Hood won't pop...

BUICK REGAL
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JGBASAR
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Vehicle:
Buick Regal Limited Edition
1987
2 Door

Question: My Buick has a very small crack in the oil pan. It leaks only very, very slightly, but it does leak. I haven't been able to put aside enough at once to get it fixed yet, but I have been keeping it filled with oil.

However, recently, the mechanism to pop the hood has ceased working, and the vehicle has been getting lower and lower on oil. I have oil ready and waiting to fill it up, but I can't get the hood open.

Are there any quick ways to pop the hood when the initial catch won't release? If not, how would I go about getting a 1987 Buick Regal's hood catch fixed? (To clarify, it's the initial lever that's not working, not the second release under the hood itself, but the first one, released by pulling a lever on the driver's side floor board.)
Oct 3, 2007 at 7:36 PM
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SERVICE WRITER
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Unless the cable is bad, you can rap on the hood at the top of the catch area while holding the release and it should pop.
Oct 3, 2007 at 7:51 PM
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JGBASAR
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[quote:2ef072038e="Service Writer"]Unless the cable is bad, you can rap on the hood at the top of the catch area while holding the release and it should pop.[/quote:2ef072038e]

Thank you very much for your response! Sadly, I've tried that. And if the cable's bad?
Oct 4, 2007 at 6:51 AM
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SERVICE WRITER
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Without having the car in front of me I can only offer some advice. You can try to get to the cable or mechinism from the bottom, you made need a variety of different basic tools to get to it, to attempt to pull the cable or push the lever it's attached to. Sometimes you get reove things like the grill to gain access.

You can also try a pair of vise grips on the cable at the release handle and pull it in combination with banging on the hood, if the cable is stretched.
Oct 4, 2007 at 8:35 AM
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JGBASAR
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[quote:b59fd2190f="Service Writer"]Without having the car in front of me I can only offer some advice. You can try to get to the cable or mechinism from the bottom, you made need a variety of different basic tools to get to it, to attempt to pull the cable or push the lever it's attached to. Sometimes you get reove things like the grill to gain access.

You can also try a pair of vise grips on the cable at the release handle and pull it in combination with banging on the hood, if the cable is stretched.[/quote:b59fd2190f]

Thank you very much for all of your advice! I will try all of this.
Oct 4, 2007 at 1:44 PM