My center hood hinge on my 39 has an issue. The issue is that it does not have provision to be retained by the hood ornament at the front pivot. I have gotten two different answers as to why that is, and I'm in need of the correct answer. Do the hood hinges in 39-40 have a rod going through them or not? Mine does not. It does not appear to have room for a rod. Instead, the hinge appears work on rolled sheet metal that slides together. At the rear, the rolled portion extends far enough that it forms a 'tube' which is able to be captured by the retainer bracket that mounts on top of the cowl. At the front, there is no extension, which leads me to believe that many moons ago it deteriorated and broke off. Maybe this is an incorrect assumption? Should there indeed be a rod that goes all the way through and is captured at both ends in order to retain the hood? Next question: Is anyone reproducing these hinges? Jim Carter's catalogue says that they were/are and they are to be available as of 2014. When I called they said that they are on round three of trying to get a Chinese manufacturer to get them right so they are still not available from JC. Any other sources out there?
