Hood hinges get sloppy over the hrs , this may have been repaired and they used a bolt giving you the idea something should bolt here. Their is a metal sleeve at this location , the hinge has its end part that fits into the sleeve , it’s then that a clip is put into place to hold it tight .

Okay there is enough confusion that I suggest you check Google. I just entered repairing 123 Mercedes hood hinges.

I will suggest that it is a pin that has a shoulder. That entered from the outside. That in your case the retaining clip may have failed and the pin may have gone back through the hinge bushing and inner fender or whatever hole being lost in the process.


At the same time I have some concerns as the pin and sheet metal around mine tore out of the body. In your case perhaps they missed welding the shoulder of the pin to the outside of the inner fender hole. Or perhaps the weld failed. I also do not think you are dealing with an earlier repair.

There also seems to have been some confusion back in 2012 when this issue was also discussed back them on this site now on google as well. At least there are some pictures and information on Google that may help clarify things for you and others.

This thread was starting to get a little wild. Ken also has some videos that may help you there. There seems to be no bolt as such anyways in the original situation. I can imagine a situation where if you can gain access to the back of that hole. Sliding the right size and length bolt through so that the hood bushing rides on the non threaded portion and washers and a locknut to hold the hinge in alignment might be done. I just do not know if you can access that backside with the fender on.

I am assuming you have not found a clip or the pin or anything there that looks like one. You just may have a really odd failure in that area at least in comparison to the one some of us are all too familiar with. You just cannot weld a nut or bolt to the surface as that would displace the hood hinge sideways. Plus you might loose alignment support. I also do not think there is enough material in thickness to install a heli coil either so you could use a bolt. Yet there may be.

At least your description is reasonable under the situation you saw to imagine there is just a bolt missing. Where a pin with a groove for the clip and a shoulder at the other end of the pin is instead. You will see the clip on the other sides hinge point.

After a nights sleep I thought cutting a flap in the metal to get a bolt in from the backside might be workable. Then bend the flap back into place and weld it. You have to probe that hole to find out if there is enough space back there or if it can be accessable with the fender on in some way. If not the flap you cut and bend out will have to contain the hole. That way you could also tack weld the bolt head on the backside.. One way or another this is one of those things that has to be repaired.

My function on this site is not to drive people over the edge or out of their minds. . I figure they were already well underway already and my contribution just gave them the final push.

In the interest of helping others on this board I managed to fix this at least short term.

I ordered a "hood hinge repair kit" from Mercedes-Benz. It came most all hood hinge bolts washers etc but most importantly with a sleeve that is threaded inside and has a flange on one end. I believe this should be welded or glued or something to the hole in the body for the back bolt. I did not do that for now. My plan is to use JB weld at a later date to affix better but for now the tightness of the sleeve in the hole is holding it in.

I had to use a hammer to press it into the body. and then put bolt and rotating spacing washer into place with the hood hinge.

Hood works perfect now even though it messed up my paint

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1978 300D

It is good that you have found a solution. I do not know if others where aware Mercedes had a repair kit for this issue. I did not.

For those that have the original pin and bushing in the hood hinge seize. When seized so solid it takes some of the original inner fender with it.

I had to use my torches to get the bushing and pin separated after removing the hinge. That gave me the torn out metal and pin to weld in again.

An old timers trick that precceeds even my generation. Mechanics of old put seized up parts in wood or coal stoves. Heating them until they turned red. Grabbing them with pliers or whatever and separating them. When I was a kid I took a seized up heavy steel cast hinge into a older auto repair shop.

That is what they did. I seriously doubt even todays better penetrating oils would get those solid seizures apart. Perhaps in a weeks long soaking.

One thing I do not recommend was in one of Kens videos. He took probably a dremel tool or grinder with the cutting disk. He seems to have cut the pin between the hinge bushing and the metal mount area. When these pins seize enough to tear the metal out. They are really seized together.

I did not find the fit between the bushing and the pin sloppy after separation with heat. It did take oxy/acc to do it. Since Ken could obviously still open the hood the pin was not seized so hard in the bushing. Simply because the metal was not torn out. Soaking it in penetrating oil for sometime might have got it functional again.

This poster basically just had his luck run out. Somehow the retaining clip on the original pin came off. As the hinge worked it's way off the pin. It probably forced the bond on the pin to separate. Then the pin worked it's way back through the hole.

Installing the torn out metal and pin again. You have to weld for strength as the metal edge contact areas are small. It sounds like the Mercedes repair kit has enough contact area modern glues can work.

This was an odd case where even had the pin and bushing been lubricated every several years it still may have happened.

For those that live in climates with a reasonable amount of moisture in the air. Not lubricating the very rear hood hinge points can penalize you.

We have been very lucky so far that the car door hinges do not seize up. They get stiff and have the grease points. But never seem to totally seize. They seem to have been so well made sloppy worn door hinges are not mentioned on site either.

Directly from a dealer? If so can you provide a part number? I've not seen reference to such a kit searching online.

- Peter.

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2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

MB Part number 123-880-00-47

Each kit does one side, probably best to get two kits.

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78 W116 300SD 'Desert Rose' new as of 01/26/2014
79 W116 300SD 'Stormcloud' RIP 04/11/2022

thats the right part number! yes you can order from your dealer.

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1978 300D