m626er 7 Report post Posted April 12, 2012 I was at the car show and i noticed that some people installed gas shocks on their hood instead of the metal rod, has anyone done this before.......make a tutorial? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alucard 14 Report post Posted April 12, 2012 it's best done with second hand struts, when new the struts are easily powerful enough to bend a hood... i have a pair that i dare not use.. need to break them in a bit first.... i did it to my estate cars floor... the floor is a sort of big metal sheet, and quite heavy... it's not easy to do, and takes lots of calculations to do properly, i cheated and guesstimated everything and it sort of worked out... was hard to close down though Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m626er 7 Report post Posted April 12, 2012 so gas struts have different resistances?(sorry not familiar with gas shocks) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
djdevon3 828 Report post Posted April 12, 2012 Of course. It depends on the weight of the object they must lower and raise. For example you have the small ones on the 626 E-spec hatch that must lift the rear windshield glass and trunk lid. They have to lift and then support that weight. The hood is a bit heavier. Good plan of attack would be to unbolt the hood and weigh it. Not sure if anyone has weight specs for the hood guess you could do a search first. For show I think that would be a nice way to allow people all around the front to peek into the engine bay. For working on it not so much. You'd want to room on the side so you can reach down in there especially on the passenger side to get to the starter, intake manifold, drive belts, etc... I just powder coated my hood bar that's as much as I personally want because I'm always working on the car. I'd never considered gas struts before but even now I think I'll stick with the hood bar. It offers more room to work, it's more practical for work. The struts are more practical for show I'll give them that. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m626er 7 Report post Posted April 12, 2012 i wanted it it for my focus lol but since its really just a general topic and i love this forum so much i decided to post it on here for any mazda 626 ppl that may want to do it lol but ya the focus rod is on the side and is very short annoying to get to when you have one ahnd already used to keep the hood up Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alucard 14 Report post Posted April 14, 2012 lol our hoods are heavier.... no way man, i had to replace the struts on my ma's 626, and i took both the old ones off first... that tailgate is a hell of a heavy... probably the weight of the glass.... on an interest note, the 93-97 hatch struts are rated for 600N i'd suggest half that for a hood... if its for your focus maybe you could canibalise the setup out of a mondeo? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
djdevon3 828 Report post Posted April 14, 2012 Hmm actually that makes sense. The gas struts are for aiding in lifting it. I wouldn't have guessed the hatch is heavier than the hood. Not like us A-specs ever get the chance to get our hands on one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
