Welcome to the Corvette Forums at the Corvette Action Center!

hood latches full of water?

newvette

Active member
Joined
Feb 6, 2002
Messages
25
Location
Houston, TX USA
Corvette
2001 C-5 White Convertable Z-51 6SP
Hello all,
Just bought a 94 green 6-speed coupe with 47K miles. I really like it. My question is, does everyone here have a problem with water pooling in the rear hood latch areas? It seems crazy Chevy didn't put drain holes in the bottom of these. I'm seriously considering drilling a small hole in the bottom of each of these to allow the water to drain out instead of just pooling. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks
 
newvette said:
My question is, does everyone here have a problem with water pooling in the rear hood latch areas?

Yes.

newvette said:
I'm seriously considering drilling a small hole in the bottom of each of these to allow the water to drain out instead of just pooling. Any thoughts on this?

Go for it, that's what I did. If you're really into doing it right, there is a kit availble for just that purpose. It includes a fitting and rubber tube to drain away the water from the battery area. But then, you could gather the parts required from your local hardware store and saves quite a few dollars. ;)

BTW, I'm glad to see you found the car of your dreams Mike. :upthumbs
 
Are you referring to the rear hatch by the B pillar?
If so, you have to use caution when drilling the holes. I think there are two layers you have to drill through or else the water will drain into the hatch area. Not sure about that, but I would check it out to be o the safe side.


:J
 
Jeez, I'm glad you caught that Rabbit, I wasn't paying attention again and automatically assumed it was for the engine hood latches in which we all have trouble with water collecting. :eek:

They do have the kits for the rear hatch area too, and yes you do have to go through two layers I believe. Good catch! :upthumbs

_ken :w
 
Ken,

You were right the first time, I was asking about the rear HOOD latches, not the rear hatch. Thanks for the info. Did you use a drain hose on the right side also?

Thanks
 
:L I live in sunny Southern California where rain is optional. :L

I only collected the water when I washed it, but I got tired of sucking it out with a shop vac every time I washed it, so I just drilled the holes and didn't bother with the tubes or fittings. ;)

_ken :w

BTW, only the driver side on mine was filling with water, none in the passenger side. Check your weatherstripping and hood alignment to be sure everything is sealing well. ;)
 
Coolant flush

Ken,
While your on, I might as well ask another question. Is there some special technique to flushing the cooling system? The owners manual says to contact dealer to flush? My coolant in the recovery tank is a little brown.

Mike
 
I did the same thing Ken did. Just drill a small hole in the bottom of each one. One of the first things I did with the car after I popped the hood and noticed it. The $20 kit offered by the specialty companies is a waste of money. Go to the hardware store and spend a few dollars and make the same kit if you're worried about the draining. I never bothered and it hasn't hurt anything.
Graham
 
From Mark's Maintenance Book...
Cooling System Flush

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A flush every two years is not a good idea now that radiators and related cooling system repairs cost 3-5 times what they did in the 70's. It's the old, "you can pay me now or you can pay me later" routine except the "pay me later" will cost a whole lot more. A $75 cooling system flush done properly once a year will virtually assure that you will never have to purchase a radiator. I think you will agree that $75 a year is better than $400-500 every three to five years.

It’s a good idea to actually listen and follow the recommendations of your technician, the one who is charged with the responsibility of keeping your car in good shape. When in doubt, ask him what he does to his own car or his mother's car.

When should I flush my car's cooling system? Flush your cooling system once a year. The best time is at the beginning of the summer or the beginning of the winter. A good technician will flush the engine block and heater core. He will clean out the overflow bottle and test the radiator cap. He will fill the cooling system with a 50/50 mixture of coolant. He will pressure test the system at a few pounds over the normal operating pressure. If after a short time there is no pressure loss indicating a coolant leak and none of the hoses blow or swell up, then all is OK.

Remember that antifreeze needs water to work. You should never use a mixture of more than 60% coolant or antifreeze. It's the anti foaming agents, the rust inhibitors, and the water pump lubricants that wear out. With the price of plastic tank radiators approaching $400 and damage related to the deterioration of aluminum timing covers costing $600 to $1,000 to repair, why not spend between $50 and $85 for a yearly flush?

Do you want to know how your cooling system works? Read on. The coolant and water mix is pumped through the engine by the water pump. The job of the liquid is to pick up the heat and carry it to the radiator so it can be dissipated. The water pump can't pump foam, so they put anti-foaming agents in the coolant. We know that every car that overheats, does so because of the lack of coolant (because of a leak) or because of a restriction of the flow (closed thermostat, plugged radiator, or a water pump that's not pumping because of a drive belt that broke or an impeller that's come loose).

The thermostat's job is to open when the coolant gets too hot and let the coolant travel faster into the radiator. If it senses the coolant is too cold, it closes to slow down the flow and keep the coolant in the engine longer.

We all know that water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. For every pound of pressure you put water under, it will raise the boiling point approximately 2 degrees. So a good 15 pound radiator cap will raise the water's boiling point 30 degrees from 212 to 242 degrees Fahrenheit. Add 50 % of coolant and the boiling point of the mixture is well over 260 degrees Fahrenheit.

We know that steam can't be pumped by the water pump, that's why we need the coolant to stay in a liquid form. It's important to know we want today's cars to operate at 220 degrees Fahrenheit. So if the coolant turns to steam too early because of a bad radiator cap or a weak mix of coolant and water, the car will overheat at 230 degrees or so, which leaves little room for an extended stop at a traffic light on a hot summer day.

Very few overheated cars are fixed with just a radiator cap and I've never seen a car fixed with a flush. Flushing a car to fix an overheat is like rinsing out your mouth with mouthwash to kill cavities. A flush is done after the repair, not as the repair.

_ken :w
 
hood latch

I had the same problem but i removed the latch assembly and cleaned the drain hole (there is actually an opening against hinge pillar assembly) after that there was no prblem.
 
Thanks for the great info Ken and Magnus, looks like I will be busy this weekend.

Mike
 
The latch on my drivers side was be full of water a few years ago. I cleaned it out by removing the latch and cleaned the drain hole out.
I seemed to be restricted with just plain old dirt.
Now, once or twice a year I run the garden hose through it. Been fine ever since.
 
Well,
I removed the latch plates from both the drivers and passenger side. The passenger side was dry and I could see a pretty big drain hole at the bottom rear(closest to the windshield) of the latch well. On the drivers side, I found a bunch of junk(old bugs, a wrench socket, leaves, etc) but no drain hole! I'm wondering if this was an oversight, or the drivers side just doesn't have a hole? Did anyone find a drainhole already in the bottom of the drivers side latch well?

Thanks,
Mike
 
newvette said:
Well,
On the drivers side, I found a bunch of junk(old bugs, a wrench socket, leaves, etc) but no drain hole! I'm wondering if this was an oversight, or the drivers side just doesn't have a hole? Did anyone find a drainhole already in the bottom of the drivers side latch well?

Thanks,
Mike

Mike the hole is on the front corner at the engine side.
I didn't think it had one either until I started poking the corner with a coat hanger.
The grime made it look like metal

:beer
 
Mine DIDN'T have a hole so I DRILLED one. :) Fixed that problem!


Bill C
 
Passenger side has a hole and the drivers side might have one but I couldn't find it. I drilled the drivers side.
 

Corvette Forums

Not a member of the Corvette Action Center?  Join now!  It's free!

Help support the Corvette Action Center!

Supporting Vendors

Dealers:

MacMulkin Chevrolet - The Second Largest Corvette Dealer in the Country!

Advertise with the Corvette Action Center!

Double Your Chances!

Our Partners

Back
Top Bottom