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Ater reading grizz's thread and his break down report, it got me thinking about all the times I've broken down and done road side repairs using anything available, like screws out of the trim, nicking a bolt out of this and that or what ever.
So, What little gems do you have up your sleeve that have got you out of a jam?
I'll start off with nail polish. Ever had a bust fuel line? Well loo roll and nail polish work the same as petro patch. Instead of a permeated gauze with a chemical hardener which goes off when you paint it on, nail varnish does the same thing, and being cellulose based, it is petrol resistant. Plus you can do it in any colour you like!
What are your pearls of wisdom?
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I usually carry enough junk in the boot i can repair almost anything anyway.
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Volvo back as my main squeeze, more boost and some interior goodies on the way.
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IDY
Part of things
Posts: 893
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Cable ties have helped me out a few times - fixed the wiper arm linkage on a Scorpio with a couple
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I will get round to finishing it at some point
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Always taken some kind of tools with me wherever I go. Even a tool wrap is enough to undertake fairly major work.
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ive never broken down
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IDY
Part of things
Posts: 893
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ive never broken down You realize you have now doomed your self ;D
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I will get round to finishing it at some point
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a snapped throttle linkage on my old '73 bay window fixed with a bit of thick wire found by the roadside. Never got around to fixing it properly for the remaining 3 yrs I owned it.
Other than that, my old benz is more or less held together with cable ties. They rock and can be used to fix a plethora of small faults, particularly the throttle linkage of a 2.0L capri. I always have some handy
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Last Edit: Jun 1, 2009 10:45:02 GMT by mrnice23
In mid-life classic car-less wilderness. 2001 Audi A6 avant...
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Piece cut from beer can to wrap round wiper post so the worn wiper arm would turn with it.
However the best one I've heard comes from my motorcycle instructor, he'd had a small 2 stroke early in his career which was prone to seizing.
His solution? Unscrew the plug, pour in some Coca-Cola, leave for a while then pour out the Coke wit the engine glaze dissolved in it, refit plug and ride away.
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"Jeremy Clarkson, a man we motor enthusiasts need on our side like Lewis Hamilton's F1 car needs a towing ball and a Sprite Musketeer" My motor
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Fuel feed from carb on our mates Beetle froze solid over the bank holiday weekend, even in the scorching heat it would last 2miles before turning white and chilly, no one was selling the IMDU heaters so we bodged an old Die Hard 4.0 vest shaped beer bottle cooler with some cable ties and it got him 275miles home without a hitch ;D
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purplevanman
Posted a lot
Way too orangey for crows
Posts: 3,829
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I blew the spark plug out of a Z200 kwacker, hammered it back in with chewing gum wrapper around the threads, got me home Cav mk1 rear trailing arm to the rear beam sheared off the body, tied with some rope trapped in the rear door Cable ties, Duck tape, WD40, bit of wire, few nuts n bolts and some tools will get most things sorted
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cortinadale
Posted a lot
luvvly jubbly!!!!
Posts: 1,199
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on the way to dunstable my pas pump on my mk4 tina decided to seize(2 belts run the water pump,pas pump and altenator together) my fix to make the 30 miles left?? an old rag pulled round the water pump altenator and bottom pully!!! couldnt drive over 30 cause of it sliping but it worked!!
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We learned from an early age that...people who change signatures suck balls ;-) 1978 Cortina 2.3 ghia
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The heater pipes snapped off at the bulkhead when 200 miles from home in the Mercedes 'C' class - jammed a lipsalve in one and a screwdriver down the other - tightened them with jubilee clips. It not only got us home, but lasted another six months before anybody dared try repairing it! ;D
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"A Pierburg carb? It would be more economical to replace it with a funnel..."
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I had a mint Mk1 fezza which I took to a mates work to have valeted. I steam cleaned the engine bay but soaked the dizzy cap, took the cap off to dry it and the centre bush fell out and was lost in the gravel. Ended up taking a trim screw out and sticking that in. Got me home OK and I forgot about it. A month or so later I realised I still hadn't replaced it. Ran very well, too.
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Last Edit: Jun 1, 2009 15:49:16 GMT by Lankytim
1987 Maestro 1.6 HL perkins diesel conversion 1986 Audi 100 Avant 1800cc on LPG 1979 Allegro Series 2 special 4 door 1500cc with vynil roof. IN BITS. HERITAGE ISSUES.
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croaky
Part of things
Posts: 191
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Rear exhaust mounting broke on my clubman estate so tied electrical wire aound exhaust and a rear door hinge to hold it up.
Exhaust snapped on mk2 polo, i marrowfat pea tin and two clamps later and it was good for about 6 months after that.
Pug 205 gti gear linkage broke, two cable ties, one round each part and looped together, used for about 6 months then sold on....
towing a car on a-frame, got held up and started to go dark with no light board, wired lead car lights to the car i was towing with some spare cable, worked a treat!
windscreen top rubber seal on vw lt35 split and banging on the roof at speed, very noisy and annoying, bit of string from a newsagent (the twine they use to bind papers up with), tied rubber to windscreen wiper, no more flapping.
happy times
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Car Transport available - non runners - anything - PM me for a quote
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Ha ha. Brilliant. Most of my cars exhaust systems where held together with coathangers. Cable ties, coathangers and random screws, bolts are a staple part of my cars diet. I currently have a bit of old sock dowsed in 2in1 in my dizzy to keep it lubricated, but I'm looking after this car more than any other I've owned, so that's about it for bodges at the minuet. keep 'em comin!
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Diesel return pipe came off, Lucky it came off as i was queing to get diesel, Losses were minimal.
Took a hose clamp from a small coolant hose to fix it to get me 2 miles home, Hose didnt blow off, So fitted a new one there and even now, 5000 miles later the one on the diesel line is still there a.o.k! T-shirt i was wearing at the time had to be binned tho, couldnt get the smell of Diesel out of it!
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Super glue is your friend! I use it to keep chassis cab mirrors in the right place, keep steering cowling together, keep nuts and screws tight, and repair me finger nails....
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not really a repair, as such, but once had a throttle cable snap on a mk2 Granada (at the pedal end), threaded it back to the carb, out the side of the bonnet on the passenger side ( it wouldnt reach the drivers side window) and got my passenger to pull it with a pair of pliers over the door mirror, while i drove 5 miles to scaryoldcortinas place to sort it out. try explaining the need for gentle revs. at roundabouts to a 9 year old.
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Someone just shot the elephant in the room.
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We've had a few forced repairs when rallying. Probably the 'best' was a broken engine mount mid stage after a VERY rough section. We carried a spare, because we knew it was a weak point, so drove out of the end and set about changing it. Used the rear strut brace (which we had to unbolt) together with the tow rope as a lever to hold the engine up while we undid the remains of the old one. Managed to drop a few of the bolts down on to the sump guard, but got them all back in. Just inside the 45 mins lateness allowed...and all at about 3am in the morning, in the dark, in the middle of forest somewhere in Sulfolk
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when one of the exhaust hangers snapped on the passat, on a horrible dark rainy night, i randomly had a pair of waterproof overtrousers and a cheapo caguole so was able to crawl under the car to wrap some wire round it without ruining my going out clothes took about 20 mins of driving round to find a kerb high enough tho! think when theyve resurfaced all the roads in canterbury theyve just built them up higher so all the kerbs are really low!
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