Factory bug guard makes hood jump at speed

Hello,

Don't know who else might be experiencing this, but I bought a factory Toyota hood chip deflector /bug guard and at highway speeds the thing makes the left side of my hood jump like a Mexican jumping bean. Anyone else having this problem?

By the way, the thing is hardly a bug guard (as advertised) as it has not deflected one single bug yet!

 

The factory bug guard just deflects the bugs from the front of the hood directly into the windshield Check to make sure the hood stops are making contact when the hood is closed. They look just like rubber nubs but they are threaded so you can adjust them. If the rubber isn't making contact between the hood and body, that would allow the hood to move around. I would also make sure the latching mechanism is working properly while you're in there.

 

Hi Pugga, Thanks for that.

Sorry, but I am a mechanical novice - how do check that the stops are making contact once the hood is shut?

Thanks for your help.

 

Shut the hood, check that the lines of the hood match up with the lines on the body. Open the hood, move one of the stops out a little bit (like 1/2 to 1 turn), shut the hood and see if the hood now sits a little higher than the body line. It doesn't take much for your eye to catch it. That will tell you that the stop is in contact between the hood and the body, you can then adjust to make everything line up. You should also see wear marks but, depending on how new your truck is, they might not be there yet.

 

Nice one Pugga, just did that and will check it out on the next highway ride. So the hood is to be marginally above the bodyline then. The truck is a '13 so kind of new and no obvious wear marks yet. Thanks again...

 

Visually, the line should be smooth from the hood to the fender. If the hood is sitting a little low, than that could be your problem, extend the bumper and you could be all set. If the hood is already resting nicely on the bumper and you still have an issue, since you have a 2013 and still in warranty, it might be worth having the dealership look at it as it could be an issue with the hood latch. I would make sure it's latching properly first, that last thing you want is your hood flying open at highway speed.

 

Yep, I adjusted the rubber stops and it looks good on the first highway run. It is normally when a semi truck comes rattling past on a two-lane highway that the thing would jump all over the shop.

Looks like the right-hand part of the hood was smooth with the body, maybe even a tad under while the left hand side was definitely out of alignment. Hopefully, this has done the trick.

 

Take that pos off and get Xpel wrap. Do headlights too.

 

Ha! Do they make a bug guard?