convertible hood danger

[docgibbons]

any other members had this happen to them? i was lowering the hood on my convertible, when i somehow got my right thumb caught in the scissors frame, and was unable to release the pressure with my one remaining hand because of the downforce. every slight movement made the scissors squeeze tighter, and had i not yelled for help, and found a neighbour at home, it would have been goodbye thumb. i've done it a thousand times before without a problem, but i'll be a lot more careful in future. whichever way i look at it, i can't see a totally safe way of lowering the hood.

[Ian46]

Sorry to hear about your incident Doc,

I have found it is always best to lower the hood on these cars with two people one on either side of the car.

Regards Ian

[docgibbons]

i agree ian, but when there's just the one of you, there must be a method that cuts down on the chances of getting your fingers nipped off. i think i'll go and practise, but not till there's someone on hand to spring me loose if it goes wrong.

[Gareth]

If I recall, the handbook recommends the two-person operation for safe hood removal. It is possible with one, but I believe you have to be very careful so that the hood (or operator!) isn't damaged.

Glad you're okay; you had a narrow escape.

[ASL642]

We've found that the easiest/safest way to lower the roof with only one person is to 1) sit in the car (front seats) and loosen the hood from it's front fixings - then 2) get in the back with one foot in each floor well and pass the roof over your head. This way you are holding the roof and can see where to guide the frame down without fear of loosing fingers. When the hood is safely lowered get out of the car and arrange hood to fit into hood bag.

[docgibbons]

thanks for that, i tried it and it works just fine. however, after experimenting a bit more, i found that i don't really have to get inside the car. after releasing the front fixings, i can just lower it gently when holding the front, and then re-arrange the top ( i don't have a bag) to tuck in nicely when it's fully lowered. can't think why i never thought of this before. anyway, i'm now more confident than i was of ending the summer motoring season with as many fingers as when it started. as that bloke reporting on the Falklands said: "i counted them all out, and i counted them all in again."