So I was on my ride home earlier in the week and I noticed the right side of my CF hood begin to start flapping. I get out of the car and check them and I go to lock the one on the passenger side and I see that the barrel lock just keeps spinning around. Not good So I unlock the other side and lift the hood and see that piece that actually holds the pin locked is missing. So I just slow down and drive cautiouslly home. I get home and rig it up. I take a drill bit and snap it in half and put that in place of the piece thats missing. Last night I go to check the hood to make sure that it is latched and I am able to lift the passenger side again. I only have the hoodpins keeping my hood down. No hood latch. I am at my girlfriends house so I get some painters tape to temporarily fix the problem. And hold my hood down.
this is what it looks like right now.

these are the hood pins that I have

the bar
these are what I want to get if I can find a place to install them, cause I am not going to take a chance cutting the hood up to install them Aero Catch

 

if anyoen asks just tell them your practicing for your blue tape run :-p i kinda like the other hood latches though..just cut it and pray you dont mess up? :-p

 

Im not reallly sure about the functional part of those pins...... are they somehow locks to keep someone from breaking into the engine and stealing all the aftermarkets?

 

LOL well I purchased the latch ones. And they arrived yesterday and I am going to have a friend help me install them over the weekend. I will post pics when completed.
Well yeah basically. I have no hood latch. So my hood has no lock on it. I also have noticed that the locking hood pins like the set that I already have on my car keep the hood snugger. But that is mainly again cause I have to hood latch to hold it down properly.

 

The hood pins are usually found on aftermarket hoods for the main reason that the hood latch bar (I forget what that metal rod is called, the one the actual latch...latches on to) is held on by FG patches or whatever material that is used at the facility, to mimic our stock hoods. So, if you were to NOT use hood pins on an aftermarket hood, it may flip open at interstated speeds and destroy your windshield. On a stock hood, it's not a big worry for the hood to just pop up like that because of the way the bar is attatched to the hood. If the pins are installed correctly, it will hold the hood on nice and snug also, as MJD1 said.
The secondary purpose is theft, like you suggested. Not only theft of the aftermarket parts, but the removal of a possible alarm horn, and possibley the entire car. They won't stop theft, just delay it longer, just like an alarm really.

On topic, those Aerocatch hood pins are pretty sweet. They look a lot more reliable than your standard pins found all over the place.

 

Just an update. I ordered the AeroCatch hoodpins last week. Install was attempted on Saturday, but the hoodpins need to be cut down cause they are too long and appropriate tools weren't around. They will line up with the holes in the hood for the current pins, and the holes in the support under the hood aswell. Install now scheduled for either Wednesday or Thursday. And they are going to look damn good.

 

That sucks bro.
I bet they are going to look sweet. Those latches are just sexier than your everyday latch anyway, lol.

 

you need to update your sig :-p

 

LOL it's all good.
haha yeah I do LOL. I still gotta get my girlfriend to do a new one for me.

 

old hood pins

new AeroCatch latches

dirty engine bay and old hood pins underneath

outline for new hole on passenger side

new hole cut on passenger side

test fitting new latch on passenger side

passenger side latch screwed down

passenger side latch open

old hoodpin hole on drivers side

new hole being cut on drivers side


new drivers side hole

completed AeroCatch hood latch pics