Hood shaking at speed - what Mitsubishi did

[Tom 5778]

Was just watching MotorWeek. They were doing a short take on the Mitsubishi Outlander. It seems in trying to cut weight, they made the hood a bit too thin and owners started seeing their hoods shake at highway speed.

Wanna know what Mitsubishi did? They told owners to come in get a new, stiffer hood.

At least that’s what MotorWeek said. I couldn’t find anything with a quick internet search.

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[spaceman1577]

I have noticed my hood shakes like crazy when I’m on the highway.

 

[760Bronco]

Mine shakes so much that I’m sometimes convinced it’s going to fly back and hit the windshield. One of the cons of the bronco sport, unfortunately.

 

[Dantanman]

Mine shakes so much that I’m sometimes convinced it’s going to fly back and hit the windshield. One of the cons of the bronco sport, unfortunately.

Scary! No shake here whatsoever. I wonder why some do and some don't? Do you have the under hood insulation?

 

[GT1]

Mine shakes so much that I’m sometimes convinced it’s going to fly back and hit the windshield. One of the cons of the bronco sport, unfortunately.

Lots of previous discussion. I have early production Badlands and no issue other than the normal "drop to latch" never latches hood - have to give hood a good push to secure latch. There are rubber bumpers with adjustment on the front corners of the hood. My guess is not all cars have these properly adjusted at factory. On 2000 mile drive much at 70-80 mph no issues.

 

[Meanderthal]

Lots of previous discussion. I have early production Badlands and no issue other than the normal "drop to latch" never latches hood - have to give hood a good push to secure latch. There are rubber bumpers with adjustment on the front corners of the hood. My guess is not all cars have these properly adjusted at factory. On 2000 mile drive much at 70-80 mph no issues.

I know this is asking a lot, but in the name of science, maybe you could try adjusting your hood rubber bumpers to relieve tension on them. Then take a drive and watch for hood shake. Then return to the previous spot and check again. Of course I would understand if you just felt like you didn't want to mess with anything and potentially introduce hood shake that you can't remedy even though you returned the bumpers to their previous location.

Since yours doesn't "drop to latch" it would seem there is more tension in your bumpers than others.

The hood shake has me concerned because the hood is made of aluminum. Aluminum is prone to fatigue failures. A prolonged shaking of the hood means the metal is being flexed with every cycle. Not a good thing for aluminum.

Maybe someone with hood shake will adjust their bumpers to increase the tension and report that it fixed the problem?

 

[jazzdab]

I have both the hood insulator and Redline struts installed and never notice any hood vibration. I have adjusted the bumpers so the hood just closes on it’s own. I hate rattles.

Also I drove a rental Outlander a few months ago and was really impressed. Great power and handling and good space. The new one looks even better. Wouldn’t trade my BS for it, though.

 

[Jess1]

Not to beat a ... well, yeah. Adjust the "bumpers" under the hood (there are four - hood and either side of radiator) until it closes with a solid push, and ensure that the gap is (fairly) uniform all the way 'round.
Had a bit of wobbly at first, but noticed the odd hood closure right away. Spent all of 90 seconds, and no issues now even at ... Texas speeds.

 

[GulfCoastBronco]

I’ve been meaning to make a thread about this (again) but keep forgetting. I have no hood insulator and also experienced the hood shake. However, I have seen it decrease over time. 6,500 miles doing probably 75-80% highway driving at 75mph give or take. And I have noticed a big time decrease in the hood shake. Lots of threads talk about Eco Boost engines “learning”. Is it possible more engine vibration is taking place in the early stages of engine life? Am I overthinking the term of “learning”?

 

[Warpious]

Thats an interesting thought. I've go the hood insulation and still notice the hood shake but when I put the redline struts on awhile back I did notice a decrease, and after the road trip we just did even with high winds I didn't really notice it much at all.

 

[GT1]

I know this is asking a lot, but in the name of science, maybe you could try adjusting your hood rubber bumpers to relieve tension on them. Then take a drive and watch for hood shake. Then return to the previous spot and check again. Of course I would understand if you just felt like you didn't want to mess with anything and potentially introduce hood shake that you can't remedy even though you returned the bumpers to their previous location.

Since yours doesn't "drop to latch" it would seem there is more tension in your bumpers than others.

The hood shake has me concerned because the hood is made of aluminum. Aluminum is prone to fatigue failures. A prolonged shaking of the hood means the metal is being flexed with every cycle. Not a good thing for aluminum.

Maybe someone with hood shake will adjust their bumpers to increase the tension and report that it fixed the problem?

Besides the rubber bumpers there can be an issue with the position of the latch itself. Aluminum hoods certainly have less mass than steel so not a big surprise the "drop to latch" method doesn't work. Watch enough car repair shows on motor week and you'll see adjusting hoods is back and forth adjustment process from hinges to latch. Some cars just got more care in manufacturing than others. Good Luck.

 

[Meanderthal]

Besides the rubber bumpers there can be an issue with the position of the latch itself. Aluminum hoods certainly have less mass than steel so not a big surprise the "drop to latch" method doesn't work. Watch enough car repair shows on motor week and you'll see adjusting hoods is back and forth adjustment process from hinges to latch. Some cars just got more care in manufacturing than others. Good Luck.

I think the clamshell hood design on the BS is much easier to align during assembly. The more common design where the hood fits between the fenders is definitely a trial and error process for body shops but I bet they have fixtures in the factory so that they don't have to try and try again.

 

[Meanderthal]

I’ve been meaning to make a thread about this (again) but keep forgetting. I have no hood insulator and also experienced the hood shake. However, I have seen it decrease over time. 6,500 miles doing probably 75-80% highway driving at 75mph give or take. And I have noticed a big time decrease in the hood shake. Lots of threads talk about Eco Boost engines “learning”. Is it possible more engine vibration is taking place in the early stages of engine life? Am I overthinking the term of “learning”?

The learning process for the engine ECU would usually be less than 100 miles. I wouldn't expect much change between 100 & 6500 miles in terms of what it learns or adjusts.

 

[760Bronco]

I’ve adjusted the bumpers so that it does just as you say, it still wobbles like crazy on the freeway. If it’s windy and I’m on the freeway it looks a little worrisome. Lol I’ve gotten used to it

 

[Ford Motor Company]

I’ve adjusted the bumpers so that it does just as you say, it still wobbles like crazy on the freeway. If it’s windy and I’m on the freeway it looks a little worrisome. Lol I’ve gotten used to it

Good morning, Michael! Could you please send us a private message with your VIN and dealership information? I would like to look into these hood wobble for you concerns on my end. Thanks!

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