So I was replacing my radiator and in doing so I had taken off the cross member where the hood latches onto when shut closed. When I finished the job or so I had thought, I went to open the hood after closing it and it did not pop open again. Im assuming either something is misaligned or the cable was either not connected again or got caught somewhere because the hood lever is tight.

The Driver side of the hood is shut closed but the passenger side seems stuck on something.

I've already tried tugging on the lever while a friend bangs on the hood while pulling up to see if it grabs but no luck.

I was wondering if there is a way to access the cable or the latch from the grille, from behind the wheel or even from underneath or if anyone has any suggestions for a solution.. anything is appreciated!

I was thinking of cutting the grille but that is my last resort... would prefer to leave the dealership out of this...

 

I had the same problem. I was able to release the latch from underneath the car. I put it on ramps, removed the splash shield and used an extension from a ratchet set to release the latch. It required several attempts. The best technique was to use on of the supports as a fulcrum. This allowed me to use leverage and release the latch.

Good luck.

 

I would've imagined the radiator to be in the way of the latch...? im going to give it a try. Mercedes just seems to over complicate some of the simplest things...

 

It was difficult to access the latch on my car which has an in-line four-cylinder engine. The 6-cylinder engine in your car may make the task more difficult or impossible. I remember trying various paths to accessing the latch and finally finding one that worked after about 3 hours of work. Sorry I can't be more helpful.