1962 Chevy Truck - Hands-Free Hood

Stainless-steel button head bolts held everything in place.

Because this latch system lacks a traditional pull handle underneath the hood, if the release cable broke it would be nearly impossible to raise the hood, without major mechanical surgery. To protect against this, BAD installed a secondary, safety release cable that was hidden behind the front fender well. You can see a preliminary mock-up here. Also, notice the channeling at the top of the underside of the fender. This was used to hide the primary release cable as it routed to the underside of the dash.

The electronic brains of the unit were mounted behind the driver side of the bench seat. They were hidden from view, but are easily accessible. A clear Lexan sheet provides a nice mounting surface for all the components. Elliott said the mounting layout was designed to allow display of the components, once the upholstery is in and the wires are properly routed and hidden wherever possible.

Here's the look of the truck with most of the body mods complete and the hood closed.

Look, Ma! No hands!