Can you replace hood locks back to conventional latches?

[Moab]

I've got this type of hood lock. And they don't line up. It's a bitch to close and lock the hood. You have to bang one into place. Lock it with the not so easy lock mechanism. And then do the same on the other side. I can never get them to lock up properly. Takes a few tries each time. Seriously thinking about replacing them with conventional latches. I mean what's the worst that could happen my battery gets stolen? I've got AAA. And I don't live in a high crime area. I have a small ding in the front of one fender that I think might have thrown them off. Or it was put in poorly?

Will the holes line up and be covered if I switch back? Which conventional hood latch should I use or avoid?

Or should I just put up with the hassle? Cause they never line up and they perform a life saving service?

 

[Chris]

Those ones don't require any drilling. You can take them off and put the stock ones back on without any issue. Should take less than 5 minutes per side.

 

[Moab]

Thank you. Any recommendations for conventional replacements?

 

[MikeO]

I upgraded to latches that look OEM, but are meatier. I like them a lot.
https://www.quadratec.com/products/13104_10X_PG.htm

 

[TJ2]

I've got this type of hood lock. And they don't line up. It's a bitch to close and lock the hood. You have to bang one into place. Lock it with the not so easy lock mechanism. And then do the same on the other side. I can never get them to lock up properly. Takes a few tries each time. Seriously thinking about replacing them with conventional latches. I mean what's the worst that could happen my battery gets stolen? I've got AAA. And I don't live in a high crime area. I have a small ding in the front of one fender that I think might have thrown them off. Or it was put in poorly?

Will the holes line up and be covered if I switch back? Which conventional hood latch should I use or avoid?

Or should I just put up with the hassle? Cause they never line up and they perform a life saving service?

View attachment 69072

Yeah that is fugly. Replacement are cheap and easy to assemble. No clue why some people put a lock on TJ hood.

 

[JEEPCJTJ]

So now that we've seen a couple really good answers, I need to ask:

If I really wanted under your hood when locked would I succeed by just unscrewing the visible phillips head screw and knocking the lock cylinder out?

 

[Boinked]

The main issue i have with hood locks. If you catch fire (because that never happens) you are now trying to find the key to unlock the hood to put it out.
I believe this is why no manufacturer installs key locks on the hood.

 

[Willys LJ]

The main issue i have with hood locks. If you catch fire (because that never happens) you are now trying to find the key to unlock the hood to put it out.
I believe this is why no manufacturer installs key locks on the hood.

When my old CJ5 caught on fire under the hood, I couldn't get the hood open fast enough with the stock hold downs.

 

[Moab]

I forgot I posted this. My apologies for the other thread.

I picked up a set of Crown conventional latches. It look an hour or more to get the security latches off. I ended up having to use these huge bolt cutters I have. It was a mess getting them off.

But then when I put the original style ones on. The drivers side does not line up right. And the rubber is in a slight S shape. And the drivers side latch takes very little pressure to release it. I'm pretty sure going over a hard bump would make it come undone.

Any advise?

I already tried moving the top and bottom bracket to the correct position prior to bolting it down. This is as good as it got. These don't seem to have a very deep lock to them. I mean it only seats in the last maybe .25 inch of the latch closing. Even on the passenger side which is lined up better. My whole hood is jammed to the passenger side direction. I want to just grab the whole hood and jam it the other way. But I'll probably mess something else up. I'm thinking maybe a bodywork guy could adjust the hood hinges? Or maybe a better latch would work?

Don't anybody say "security latches". I'll lose it. LOL! Stupidest things ever. But maybe that's why they were on there to begin with. To cover up the fact that the hood isn't straight.

 

[Red Dog]

I'm probably the last person to take advice from so hopefully others more knowledge-able will respond, but have your tried loosening the bolts that attach to the hood hinges to see if you can re-adjust the hood's alignment? Mine was a little off, but not as much as your picture.

 

[Moab]

I'm probably the last person to take advice from so hopefully others more knowledge-able will respond, but have your tried loosening the bolts that attach to the hood hinges to see if you can re-adjust the hood's alignment? Mine was a little off, but not as much as your picture.

I will do that eventually. The latches have held thus far. But I have not been off road.

Upon closer inspection the drivers side front fender has a small ding in it. And the drivers side hood hinge is slightly tweaked to one side. I'm not sure loosening it and trying to move it's contact point with the hood will fix anything. Or whether or not the hood hinge can even be moved any by loosening and then tightening it back into a better position. But I will give it a try once I get that far down my do do list.