As long as you have an OEM metal hood, I'd highly recommend these or similar struts. The high lift is really nice and with the struts you don't have to worry about the wind catching and slamming the hood while you cool it at the track. Also, in a worst case scenario, if there's an engine bay fire the hood goes up and doesn't require someone to hold it up with the fire there.

@@ADVNTURR yup still have the factory hood, it would definitely be nice to get more head room.

One of my existing struts was leaking and barely held the hood up. The cheaper option would have been to buy a single replacement but I also wanted the higher lift for better access.

Does the hood still seem aligned to the rest of the body? I'm wondering if the hood shifted some and is putting extra stress on the release which could cause it to be harder to open. I don't have the hood latch anymore on my hood so unfortunately I'm not sure if I would have had similar issues with mine. Z1 is pretty good about replying to questions, you may reach out to them.