Pins in a virgin hood....

[ledphoot]

Thinking about installing hood pins on the Cuda... Have I lost my mind thinking about drilling holes in a virgin hood???

[Cuda Cody]

Hood pins are super cool.  But tell us more about the hood.  Is a stock flat hood or is it a rallye hood? 

I've seen a hood come unbuttoned and flip back over the roof.  So as cool as hood pins are they actually have a safety advantage too.

[1 Wild R/T]

Your choice, personally I prefer the clean lines without extra clutter..

[ledphoot]

I don't really want to do it. It's the Cuda's bulge hood. I am concerned with it coming up at excessive speed. 

Any thoughts on how to secure it without pins? A small cable lock perhaps?

[RusTy/SE]

I am in the same situation, only on my original 70 Challenger bulge hood. The Plymouth E-body has that header panel in front in line with the hood but the Challenger has little other than a giant grille recessed and catching air.

I am mostly decided on installing them on my car since it will be driven quite a bit at highway speed. Eventually. One of these days

[ZEN357]

I'm not sure I could bring myself to drill holes in a virgin hood.

[340challconvert]

Personally, I like the look and the safety of having hood pins.
Your car would have been coded for the hood pins from the factory, so it you are a numbers; must be original type person- leave it alone.
I drilled and added the hood pins 35 years ago on my original Challenger scooped hood. Never regretted it. 
It really is a matter of personal taste unless you feel IT MUST BE ORIGINAL!

Just a thought; If you decide to drill, don't forget to dab some primer or rust sealing paint on the cut edges of the holes after you drill to prevent it from rusting!

[anlauto]

ALL    factory 1970-71 Cuda hoods had hood pins installed. 

I would go for it.

[Shane Kelley]

I like them myself. They look great and are very functional. The best part is that I can leave the meat hook (safety catch) off the hood and not worry about the hood flying up.

[340challconvert]

ALL    factory 1970-71 Cuda hoods had hood pins installed. 

I would go for it.

Always something new to learn
Did not know hood pins were standard on Cuda hoods!
Since they were standard, I would think they were not on the fender tag like the Challenger when the option was ordered?

[Shane Kelley]

J45 Does still show up on the data plate.

[ledphoot]

I am not an originality purist

This is a '73 'Cuda, so I guess they stopped putting the hood pins as standard after '71.

I may just get a nice little cable lock of some kind and run it through to ensure the hood can't fly open if the latch fails. Like I said, I don't really want to drill the hood, but I can see this car exceeding 100MPH and would hate to have the hood fly open too

[1 Wild R/T]

I've had quite a few E bodies well in excess of 100 MPH, some for extended periods of time.....  When I was younger it was a daily occurrence...I've had hoods dancing but never try to leave the party.....Only car I ever had a hood pop open on was a 65 Mustang & that was at about 40 MPH...

[Jim AAR]

J45 Does still show up on the data plate.

Yup  ............

[soundcontrol]

Old thread, but I'll ask anyways.
How long are the hood pin cables for a 70 Cuda?