I think the hood prop on my car is totally 'Mickey Mouse'.

The hydraulic hood supports are available as an option in Europe ($400), but not here in Canada/US.

Fabbed up some steel, a couple of bolts, some 'fire extinguisher red' paint, and fitted it all to a cylinder from my local surplus store.

Worked well, holds the hood at the right height, opens by itself from about mid-way. Had to relocate it from the initial drivers side to the passenger side, I realised it might get in the way of the oil level checks.

Sad part is that the hood flexes just too much, threatening to bend into a crease where the steel hinges meet the alloy hood. Took it all off, will maybe try some subtle steel reinforcement of the area in the future.

Here are pictures,
-before,
-the parts,
-complete.

(please excuse the snow, I opened the garage to get some light - it's February - it's Canada.)

S

 

Very, very cool indeed Stealth! But if you're concerned about flex, it sounds like you need one on each side. I've been looking at these that are available from Vivid Racing for (shudder!) about $300. If you come up with something comparable but cheaper, I'm there!

 

No, I don't think two would be the answer, the hood flexes when it is all the way up, and you grab the edge to close it. The strut is just too stong, so the metal bends before it overcomes the lift force.

I am working on moving the upper pivot down, closer to the hinge-point, this would give the strut less leverage.

Will follow up on the two strut idea, using smaller hardware......there is a real incentive to crack this, the struts only cost me $4 each!
Trust me, I won't be buying the Mazda bits!

S