The Water Pump: Grille and Bonnet removal

Grille is removed. You need to do this in order to get to the bolts on the front of the bonnet hinges. Put it in a safe place. In the process of removing mine, I discovered that I was missing the middle top two screw standoffs, so I ordered them from the local dealership (they're cheap). I also went out and purchased a quantity of 3/16"x 1/2" allen-head stainless bolts plus stainless washers to replace the phillips screws with. I think the allen-head hardware looks a touch smarter, but the primary reason for doing this is because the top row of screws is rather annoying to get at with a screwdriver, whereas allen wrenches are right-angle tools, perfectly suited for the job. If you don't understand what I mean now, when you're in there getting the grille out, it'll come to you like an ephiphany.

 
The aforementioned stainless allen-head bolt hardware.

 
 
 
Personally, I like the look a touch better than the phillips head screws, although the side profile sticks out a bit whereas the screws did not -- but the ease of installing and removing them more than makes up for that minour bit.

Remove the 1/2 inch bolt mounting the hydraulic lift to the side of the engine compartment (I felt it was easier to cope with the bonnet while removing these -- disconnecting the lift from the bonnet is a bit less convenient). Be careful not to misplace the bolt or the washer. When lifting the bonnet (with the help of an assistant), hold the strut up with one hand, so that it doesn't drag. I placed the bonnet on a pair of sawhorses, making sure it was stable.

Inside bonnet front. The bolts are accessible from the FRONT of the hinges, and you'll remove them with the bonnet in the CLOSED position. You'll need a helper to remove the bonnet. Before removing the bolts, you should score or otherwise mark the position of the bonnet-to-hinge bolts (from the FRONT) before removing them (this helps to re-align them). The hinge bolts are visible on either side after you've removed the grille.

Bonnet removed. As much as I admire the V-12, I don't think I'll be driving anywhere with it exposed for others to admire. That orange coil to the left is a length of CAT-5 network cable (Helix Hi-Temp) which runs into the cabin, giving me EIGHT low current conductors. It is there to facilitate future projects. Below that is the alarm siren on a bracket that utilized existing holes in the metal plate there so that there were no new holes drilled (this is detailed on the alarm/keyless entry installation pages).

Take a moment to chase the threads on the bonnet bolts. Dunno about yours, but a couple of mine were not particularly smooth on the trip out. When I replaced mine, I also treated them with anti-sieze. These are 5/16-24 thread.