Emergency front hood release cord for 1959:

[Max Handley]

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Anyone have a picture of the front hood emergency release cable for the 1959 mid year. Here’s what I found attached to the release mech, broken long ago.

[Victor Ingram]

It should be a cable/wire similar to the front and rear hood release.

[Martin Benade]

I may be way off but I thought it was a plastic “cord” that looked similar to a headlight wire but slightly thinner. At least that’s what my Bs had.

[John Brooks]

originally they were a vinyl covered cotton cord (Old Clothes Line) I always replace them with a stainless 7x19 cable from a motorcycle brake cable. I leave the sheath on and clip it where it goes through the fender, and squirt some undercoating over the exposed edge to hide it. worked much better than the old cords. The Authenticity Police don't like it, but they are never around when you need to use it.

[Victor Ingram]

I stand corrected, always learning. 55/56 used a wire cable that you fished through a hole in the wheel well.
The cord sounds like it would be a lot easier

[John Brooks]

If you are adding a wire or cable. I drill two #40 holes about 2-3 inches apart in the fender, around the same hight as the latch. Route the cable out the front hole, back through the aft hole and secure it tight with a wire clamp like on the heater box. Pull the cable tight as you secure the nut. This keeps the cable taught in the fender well. I cover it with undercoating sealing the holes. To open, I can use a straight slot screwdriver to slip under the cable and pull up to release the hood. Also works on the deck lid. Use a stranded cable, it easier that a bailing wire, and should have one swagged end you can use.

[Vic Skirmants]

Incidentally, to the best of my knowledge, ONLY 1962 cars had a factory emergency cable.
As the manual indicates, there was a hole, but you used whatever you could find to actually use as a pulling tool.

[Phil Planck]

My 63 had the plastic covered goldish cord. 2.5mm dia. Not available in USA. I found decorative lamp wiring cord pretty close in color and used small grommets in the 2 holes.

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[Mike Wilson]

My '63 coupe had the vestiges of the original cord. It was, as John said, German clothes line. Roy Lock (r.i.p.) wrote an article on this years ago with good pics of an original cord. Lamp cord would be a good substitute as it has a wire center rather than the thread center in the original clothes line. The spacing on the two holes on the side of the battery box on my car are about an inch apart.

Mike

[Ed Morris]

Here are some original picture of the hood release cable. Ed

[Ed Morris]

Notice, the cable goes out one side and back into the other and then it's tied into a knot. Then there was dumb dumb applied and it was shutzed over.

[Martin Benade]

What year is your car?