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Looking to see what hood security / locking options there are for our trucks (73-F250), what some of you folks have done? I've spent a lot of time and energy on my truck, looking for ways to keep thieves from getting under my hood.
Just a FYI this is the dentside area, 73-79.
I have a chain and master lock. Can't see it unless your looking for it, not the most convenient, but I don't want my FiTech EFI to grow legs and walk away. My bronco has the factory cable that mounts inside.
Whatever type of locking system you go with, keep in mind you need to be able open the hood quickly yourself. Example, 70 Torino Cobra 4 speed, parked on incline, starter solenoid stuck cranking, parking brake worthless, 2 twist to open hood hold downs plus latch. When solenoid is stuck on even with key off, with points ignition, the coil resistor is bypassed by the I terminal and the engine will run, it will run even faster if you have just set the choke for a cold start. If that's not bad enough there is the reverse shift position interlock between the shifter and key to deal with on the thought you can just kill it and take the key out with the steering wheel locked. Nobody died and nobody was dented but the 360hp 429 was pretty hard on the Delco supplied starter.
I'm thinking something along the lines of a modern cargo electronic deadbolt. I didn't think about the OEM locking hood latch but now not liking the exposed wire (cut the casing and pull the wire) or the price $300 seems pricey for well used part.
I think the later models, 77-79 could come with an optional locking hood latch and cable release. I also think the econolines had them until 1991. Most factory and economical route.
For the most part the OEM hood latch is a pretty secure design, yes you could cut the casing (but getting to it easily would be a pita). Have to remove the grill insert. And then to be able to very carefully cut just the casing and then grab a very very small piece of that cable.
Or once they get the grill insert out they can work a bit to get one screw out and that is what holds the cover over the cable attachment point on the locking part and then pop the hood. Most thieve are lazy and not going thru that much work. Yes those are pricey on Ebay. You can probably get one from a FTE member cheaper. Post up a WTB add here. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/forum242/
I guess after you get the hood lock figured out, you better get a "Club" for the steering wheel, and some vent wing locks, if yours are not the locking type now. https://shop.broncograveyard.com/197...AaAvN_EALw_wcB
I made the latch of a newer car with a cable fit. Quick access is not a concern until you need to open the hood quickly. A fire or stuck throttle are a couple of the reasons I have seen people rushing to open the hood.
I ended up going with the OEM locking hood latch. I bought a wafer set and rekeyed it to my ignition. Just about ready to install it and was wonder how the factory routed the cable? I can see several ways of going about it but the engineers at Ford likely did it a certain way. If anybody has pictures of the OEM routing I would like to see how they did it!! Thanks!!
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalytic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
