on your head. I'm not sure how much it weighs, but if the hood is 20lbs, you want to get two pneumatic bars that are small and designed to lift 10lbs ea (11 or 12lbs to be safe). A maxima's hood is bigger and heavier, therefore, a maxima lifts may be overkill, who knows.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Makes sense


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## V i V i D 200sx (Sep 17, 2002)

i remember sport compact car did the carbon fiber hood thing and weighed the stock hood. i cant find my copy, and their website keeps crashing my browser, so i cant find out. but i think it was like 24 lbs.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Yeah that sounds right, because didn't the new C/F hood weigh between 11-13lbs. You can probably find out from NPM.


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

i'd imagine gettni the same ones off a maxima would do the trick eh?


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

Niss200SXGTR said:


> *i'd imagine gettni the same ones off a maxima would do the trick eh? *


I would assume that they would be perfect to use (not overkill like i said earlier). The only problem I see with using OEM maxima ones is the fact that you will only find them at the stealership, or the junkyard. In other words, you're either going to pay too much, or you're going to get junk. I would check a discount auto parts first.


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

Hey,
It isn't as simple as finding a strut. There is not clearance under the hood along the fender to mount a strut. When the hood is lowered the strut 'lies down'. Where is it expected to do that? Only if the strut isn't mounted along the edge of the hood/fender. You would need to mount it somewhere enar the fuses or battery or start cutting away at sheetmetal.

Seth


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

actually, there should be plenty of room. I'm not expecting to have the shock right on the edge where the hood meets the fender. If you move it in like 2 inches, it should work just fine. next time I get a chance, I'll give it a try and take pics along the way.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

That sounds good. That will make things a lot easier under the hood. You should be able to buy the Maxima replacements from AutoZone for a good price.

Better than the dealership anyway.


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

wait.. how do these work... are the powered by anything? or just natural asthetics of hydrolics? if they are natural hydrolics, i might be making a new project pretty soon.. if they have motors or something, that may be a diff story~


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

they're just natural hydraulics. They work without any extra power needed


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

Man, i might have to try that


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

Hey,
I think the word is pneumatic, not hydrolic.

Seth


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

Hey, hydrolics sounds cooler. so who cares


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

exaaaaaaaaactly...


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

man, ill ninja sword bitch slap the next person who freaking says pneumatic shoudl be in place of hydrolics.

*whips his trusty blade out*


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

well, I said earlier that they are technically pneumatic shocks. but who cares, they do their job.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Regardless of what they are called everyone here has seen what we are talking about. You see them on the hoods of some cars. Just an example, my girlfriends Camry has them. And you see them on SUV rear hatches as well.

And hatchbacks...Like I know everyone has seen an 80's model Camaro or Firebird with the hatch propped up with a 2x4 or something. That is because they wear out pretty easy(or did back in the 80's anyway).


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

Hey,
So, in the 'aftermarket parts' thread there is a hose tecniqes pic and you see an engine bay. Show me where (you can use ms paint and make circles), of where on the hood and where in the bay you'd liek to mount the strut. Remember to measure the height extended and contracted so you don't get too short a rod and then fully extracted the hood doesn't open enough and you bang your face.

Seth


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## Yosho (Aug 11, 2002)

sethwas said:


> *Hey,
> I think the word is pneumatic, not hydrolic.
> 
> Seth *


pneumatic = gas charged
hydrolic = liquid charged.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

ok, here's what I got so far. I went down to Discount Auto Parts and got a pair of pneumatic lifts to match the Maximas. they sell Strong Arm brand lifts. The computer said the OEM Maxima replacements are #4524 and you can get them right off the shelf. I just hope they will not be too strong for my Sentra. 
Here's some pics/.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

You work fast...How long to you put them on?


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

I'm going to try it when I go home this weekend. I'll tell you guys how it works and the best way to do it as soon as I can.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Sounds good, let me know.


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

so wait wait wait.. when you lift the hood, its going to go up?.. and then it is going to stay there right? then how does it shut, put pressure on hood?


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

I don't know but I'm pretty sure that's what he's talking about. That's how all the other ones work.


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

Ha,
Everyones been around 'cheap' cars too long. What happens is this:
1: pop the hood
2: unlatch the hook behind the grill
3: phusically push the hood up 3/4 of the way
4a: the hood will continue to rise on its own to the length of the strut
4b: continue pushing the hood up to the length of the strut and the hood will stay there
5: to close press down on the hood untill it is 6 inches or so from closed
6: let go

Seth

P.S. Some cars used a coil spring type of system as opposed to struts.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

it will close like the back of a mini van.


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

That's what happens. I like my car but it doesn't have all the nice things that a more expensive car may have. Like this for example.


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## SilverSentra99 (Oct 23, 2002)

Glad to see that ive started a project, ill do the dang thang the minute he figures it out , i think its a great mod and definately something the honda boys aint thought of having yet,


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## Yosho (Aug 11, 2002)

I'm honestly glad our cars don't come with the pneumatic struts... their a pain in the ass when they wear out and unlike most of the people here... the average person doesn't replace them when they should. 

I wish our cars came with a hood like Honda makes for it's Civic and Integras... one that has the support rod in the back of the hood. One that has two placement spots instead of just one... so that the hood can be positioned all the way open... nearly vertical. It makes it so much easier to work on a car with this type of support rod.


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## SilverSentra99 (Oct 23, 2002)

your honda came with them?


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

what, you cant make your own, i think it would be relativly easy, just put the prop rod right by the hood latch , and then when you open the hood, put the latch in a custom drillled hole.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

*conclusion*

alright. Well after 3 different locations tried. I came to the conclusion that it's definately not worth it. I was pondering and drilling for about an hour and a half and I got no good result. The first location I tried was a very good spot except when the hood closed, there wasn't enough room for the strut to rest. The second try had more space to rest, but the hood sat pretty low. On the third try, I moved the hole down a bit for it to sit higher, but I ended up working out of the strut's closing range. After that I gave up. It seems that the Sentra wasn't meant to have pneumatic lifts on the hood. 

anyway, I wasn't out the $34 that they cost b/c they will make perfect OEM replacements for the worn out ones on my mom's Maxima. I'll post sum pics later on.


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

Maybe we can make something happen, where it just has a small prop rod like a (cough cough) civic..


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## Yosho (Aug 11, 2002)

Yeah... I've often wished that Nissan would of used this system. The only down side of it is that it doesn't support the weight of the hood from a central location. It only supports it on one side and thus, causes a lot of stress on the hood. Stock hoods can take it, but I've seen CF hoods warp a little because of it.

What I'd really like to see is a small prop rod on either side of the hood... one of the pass side, one on the drivers side.


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

1997GA,
The problem isn't the sentra, its the rod you bought. The measurements for the extended and compressed lengths are not workable with your mounting points. Just get another rod that will fir your dimensions. Work by length not brand or designed for "your car here".

Seth


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

I never really thought about that but the Maxima is larger than our car. I wonder if any Civics or anything close to out size cars had those lifters. It would probably be worth checking out


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

good point...But. i think that you would have to find a way that when closed, the rod is flat, and when open, the rod can angle


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## SoMissSentra (Oct 11, 2002)

Trust me, I don't have the knowledge of this sort of thing to just attempt it on my own. You guys seem to have a better grip on this than I do. I'm just trying to give suggestions or ideas from a different point of view.


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## sethwas (Apr 30, 2002)

Hey,
The asnwer is simple trigonometry. Pythagorean Theorem anyone?

a^2+b^2 = c^2
a is your length from the hod hinge to the mounting point for the rod.
b is your rod height fully extended and up.
c is your hood length from where the rod touches it to the hinge.

----\
---|-\c
-b-|--\
---|----\
---__a__

Start with 'b' first. See how large an opening you want yur hood to have. Then see what struts are available. From this list you basically can pick whichever strut you like (check the load rating to make sure that they aren't too weak (although that is unlikely sinc hoods are lighter than hatches and that is what those struts are used for (with the exception of small windows like on the back of SUV's but those struts open tinier than you want).
Now when you mount any of these rods in your car, measure the closed length of the rod (you probably won't be able to compress it by hand without breaking it, so if it isn't printed, measure the outer cylinder and the bolt on top and bottom). 
Go to the hinge of your hood, take this measured distance and place it flat along the fender. That length is where you will attach one of the ends of the rod. 
Now the key to making it lie flat is the math. Using the length of the compressed rod, and the length of the extended rod, calculate the length of the mounting point from the hinge on the hood. The mount at those two points (the hood and fender) and when you compress your hood, the hinge should collapse correctly.Ideally give yourself 2-3 inches of clearance vertically and horizontally for error checking or unseed interferance like a support in the hood, or cap or fuse box cover.
(when it retracts it will 'fall' straight back to the firewall.)


Seth


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## rbloedow (Nov 2, 2002)

Have any of you ever seen or lifted up a maxima hood? I used to own a Maxima, and it's hood was one heavy and solid SOB - nothing compaired to our light little hoods. Talking a part designed for a Maxima's hood and putting it on an econobox like the sentra isn't going to work well


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## Niss200SXGTR (May 31, 2002)

hmmm. im thinking of just bolting them onto the firewall.. then gettin it so it opens.. blah.. Ill explain later..


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## Yosho (Aug 11, 2002)

Just to clarify... Civic's do not have pneumatic struts. They do have a prop rod located in the rear corner (drivers side) of the hood. So the rod doesn't get in the way of working on the car.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

yeah, that's what they were saying. 

BTW, Sorry to be the one who has to give the bad news. It just seems like it's not worth the trouble. My three attempts were not only bad geometry/location. The bolts that hold the lifts on kept coming loose. Once I really got in there, I found that there's really not much that can be done.


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## Yosho (Aug 11, 2002)

I'll have to look at mine tomorrow, but I wonder if it would be easier (and more practical) to fab up a short prop rod (or 2) to support the hood from the back... just like Civics/Tegs do.


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## dry (Oct 21, 2002)

When I go home for Thanksgiving break I'll go through my buddies salvage yard and get a bunch. I'll find a good enough match and even take pictures... if I can get it to work  -James


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## wes (Apr 30, 2002)

*well*

If your going to be doing that much wrenching that the rod is in the way... remove the hood, it's 4 stinkin bolts and it makes things much easier and brighter 

But yes, it would be interesting to make the struts work.


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