Emergency Hood Release Latch

[action]

There's a reason the entire auto industry followed Lincoln's temporary lead to delete outside hood latch releases—battery thefts and even plain old-fashioned vandalism were common in the late-'60s and into the '70s. In fact, I won't understand for the life of me why Lincoln took a major step backward from security by reinstating outside latches on their '70s cars starting with the Mark III, until around mid-decade.

---Tony

Mark III was a low cost design taken from the 1967 Ford Thunderbird platform. All of the money was spend on sheet metal and interior for the new Mark. Done in an extremely short lead time (in that era) of just over 2 years.
The roll out of the Mark III in April 1968, saw a lot of production changes in that car line in the very long first model year (1969) which happened because of the short lead time.
The hood latch release (and most other mechanicals) for the re-born Mark series came from the designs of the Ford Thunderbird platform.
It was only step back in that it was really a Ford platform and which made the division very profitable. To pay for other design needs which were mostly governmental by the 1970s

Action

[Mike]

I'd have no problem with an outside emergency hood release. Unless you label it no one is going to know what it is and they wouldn't spend the time to figure it out. I don't think thieves bother looking for hidden keys anymore. If they want in they'll break a window or pop the door lock.

[action]

Car thieves of today do not break windows or pop locks.
In under 10 seconds they roll up in a tow truck, pick up the vehicle and ride off.

And as for slab side security today, not likely someone is going to steal it when more profitable vehicle(s) are around for that kind of risk.
And no one is going to steal MEL engine parts from under the hood of a slab side. The battery may be the only item a thief may want.

Emergency hood release for a slab side should have accessibility at the heart of the design, not security.

Action

[Mike]

I was referring to a thief who would take items not a whole car. But car thieves of today don't even need a truck anymore it's easier for them to go after the keyless cars and clone the signal.

[TonyC]

Well, those are opinions which I respect, even though I don't share them. To me, improving the design and maintaining security are equal priorities. May sound silly, but an outside latch release, factory or otherwise, just seems so, well...Buick Apollo-ish.

---Tony

[stevedrums]

where are you guys parking your cars so they get prowled???

[JimA]

The places that worried me the most were overnight parking in motel parking lots on road trips.

[Stuart M. Cohen]

i gotta tell you, we've gone on a ton of long road trips, staying a boatload of nights on the road and have never had a problem. Of course, we are smart about it. We don't stay at those $39 a night motels, don't leave stuff in the car to tempt thieves and do try to park under a light. The thought of someone trying to break into the car and steal it never crossed my mind.

I dunno, maybe we should be more worried....

[TonyC]

Well, there really isn't much one can do to stop thieves from having their way inside the car rummaging for things, save for giving the impression that there isn't anything to scavenge. But, as for stealing the car itself, I think the only thing to prevent them from stealing it is the chance they would be spotted quickly if the police are notified fast enough. After all, a Suicide is pretty easy to identify on the road. But, considering the attention Frankenstein gets anywhere, I do not hold it beyond possible for a thief to dare. We are talking about an old Ford, one of the easiest-ever cars to steal with no really fancy hardware required. Luckily, it's also one of the easiest cars to make theft-proof; and that's what I do whenever I have to stop somewhere for the night.

---Tony

[stevedrums]

on the 61's, the starter relay is reeaaally shitty to get to, so mine is slightly safer

[mge825y]

Getting back on-topic....yes, the Nov-Dec 2020 Lincoln & Continental Comments magazine has a great article by Neil Pierson with pictures on how to install the emergency hood latch release. It’s given me the confIdence to tackle it this Spring. Just for the record, I think there’s a far greater chance of a hood latch fail than someone getting under the hood to take something using a hidden away emergency release. Just saying...

[stevedrums]

i fully agree. nobody is going to notice an emergency hood latch; thieves are not typically very smart

[Solid]

Hmm, thieves so intent on stealing stuff that they don’t bypass the ancient door locks and instead use their psychic powers to know you have a hood release reachable under the car so they can instead steal your... ???

Essentially, yes.

Sure, those locks are ancient to a professional lock-picker...but fact is that a pro can and will pick any lock if he has the talent, hardware, and motivation. Proof is in the number of vehicles less than 20 years old that are stolen every day. Of course, any lock-picker runs the risk of being spotted in the middle of a job, so why not keep that risk high by forcing him to pick a lock? Pro thieves can also look for secret access points (e.g., "Hide-A-Keys"), and I prefer not to have them come up on a "secret" outside latch release.

There's a reason the entire auto industry followed Lincoln's temporary lead to delete outside hood latch releases—battery thefts and even plain old-fashioned vandalism were common in the late-'60s and into the '70s. In fact, I won't understand for the life of me why Lincoln took a major step backward from security by reinstating outside latches on their '70s cars starting with the Mark III, until around mid-decade.

---Tony

I understand the argument writ large but disagree on the details. A generic jimmy tool for sliding between the window and door, or a coat hanger between the window and B pillar with a screwdriver deflecting the window a bit will pop into this car in 2-3 seconds with zero skill. These cars have zero defense against the lock release tool that every cop and tow truck has and that can be bought or made for nothing. No one picks a car door lock when breaking in. Expenditure on defensive tools and techniques starts with the highest probability attacks and must always be balanced against usability. You’ve got a car that is indefensible short of totally re-engineering the door locks, latches, body side of where the windows seal.

[papawayne]

Of course the original topic, which any of us rarely stick to, is having a way to let yourself under the hood when the factory cable parts ways with you...Wayne

[Stuart M. Cohen]

Geez, look what I started....