• Engine "hood" swap — transplanting a 1st gen engine cover into a 2nd gen Van

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    llamavan
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    Reasons why you might want to do this:

    (1) One or both of your 2nd gen Van's "hood" latch loops are broken
    (2) You have already owned a 1st gen Van and prefer the increased sealing pressure of that latch system

    In my case, both of the above applied.

    Pictured: Skyler, my 1989 DLX 4WD — he's about to get a 1985 cargo van "hood".

    First, remove the driver's seat (DUH). A good time to have the shopvac handy (Skyler paid me 20 cents for doing this).
    Arrow points to the seat rail. Because this one is in much better condition (dirty, but no rust), I will swap it over to the "new" (1985) "hood" along with its three #3 Phillips screws. You could take it off at this point; it happens that I did not (but I would next time). More on that in a bit.

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    Throw back the carpet to expose three 12mm bolts ... and off it comes.

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    Here's Skyler's seat rail ready to install on the "new" access panel. The screws are stubborn; note the tool set-up I resorted to (#3 Phillips bit + 1/4-to-3/8 adapter + socket wrench). If you don't use a #3 Phillips on these screws, you'll mess up the heads.

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    I didn't take pics of the bottoms; undersides of both panels were in fine shape and I didn't make any substitutions. But the rubber seal and bumpers and the insulation can all be swapped if you so desire.


    One of the 1st gen latches already installed; 2nd gen latch held next to it for comparison. Both latches have slots rather than round holes so you can adjust how tight the "hood" is held closed. Latches also require a #3 Phillips.

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    Finished product, all latched up!

    The #3 Phillips screw indicated (lower one on that latch) was a total b****!!! to remove on the parts vans (all other latch screws on the same vans were just fine ... go figure ... although I did need to use the socket wrench set-up shown above on 'em). I finally resorted to using a pair of Vise-gripsฎ to further mangle and get this one screw loose. This screw on Skylervan did not give me any grief (whew), but I'd say the parts van experience was a warning ... if you go harvesting latches from parts vans for your own van, bring home all the decent latch screws, too ... just in case you need 'em.

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