Give the mirror a thorough work out to try and clean the pot tracks and wipers.
If that fails try adjusting the normal position of the mirror just slightly but obviously still acceptable.
Harv wrote:
Isn’t carpet tape 2 sided? I used Gorilla tape, also black and stronger and way longer lasting than regular duct tape.
No, the carpet tape used is single sided used for carpet joins (from underneath obviously), double sided and it would stick the carpet to the underlay - the double sided stuff is used to stick carpet down round the edge when proper gripper is not used. It is very sticky, robust and hard wearing, indeed the downside is getting it off the ducting once it has been in place for some time! It is 10x better than duct tape. I haven’t used Gorilla Tape although I did notice black rolls of it in a shop t’other day - might give it a try when my carpet tape runs out.
O-rings are in. The infamous screw came out sweet as a nut. Old o-rings were decidedly hard and although they came out in one piece one of them just split when I gave it a light squeeze. However, the battery didn’t have enough oomph left after standing around for a couple of weeks or more and my earlier testing to turn the engine over and fire it up so testing delayed. Having put the instruments and air bag back in I didn’t get any faults up except for the usual windows/sun roof not set malarkey. Perhaps the pressure tester was not such a bad idea after all!
mad-as wrote:
when i done my dash removal i taped up all the ducting so it wouldn't rattle or leak. don't forget to check the fans while you have access to them, also remove the evap without disconnecting it of cause, if you like and clean behind it , i didnt do this but there can be lots behind it.
I have to replace all the foam seals on all the ducting as they have all disintegrated to powder/dust - the upside is that removing the residue is fairly easy as it all just rubs off! I also use carpet tape rather than duct tape when sealing the ducts - much stronger and more rigid as it has thread woven into it, and it’s black! Fans, distribution & blend motors already checked and working fine - I am wondering whether to change the latter motors anyway now I’m in there? After nearly 22 years I have to say that everything is surprisingly clean although I am giving it a good ‘going over’ as I don’t plan on doing this again anytime soon - my hands are too big for a lot of the jobs required to remove/replace the dash.
Work on hold at the moment as a) it’s freezing out there and I’m getting old; and b) I am in no rush and can take my time to do things thoroughly.
Pressure test kit is a bit OTT for home DIY leaks - the drop in pressure tells you there is a leak but Mk1 eyeball is still required to determine where it is. I’ve never had much of a problem determining if coolant is leaking and where, and waiting for everything to cool down is not that much of chore - good excuse for an extended tea break! Besides which, the system needs refilling properly with engine running to ensure no air locks, some heat through the heater matrix is a good sign that there is coolant actually flowing through there and will test the O rings with heat as well as pressure.
Thanks Richard, being the cautious type and having suffered from P38 faults being thrown all over the place I ‘jury rigged’ everything back on to test the HEVAC but wondered if I could get away with not connecting everything back up again -it was all a bit precarious without the dash in place! Passenger air bag isn’t a problem as it’s frame is still there.
Thread update - dash is out. I finally decided to remove it as there was water ingress on the driver side (onto the horizontal kick panel under the dash to the right of the steering column) and, from externally, it didn’t look like it was coming from the pollen filter housings. Good news is that it’s not the windscreen so must be pollen filter housings unless anyone else can suggest where it might be from?
All HEVAC motors and flaps are working well with none of the groaning I heard prior to dash removal. Any suggestions or was it just the onset of cold weather?
All duct sealing has completely disintegrated particularly the windscreen vents seal to the ducting underneath - just powder now and one bit of it was never positioned properly from factory build - it had been pushed into the main ducting on its rear edge!
The errant dash to screen rubber trim has been refitted into position - it’s clear from the way this needs to be rolled/folded round the dash from below that fixing it in-situ is impossible - well impossible with my fat fingers.
All wiring and connectors behind both the left and right kick panels are in very good condition so that’s a bonus.
Next job is to renew the heater matrix O rings now I have really good access. Question is I will want to test them out for any leakage before re-installing the dash by running the engine up to temperature. I know I will have to temporarily reconnect the instrument binnacle but are there any other units that should be reconnected before I switch on the ignition and fire the engine up.
I fitted the zebra connector a couple of years ago and all was fine. Last winter, however, the display started to lose a few segments but recovered quickly as the car warmed up. Unfortunately, the problem gradually worsened so a month or so ago I decided to disassemble the HEVAC unit to see what could be done. I discovered two problems:
The two screws immediately under the display unit that holds the internals all together and provide most of the clamping force for the connector were loose and the threads in the plastic housing had stripped - I was probably a bit overzealous in the previous reassembly in trying to ensure a good contact. The application of a few drops of fibreglass resin into the holes sorted that problem out.
The display connection strips on the board (not the display itself) were very discoloured. They had been cleaned when I first installed the zebra connector but I was very gentle. Probably too gentle. This time I used a plastic scraper (a clean spare small glue spreader in my case - definitely non metallic) to firmly but carefully scrape away all the discolouration using contact cleaner as ‘lubrication’. This took some time to get all the strips looking brand new. I also carefully recleaned the contacts on the screen itself for good measure even though they looked OK.
Once reassembled the HEVAC display has been back to rude health at all times . . . . . so far.
I’ve never had much success using adhesives as keeping the seal in the correct position whilst the adhesive cures has always proved tricky to impossible. I now use double sided tape but it has to be the 3M variety which does stick instantly and holds really well - have to spend a little time making sure both surfaces are absolutely clean though.
May drift even further! For the first time I can hear the blend motors struggling - they currently still do the business but are now making their presence clearly known. The front trim on the dash (twixt dash and windscreen) has also come adrift on the driver’s side. These together with the O ring leakage now has me considering complete dash removal to ‘cure’ all these ills. This may also escalate to a change of the heater matrix itself to remove the O ring problem once and for all.
And plenty of anti-seize on the threads of the new sensors (they came with plenty already applied) and not overtightening the crush washer will make them easy to remove next time . . . hopefully . . . if there is a next time . . . who am I kidding, of course there will be a next time - this is a P38!
Seal removal and replacement is straight forward as per most other oils seals. If you get the old seal out without mangling it you can use it when tapping the new seal into place. I would recommend changing the flange as well as the seal - the flange may well have some wear marks from the old seal which will not match the new seal or may end up prematurely wearing it.
Not spectacularly cold but the ambient temperatures here in the UK move around quite a bit from day to day with >10C movements quite common. We recently moved from +17C day temperatures (way above normal for this time of year) to low single figures in a couple of days and then warmed up again. I suspect the O rings are getting past their best after 12 years and the temperature fluctuations are testing them out and they are beginning to struggle a bit.
Both sensors now changed.
The offside sensor easily unscrewed and the connector pulled apart fairly easily, except it left part of the male connector insert inside the female connector (connector on the vehicle harness). This took a mere hour to extract as it was firmly lodged in so what could have taken 10 minutes took over an hour. Grrrr.
The near side sensor also easily unscrewed. The connector is, however, in a really inaccessible location high up on the side of the gearbox with the pipes in the way (which is why I couldn’t initially see it on my quick inspection). This was compounded by the connector absolutely refusing to come of its locating lug and disconnecting it was impossible in situ. Again, an hour coaxing and cajoling the connector and it finally yielded its position - it’s locating lug was rather bent which was why it was jammed on it. At least the connector halves came apart without incident and installation of the replacement went smoothly. Another, what could have been a,10 minute job again took over an hour. Grrr again.
Nearly two and half hours to do what should have been a twenty minute job - don’t you just love theses vehicles!
The good news is that all the vehicle wiring looked OK and NanoCom tells me all is now well.
BTW Richard, a ring spanner will not fit over the sensor connector on the Thor version, happily the open ended spanner readily shifted both.
A couple of days ago I mopped up the (very) few drips of coolant and then inserted an old towel together with kitchen paper underneath the joint to at least soak up any leakage until I get round to tackling the job. Had Rangie out for family trip yesterday so a few miles put under its belt. This morning I remove the towel/paper and . . . nothing!!!! Dry as a bone.
I really hate these intermittent on/off faults. I can only conclude that the higher ambient temperature over the past few days together with a good heating from the coolant has sealed things up. However! I think I’ll change them anyway but it doesn’t appear to be the emergency job I was anticipating.
I think running the engine will heat the exhaust and sensor in equal measure so may have negligible effect. Externally heating the collar preferentially should yield better results.
I do almost all things myself* including plumbing for which crows foot spanners are invaluable for those tight spaces. Not sure of their utility for this job over and above a standard spanner with nice big bit of scaffold tube?
In an earlier post I did state that Stilsons are the tool of last resort. Not quite true . . . I have been known to undo the odd recalcitrant nut with a cold chisel and lump hammer!
*Apart from removing the gearbox/transfer box on the Rangie - without a suitable vehicle lift I considered this a job just that little bit too far for home DIY!
Stilsons: I always feel a bit disappointed like it’s a bit if a failure when I have to resort to the Stilsons but I have, all too often, had to apply them and they rarely fail . . . especially when I have my length of scaffold tube over the handle to give that increased and brutal mechanical advantage!
Heat: Yes, good point. I will take my blowtorch with me when I go grovelling and, if needed, hope I don’t set anything on fire . . . particularly me!
Thanks, I do not have the correct flare nut spanner. However, I have the correct open ended spanner and the correct ring spanner - the latter will be used if the former is looking flakey, the existing sensors are toast so I’ll just cut the wire and use it if necessary. I also have a length of pipe to wield if necessary! Stilsons will be the tool of last resort!!
New Bosch O2 sensors have turned up. I have never removed the sensors on this vehicle and assume it’s just a case of disconnecting the existing ones, unscrewing them and reverse for fitment of the new ones making sure not to touch the sensor end itself. However, I have heard stories of them being very difficult to unscrew so any tips on making this easier would be welcome before I get grovelling underneath.