Last night I was looking under the hood of our new 2003 vibe, when the plastic piece that holds the hood bar to the right front fender broke and the hood fell and hit me in the head.It was cold, 35 deg, so I am thinking the plastic part was brittle and the weight of the hood caused it to break.I was lucky to escape with only a cut and bump the size of a fist on my forehead. I think if I was lower in the engine compartment, the extra momentium of the hood falling could have really done some damage.Has anyone else had this problem?If not, please becareful, and don't trust the crappy hood bar to hold the hood up while you are under it.UPDATE:Today I took the car back to the dealer and explained what happened. The service manager said it must have been windy, and "the repair would not be covered under warranty since I broke it". I explained that the car was inside a garage with the doors closed at the time. The service manager said he would think it over and give me a call on Monday. (Don't have to guess what the answer will be.)WOW, I get far better service at Wallmart for less than 1% the profit margin that this dealer made on this purchase less than a week ago.So much for the 3year/36,000 mile warranty.I will go to the local Toyota dealer and get the parts, and repair it myself, like many of you have done.It looks like Toyota is building a loyal customer base using former GM customers.
[Modified by tedmortl, 1:03 PM 12/1/2002]