Hinge apparatus with an integrated pedestrian protection means for a front hood

A hinge apparatus with an integrated pedestrian protection for a front hood of a body of a motor vehicle, comprising:

• a hood-side fastening arrangement articulated to a body-side fastening arrangement via a link arrangement that has a stop link, the hood-side fastening arrangement having a hinge upper part and a coupling, and the body-side fastening arrangement having at least one lock that acts on the coupling and locks the front hood in a normal operating state and unlocks the front hood via a pyrotechnical actuator in response to an impact, the pyrotechnical actuator being arranged to act on the at least one lock and on the stop link, the pyrotechnical actuator having a housing, a piston rod axially movable in the housing and an ignition apparatus in the housing for triggering the piston rod, the piston rod having a free end articulated on the at least one lock, and the housing having an outer end opposite the free end of the piston rod and articulated on the stop link, wherein upon activation of the pyrotechnical actuator, the piston rod pivots the at least one lock to release the coupling and the housing pivots the stop link to move the front hood into a pedestrian protection position.