Service Flap (Hood) coming off while driving

[vegpeddler]

Curious if anyone has had any problem with the Service Flap coming off while driving? We experienced the first one on the rough and tumble Interstate 5 between Bakersfield and Sacramento. It came off, was caught by the strap but needed to be replaced at the Sacramento dealer. Dealer said it was probably my fault for not "insuring" that the grooves where in place correctly. I submitted and paid the bill for a new one. Now, about a month later i just lost my second one on once again a rough road (with high winds) between Needles and Kingman Arizona on the 40. I KNOW that this one was latched correctly. I will take it to the first dealer i can and find out why. I installed two short bungee cords to hold in place for now. Anyone else experience this? This is on our 2009 Cab, the 2008 has not had this problem.

[forestacademy]

Your the first I have heard with this problem. Congradulations

[vegpeddler]

Thanks, i work hard at being the "Test Monkey"

[Old smart]

There is very little compound curvature in the service flap and it is therefore quite flexible. I could see a possibility that under rough road shaking that the two upper tabs could pull from the sockets. But dang, that amount of roughness couldn't be doing the rest of the vehicle much good.

[John_H]

With the strength of the levers in the grill area that secure the flap, I'm amazed that the thing can move even under extreme bumping!

Are you sure that those levers are properly secured by everyone that might remove the service flap?

[SuperGeek]

Yes, I can't imagine it coming off at the bottom at all if it's properly secured. The top may flex, and I've driven 600 miles at highway speeds with the top misaligned, no problems at all. The keys to securing are partly the tabs and grooves at the top, but more importantly the latches at the bottom. It takes a good 30 pounds of elbow force for me to unlatch those. If yours move easily, they may be damaged or defective.

[Smart Enuf]

I've driven on that stretch of I-5 from Sacramento to L.A. multiple times. While parts are bumpy, it wasn't any bumpier than other freeways I've driven. And it certainly wasn't sufficient to jar the bonnet loose.

Perhaps there's an incomplete connection at either the latches in the grill or at the tabs where the bonnet hooks up near the windshield, or both. Or maybe the latches have worked themselves loose and can't stay closed anymore. There was a suggestion in a previous thread to install an anti-theft bolt in the hood latch (see Post #21 in 451 Front (Hood) Access Panel-Inside Hood Release). That might help keep the hood on.

[Kermit]

I just can't imagine how it could come off. The road heading up to my house is a bone jarring ride - 4 miles of washboard clay. While I don't get up to speed on it, the adjoining road I regularly hit 70mph once I get on pavement. Not once have I had the misfortune of the hood coming slightly loose.

I can't help but think you've had a prankster who knows about the latches and they opened them slightly.

[bcope01]

Me thinks something is amiss with your latches.

[Padawan]

Originally Posted by vegpeddler

Dealer said it was probably my fault for not "insuring" that the grooves where in place correctly. I submitted and paid the bill for a new one. Now, about a month later i just lost my second one on once again a rough road (with high winds) between Needles and Kingman Arizona on the 40. I KNOW that this one was latched correctly.

You say that this one was "latched" correctly, but do you also always double-check the grooves that the dealer mentioned, which are located near the bottom of the windscreen? These are commonly (I've seen it many times, even at dealers) not aligned correctly, and it can take a bit of fiddling before both sides are properly fitted. This should be aligned first, before latching the two grill latches.