Weak hood struts

T

telvarin

New member
I am having trouble with the hood "automatically" closing at inopportune times (like when my head is under it). The struts won't hold the hood up for more than about 10 minutes, and when it comes down, it can cause some damage - personal and/or mechanical if there are tools or parts sitting on top of the rad.

Has anyone else experienced this? I am out of warranty, and I haven't talked to a wrecker until I can get more info (like whether I just have a weak set of struts or it is a more common problem).
 
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I had the same problem with my old Jeep Grand Cherokee. The struts on both the hood and the real lift gate started to go bad. It would be worse when it was cold out and the pressure in the gas strut would drop.

Unfortunately, the best thing to do is just replace them, and they are not cheap. You might be able to find used ones or after market ones. Just curious, but what year is your 4R and how many miles does it have on it?
 
This is the first I've seen on this board about weak hood struts so I would say it isn't a common problem.
 
I have a 2005 V8 Limited with about 40,000 miles on it.

I initially thought it was due to lower temperatures, but even in my garage at about 50 degrees the hood will stay up initially. Once the hood is fully extended open, it settles down about a quarter of an inch, then keeps creeping down until after about 5 minutes the struts can no longer hold the hood up and it slams down.

I agree about this not seeming to be a common problem. I suspect one of the struts has a faulty seal but I can't tell which one. I will likely try to get a set from a wrecker before going the new route.

Thanks for your responses.
 
OEM Toyota struts are $51 each at Partznet.

Redline Tuning has them for the Tacoma and I would think they're very similar to the ones in the 4Runner. They're $70 for a pair. A lot of Taco owners upgrade to these over at ToyotaNation.

These things are so expensive. I don't mind the prop at all and I know the hood will never fall on me with a prop.
 
New struts installed

I ordered a new pair from Partznet. UPS took a couple of days to get them delivered (they needed brokerage fees because they had to come into Canada). I called the local dealer, they wanted $107 EACH. Wow. I didn't even bother trying to find a wrecker.

Took about 15 minutes to change over. I just tied a rope from the hood to the ceiling in the garage to keep it open while I changed over. I thought I could just pop the struts off of the pins but I didn't want to pry too hard on the body panels. I ended up just wheeling out the pins with a 12 mm wrench while they were still attached to the struts. Then I turned in the new pins that came with the new struts. Dabbed a little white grease onto the pins and then used a rubber mallet to pop the new struts onto the new pins.

As soon as I took the rope off, there was a noticeable difference in the resistance holding the hood open. Before the change over, I had to actually lift the hood all the way open and hold it there for a second. Now, I just have to pop the second latch in the grill and lift the hood about 4 inches and the struts push the hood open ... and hold it there.

I looked at the old struts and tried to see what the problem was. I couldn't tell from looking but when I pushed the old struts, one was noticeably easier to push than the other (the left one, I think). Likely a leak.

For the life of me I can't tell why there are two different part numbers, one for the left and one for the right. I held them side by side and they were the exact same length when fully extended. Perhaps one is supposed to be "weaker" than the other???

If these new struts start to fail, I will just fabricate up a prop rod.
 
I have the same issue with weak hood struts, especially when it's colder or I'm on a downward slope. Just wondering if you found them for a reasonable price or if Tacoma struts are a legit substitute?

Thanks.
 
same problem here. my 04 sport the hood will not stay up at all, 65000 mls.on odometer. driver side strut is leaking.
 
I can't remember the exact price. I think it was around CAN $120 for both struts including the brokerage fees from Partznet. So far they have worked fine regardless of temperature...I must admit they were a little stiff around Christmas while I was in Saskatchewan but it was close to -40 at the time.
 
Hood Struts on '05 4Runner

My hood struts are pretty much done too... I think they may cause harm to someone one day if I don't replace them or fix it (there has been at least two close calls already).

2005 4Runner Sport 84K miles... damn who knew these struts would be so expensive!
 
Mine are gone as well. 2005 sport. Have not been able to find the after market. Can someone post a link to where you got them for $50?
 
If anyone is wondering, I found a couple pairs of these on ebay for around $60. I may get a pair soon to remedy this problem. I was replacing my headlights today and my damn hood fell about 8 times, LOL.
 
My struts are shot as well, I just use a pair of Vise-Grips on the cylinder once the hood is up. Cheap solution for those not wanting to buy new struts.
 
Weak Hood Gas Springs

Auto zone in Las Vegas, NV has Mighty Lift replacement gas springs $39.00 ea). I have a 2004 Sport 4 Runner with 58k miles, I just got them and I still have to put them on. The Auto Zone part number is D9558 (2004 4 Runner). Also they have a tool catalog with a small gas spring clamp, just put it on the shaft and screw it down. It's for the shop mechanics to stop the hoods for coming down on them. Thanks for all the good info, I hope this helps.
 
luckystar1 said:
Auto zone in Las Vegas, NV has Mighty Lift replacement gas springs $39.00 ea). I have a 2004 Sport 4 Runner with 58k miles, I just got them and I still have to put them on. The Auto Zone part number is D9558 (2004 4 Runner). Also they have a tool catalog with a small gas spring clamp, just put it on the shaft and screw it down. It's for the shop mechanics to stop the hoods for coming down on them. Thanks for all the good info, I hope this helps.
Click to expand...

you mean D95588 ? that's the #autozone gave me
 
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