Happened to check under the hood the other day to check on a leak I had repaired a few weeks ago.

When I opened the hood, I had piles of fluffy material on the valve cover and some down by the exhaust manifold. Noticed my hood liner was hanging down and there was evidence that it had been rubbing on the engine.

Realized that some animal had gotten into it and made a nest... tore it all up.

Had to remove it all, as there was no way to fix it and pin it back up. It had lost its rigidity...

Now the question what to do???

- can I run with out it, what will happen if I do?

- do I buy a replacement from Dodge??

-is there an after-market product I can use instead...

Appreciate the recommendations, just glad I caught it.

Bryan

 

The liner onmy 99 was sagging and coming apart so I took it down. Ran 5 years without it till I sold it.

 

I used to have an early 03 laramie. At that time they didn't come with the hood liner or the under hood light.

There are aftermarket stick on liners, but in the end when Dodge came out with the hood liner I bought one from the parts department along with a bunch of clips.

Be sure you've dealt with the critter so you don't have a repeat performace, or worse have the insulation gnawed off the wiring.

 

I hate those things!

I remove them into the trash bin whenever I can.

How much does the dealer charge for them?

I have an '05 liner in good shape with clips waiting for trash day at the shop right now... free to a good home!

I also usually bin the cowl liner - can't stand to swing wrenches around insulation.

 

Not sure haven't checked. Unless someone comes up with a compelling reason I need to replace it, I probably will never check...

Bryan

 

Bryan,

If you are ever in the Sacramento area I will give you the ones I had on including the small piece above the firewall by the wiper.

I installed Dynamat Extreme on my entire hood and on top of that, installed Second Skin Motor Mat. Here is what it looks like and the end result a much quieter truck.

 

You do not need a hood liner. My truck was delivered without one.

 

I want to say the hood liner, and the clips was about $80? I don't remember for sure, and I think I ordered the hood light, and related harness at the same time.

Anyway, it won't hurt anything to not have one.

On my 03 that came without one, I thought it might reduce noise, and maybe keep the engine heat from baking the paint on the hood, but in realitiy I doubt it makes any difference in either regard.

I did like the more "finished" look, though.

 

thanks to all for the input... The old liner is now in the trash and I think I will leave it out...

appreciate the knowledge and experience,

Bryan

 

I'd be really worried about wiring or the critter getting into the heat/ac ducts.Rodents love to chew on wiring.Stop feeding your dog or cats in the car port if you do such.Your lucky no wiring damage happened.