The hood on my 99 escort won't latch...no matter how high drop/throw the
hood down.

I was told that the spring that pulls the latch into place wears out, so
I bought a new latch assembly.

I replaced it and the same thing happens to the new latch.

I used a screwdriver to simulate the hood striker and can see that the
securing latch isn't moving into position when it should.

I can not see any interference problems. In order to close the latch, I
have to crawl under the front of the car and force the securing latch
over with a screwdriver.

Also, the old latch works great once I got it out of the car. I have not
tried to reinstall it.

My next step is to install the latch assembly without the springs in
place under the assumption that springs are deforming the part during
installation to prevent smooth operation, but I'm wondering if I'm
missing something...some trick...

Please help.

Thanks,

Rob