Trunk lid hinge springs

[waveraider_2000]

Any special tips or tricks I should know about in removing the hinge and springs on the trunk of a 1948 Dodge D-24?  Springs look like they are under a lot of tension when hinge is in the up position.  Any advice would be appreciated!  Don't want to blow out any lights in the garage!  Thanks……..

[Ulu]

I'm going to need to do this too. One of my hinges needs to be welded & restored. I haven't really looked into how they come out yet.

[Ulu]

I found this thread & this is sorta what I have done with springs in the past (though not on this particular car.)

 

http://p15-d24.com/topic/23933-trunk-lid-springs-rr/?hl=%2Btrunk+%2Bsprings

 

It works, and I changed the front springs on my Subaru with wire just the same way.

 

But it'd be nice to have a real clamp to install them, so I may end up welding some fingers to a vice grips or some such.

Edited February 11, 2015 by Ulu

[wdoland]

Is there any way to adjust the springs so it keeps the trunk open without coming down on your head?

[Ulu]

Probably replace them, as they just wear out. 

 

But check to see that it's not dropping due to worn pivots or such.

 

If a pivot wears to a point that the mechanical advantage of the mechanism is reduced, a good spring may still not be able to hold the lid up.

[jcmiller]

If you remove the rubber bumpers on the hinges, I think you should be able to open the trunk lid all the way up and simply detach one end of the spring from the slot it sits in.  The tension goes away as you lift the lid higher and higher.

[FESTER60]

I have actually done this. I just propped the trunk lid open and removed the rear pin holding the spring. Once the tension is off they are easy to remove. Putting them back in is the hard part. I used a ratchet strap to compress them. After all that I decided to install gas charged tubes and took them back out again.

[Ulu]

My lid stays open just fine, but one of my hinges is really worn at the pivot hole, while the other isn't worn at all. I'll just weld it & re-drill the holes, but it's gotta come apart first.

[BobT-47P15]

On a previous thread on this topic, several people said they hit their head on the trunk lid and wished it went up

higher.  Others said you just gotta remember to duck.   I don't think any real answers past those above were 

arrived at.  

[Ulu]

 . . . several people said they hit their head on the trunk lid . . .  

 

I certainly have. Not just on this car either. Most trunk lids fall in my way when open, somehow or other.

[Niel Hoback]

Right now, as I type, I am nursing a nasty scrape on my right ear from the corner of a trunk, (boot), lid on a 94 Jaguar XJ6.  No springs, gas struts and not paying attention are to blame.