Fixing a Honda Hood Release Lever

I broke the release lever pull thingy on my wife's car. Oops. Luckily I knew exactly how to fix it. It's a pretty simple fix, really. I used my lathe to turn a wooden knob, but this could also easily be 3D printed, or even just hot glued on a new piece, that'd most likely do the trick too. This is the most complex car repair I'd be comfortable doing. But read along to see how I did it!

• A chunk of wood, about 6 inches long and 2 inches square
• Two-Part Epoxy (https://amzn.to/3tAbA7s)
• Nova Pen Jaws (https://amzn.to/3oaijS0)
• Nova Comet II Lathe (https://amzn.to/3tgKxP1)
• Lathe Live Center (https://amzn.to/39ZyAo3)
• Jacobs Chuck (https://amzn.to/3652MwI)
• Easy Wood Mini Turning Tools (https://amzn.to/3iBhxfZ)
• 5-Roll Sandpaper (https://amzn.to/3u4AhcT)
• Chip Brush (https://amzn.to/2Yxqn54)
• Stick Fast CA Glue (https://amzn.to/36xP3io)

Obviously there won't be anything to fix if you don't first break something. Once you've successfully snapped off the handle part of this pull/lever thing, grab a calipers and measure the outer diameter of the piece that the handle was attached to.

Find a scrap of wood, or other material you can carve/machine. Ideally, you want this to be about 6 inches long, to be sure you have plenty of length to work with it, and also 2 inches square, so it'll have heft for you to grab on to.

I used the calipers at the same setting from measuring that post, and grabbed a drill bit that was slightly oversized, to be sure the hole wasn't too tight, so I could fit some epoxy in there later on, too. Then I used the Jacobs Chuck on my lathe to drill that hole into my blank.

Now, with the hole drilled, get your lathe going, and carve your piece into a shape that'll work as something to tug on. While I used the lathe for this, any carving tools could do.

Once it's shaped, be sure to sand it smooth. Don't want any splinters when you're popping your hood.

Is your wood that ugly brown color? GROSS! Who wants the excellent look of nice walnut lumber when you can slather some paint over top of it?

You don't have to paint this. But I thought it'd be nice for it to match the car's interior. Also, it's fun to troll woodworkers who like to over-react to people painting a nice hardwood like this.

This is pretty straightforward. I just mixed up some Two-Part epoxy, slathered that into the hole, then pressed it onto the post in the car. I held it for about 2 minutes to make sure it doesn't slide off, but then let it sit overnight before testing it out, to be sure the epoxy fully cured.

That's it. You can now open your hood again. Thanks for reading.