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The Problem
Like
most things on the Scorpion, and one would assume the Montecarlo, too, there is a re-Do-It-Yourself project just waiting to
prevent some minor disaster. From major systems on down to the smallest device,
lever, and latch, the factory sent the car along just barely “there” in many ways.
The passage of thirty years since the car rolled off the boat hasn’t done any kindness either. Such is the fate
of the front trunk latch release cables. Many a tale of woe is told of an owner
who has been shut out of his front trunk/boot, by a broken release cable. The
plastic handle itself is also a known point of weakness, snapping off in an surprised owner’s hand even when new.
I
examined the cables on 1194 and decided I would rather not wait for trouble. The
single strand wires looked rather thin for the job in the first place and over time had become fatigued near the eyelets on
each latch and on the lever arm. Time for an upgrade.
The Fix
First,
I replaced the two existing solid/single strand actuating wires from the lever arm to the left and right trunk latches with
1/16 braided stainless steel cable (wire rope). I am lucky enough to have a complete
Nicopress kit where I work. So I borrowed the kit one afternoon and got down
to business. It was a bit trial & error to get the lengths and tensions of
the cables right, but after a few tries, it seemed to work very well. I think
the toughest part may have been getting the Nicorpress tool into the tight space in the vent drain tray.
There seemed no practical
way to replace the cable from the release handle without replacing the handle itself.
So I gave myself and emergency “pull”. It is a length of coated
cable with a loop at the end, which runs from the lever arm and follows the path of the existing cable, passing through the
dash wiring to just behind the speaker panel at the foot well. So far so good!
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