Ok I took my front end off and i think i found the reason my hood didnt shut right. I don't know how it happened but im guessing its been there since before i had the car. (the hood hasnt shut right since i've owned it) Any ideas on how to fix this?

 

heres a closer shot showing it a little better

 

umm, i'm not sure if thats is what it is supposed to look like, but just staighten it out and weld her up if its bend/warped.

 

i dont know what its supposed to look like either thats most of the problem I've been thinking of welding a piece of steel that i have left over from a hood, in that spot and just drilling a hole in it afterwards for the bolt to go through? whats it supposed to look like?

And also any advice for someone that id completely rebuilding the car?

 

nah, from the picture I dont think that would make your hood fit bad. That part started off as a small hole with a bolt that went through it. The bolt held the bottom of a trianglar piece in place that attached to the top underside of the metal piece that is inbetween your bumper and radiator / hood latch area. It looks to me like the piece was twisted off with the top bolts removed and the bottom bolt in place.

In my experience:
Hood alignment is affected by the hood hinges, fender alignment, hood to hing position and hood to fender position / heighth. There are also 2 rubber bumpers at the 2 front corners of the hood that you can raise or lower. The hood latch also can be moved up or down, as well as the hook for it at the top of the hood being movable left to right.

1) if your hood hinges are even a little bent your alignment will never be perfect. A bent hinge can be hard to spot untill you compare it closley to one in good condition.
2) Some people have to put shims or washers in the mounting areas to get the spacing correct. The hood to hinge area can be adjusted as well as the fender to hinge areas.

Non original GM parts are a little off anyway so they complicate the process

Its a bit of a process to adjust them

 

I've got a Ram Air II hood that will maybe be going on it. That was my biggest concern the fiberglass hood. That piece is where the bottom of the hood latch is secured and my old one was bent but i picked one off one at a local yard thats not bent to replace it. So thanks everyone for your help.:hail: :rockon: