Throttle body clearance issue

[s_hemphill]

About ten years ago my iX was the fourth and final car involved in a series of rear end collisions. Luckily for my car, most of the energy was absorbed by the others. There was no visible damage. Unfortunately, I didn't notice the throttle body housing stem had snapped (rendering the return spring useless) until after getting back on the freeway. It was an interesting ride home. I was in college at the time, and the iX was my only transportation. I didn't want to go through the insurance mess, so I borrowed one from my dad's parts car to get me by. It looked like an identical part, but I started to have doubts when the new throttle body punched a perfectly round hole in the hood after closing it. I drove it that way, with the top of the throttle body sticking out of the hood a couple of millimeters and all, until the car was stored in 2012.

I'm now restoring the car. For the longest time I thought the throttle body was the wrong part, maybe off an E34 or something, but it is now no longer protruding from the hood as if the engine went back to its original (correct) position. I now suspect one or both of the motor mounts broke, but there were never any issues with the cooling fan coming into contact with the shroud.




Have any of you experienced this?

Regards,
Steven

[Das Delfin]

If you look at the throttle body you can see the highest point is your throttle cable attachment, which isn't round. Also, the angle at which the hood closes means punching a hole, esp a straight hole, is near impossible. Moreso, your hood insulation would absorb most of the impact and would result in a dent rather than a hole. It's more likely there was something inside your hood that caused the issue. Take your hood insulation off and see what you find.

[Kershaw]

Yep. No way the current throttle body (which is the correct part) punches a round hole like that. I bet it's a piece from your old broken throttle body.

[s_hemphill]

Yeah, agreed. After reading your responses, I now remember leaving something, maybe a tool or old part, on the intake manifold when I closed the hood. Oops...

[roguetoaster]

It's very common to see E30s with convex dents in the hood from people leaving stuff on the intake, often, the hood strut is weak and the hood falls or gets blow over.