get the grommet into the firewall?

I just replaced the hood release cable. Pretty straight forward job once I figured out what needed to be removed to access the locknuts. Only thing that is giving me fits is getting the darn grommet into the firewall. I tried, for quite some time, to push and twist but to no avail. Perhaps I was just getting tired and gave up too early.

If you can get to the inside of the firewall where it passes through, you can try the old glass gasket trick.

Put a light film of lubricant on the groove of the rubber grommet, as well as the end you are trying to run through the hole. Wrap one loop of string around the groove. Pass the two ends of the string through the hole. Have a buddy start one side of the grommet's groove into the hole where the string comes out of the groove. Now, while your buddy is applying pressure to the grommet, gently pull the string to guide the lip of the grommet through the hole.

Mike:

If you are working alone and can't do the string trick, we used to "V" the grommets we were putting in electronic chassis. You press one edge of the grommet in towards the center, so it looks like a circle with a V in it (V). This effectivly decreases the diameter of the grommet so it will go in the hole. squeeze the legs of the V together when putting it in the firewall. Once in, a pencil is used to push the V away from the center to form an O again. Good luck.

how bout this....i have a 92 400E, how do you REPLACE those little grommits (2)? Mine are falling apart and water is leaking inside the car when i wash it. The cables they go around run from the engine compartment to under the dash...

any ideas? thanks!
Peter

Thanks for the suggestions.

The string method wouldn't work since I'm working solo right now. John, poking one side of the grommet wasn't viable on this one as the grommet was recessed behind/under a large flashing which conforms to the firewall, plus the grommet was fairly thick.

I thought about this some today while working, entertained the idea of cutting a slit in the edge of the grommet and screwing it in. Figured with the flashing, and proper positioning it should be water tight. Opted to try something else, but similar.

I pulled back the flashing and put a dollop of assembly lube in the grommet channel. Then I pushed it into the hole slightly askew and started turning. The lube made all the difference. The grommet screwed in and seated flush, nice and neat.

Pbalis - you'll probably have to disconnect one end of the cable(s) and slip the new grommet on, slide it to the firewall and install from the engine bay. In that situation, JCE's suggestion of poking one side in should work.

Thanks again for the suggestion, and I hope my method helps others in the same boat.