How to Open the Hood on a 2003 Dodge Neon
by Russell WoodWhen working on your own car, most of the tasks you need to perform require getting under the hood for one thing or another. But if you can't figure out how to open the hood to begin with, a simple task may get a lot more frustrating. On a 2003 Dodge Neon, the hood latch isn't the easiest thing to find, but it helps to know where to look.
Step 1
Open the door and locate the latch to pop the hood on the driver's side of the dashboard. Pull the handle and the hood will pop open just slightly.
Step 2
Grab the lip of the front center of the hood, and lift it up until it locks in place. It may take a little bit of force to do this, depending on the amount of corrosion on the latch. The hood will only be open about 2-3 inches, but will stay in place so you can access the latch.
Step 3
Reach inside the gap between the hood and the bumper with your left hand and feel around for the hood latch, which is just to the left from the center of the hood. If you have to, bend over and look through the gap to find the latch handle, which has a large flat section on it designed to hold a hand.
Step 4
Pull up on the hood latch using your left hand, then lift up the hood the rest of the way using your other hand. Pull out the hood prop and set it into the groove in the hood to hold it in place.
Writer Bio
Russell Wood is a writer and photographer who attended Arizona State University. He has been building custom cars and trucks since 1994, including several cover vehicles. In 2000 Wood started a career as a writer, and since then he has dedicated his business to writing and photographing cars and trucks, as well as helping people learn more about how vehicles work.
