[Fredo]

My mechanic took these pics on my last visit and posted these notes:

"hood latch cable resting on hot cooler line, rubber is melting"

I will go ahead and replace the cable. Could one of you please post pics of that area?

I want to make sure the new cable is installed correctly. My car is a 2012 F30 335i sedan.

Thank you.

[Billfitz]

The top picture shows a retaining clip that appears to have come loose or broken.

[thatgarrett]

Mine also has always had what looks like a broken clip there and is routed similarly against the plastic engine cover but no melting, my melting is happening down by the radiator connection on the drivers side as pictured below- is yours fine down there or also melting?

[bimmer456]

I did notice my latch cable melting too but it doesn't seem to be coming in contact with anything but maybe it is. I do pop the hood to install the battery maintainer so it gets a good amount of use.

[Fredo]

Originally Posted by thatgarrett

Mine also has always had what looks like a broken clip there and is routed similarly against the plastic engine cover but no melting, my melting is happening down by the radiator connection on the drivers side as pictured below- is yours fine down there or also melting?

Thanks for the pics. My cable on the driver's side is also melting. I just noticed today.

[thatgarrett]

Yeah I feel like I’ve seen a few threads where someone say “oh I rerouted it and fixed it” but I’ve never once seen a picture of this supposed rerouting and every N55 F30 I’ve seen in person on picture of had this routed this way, seems like whatever rubber they use is just not up to the task. I wrapped my cable in Tessa tape (used for wiring looks) and it seems to have stopped the melt as far as I can tell, but if more parts that aren’t in contact with anything fail too I’ll just replace the whole cable I guess. Annoying, but less of a pain than the e-chassis window regulator problem and coolant tanks, can’t get everything right I guess

[bimmer456]

There is melting even where it isn’t near the coolant line. Just anywhere it gets hot. But the cable itself is fine just the material around it that melts. Not sure why they have that on it. I have the b58. But yeah that material melts easily and replacing it won’t solve the problem. Maybe just remove the material that is melted to reduce risk if fire.

[Fredo]

My body shop ended replacing these parts. Now the hood opens super easy:

51-23-7-242-549 = right hood latch
51-23-7-411-315 = hood release cable
17-12-7-609-160 = pipe clip

Hope this helps others having the same issue.

[bimmer456]

Unless it can be routed away from the heat source it will melt again. It’s just the foam insulation that melts off not the actual steel cable. Which has some kinda of rubber sheathing in addition to the foam.

[aridaen]

My cables are getting gooey on both driver and passenger side. Since I have to be in there soon, I'm replacing the front cable.

[Aidzer0]

Hello folks,

What was the final conclusion for this issue? Did the new cable goo up again? How was this routed, I am having the exact same issue, got a new OEM cable on the way but I would prefer to not install it and have this happen again. And there are not really a lot of good pictures of it being routed for the 335i.

Looks like this melts the coolant hose when the hood latch cable is resting on the plastic coolant flange.

Thanks!

[NxTH]

Originally Posted by Aidzer0

Hello folks,

What was the final conclusion for this issue? Did the new cable goo up again? How was this routed, I am having the exact same issue, got a new OEM cable on the way but I would prefer to not install it and have this happen again. And there are not really a lot of good pictures of it being routed for the 335i.

Looks like this melts the coolant hose when the hood latch cable is resting on the plastic coolant flange.

Thanks!

Attach a cable tie to the right side under the hood and trap the cable with it. There will be plenty of holes in the metal body of the car. It will be obvious when you look for spots to tighten the cable to. This will prevent it from sagging and there's nothing it can melt onto.

Routing it as per the photo below also has the benefit that there's a nook in there where the intake sits, there's just a gap wide enough for the cable so it stays put. Ignore the torque wrench.

[Fredo]

Originally Posted by Aidzer0

Hello folks,

What was the final conclusion for this issue? Did the new cable goo up again? How was this routed, I am having the exact same issue, got a new OEM cable on the way but I would prefer to not install it and have this happen again. And there are not really a lot of good pictures of it being routed for the 335i.

Looks like this melts the coolant hose when the hood latch cable is resting on the plastic coolant flange.

Thanks!

A body shop installed the new cable for me. This is how it looks now. On the passenger's side, the cable is not touching the hot spot. On the driver's side, the location is also a little different.

[Aidzer0]

Originally Posted by Fredo

A body shop installed the new cable for me. This is how it looks now. On the passenger's side, the cable is not touching the hot spot. On the driver's side, the location is also a little different.

Originally Posted by NxTH

Attach a cable tie to the right side under the hood and trap the cable with it. There will be plenty of holes in the metal body of the car. It will be obvious when you look for spots to tighten the cable to. This will prevent it from sagging and there's nothing it can melt onto.

Routing it as per the photo below also has the benefit that there's a nook in there where the intake sits, there's just a gap wide enough for the cable so it stays put. Ignore the torque wrench.

Epic! Thank you both for that, looks really good, I just wanted to confirm before I routed it wrong and the hood does not open. LOL

[Aidzer0]

Got the new cable installed, I am just adding photos of my install for anyone else that may stumble on this thread, I decided to take inspiration from both of your routing. Thanks again!