Wait what? Three? That seems like... not enough. I would like a recount! Where does the time go... Alright so I have four days to get the Dumpster Fire ready to drive ~500 miles. I’ve got to admit I am a little nervous...
What needs doing?
The TL;DR from my last post is the Saab needs:
- Leak test and repair gas tank
- Replace Heater Control Valve and associated madness
- Clean interior
- Fix radio
- Make flasks, etc
So what have that did you do in the last week?
The flasks are made, the interior is cleanish, the heater control valve is in, and I’ve identified the problem with the gas tank.
So... not too bad!
Since the overwhelming odor of gas seemed like the most pressing issue, I went ahead and did that first. The idea was to open everything up and then use my smoke injector thingy to find out where the fumes were coming from.
Turns out that wasn’t really needed.
I opened the trunk and the source of the leak was readily apparent. It was the same place I had a leak this time last year! Not wanting to do a proper fix, I opted to use a gas safe epoxy to fix it. Sadly, in the intervening year the epoxy detached from the tank, reintroducing the leak.
I tried the leak testing anyway, but couldn’t get it to seal, so it didn’t really help...
Not sure what I am going to do on this one. I have more epoxy, so I might just re-do the fix. It lasted for a year! I could pull the fuel pump (again) and see if I can fix it from below, but to do a proper fix I really need to drop the tank and I really don’t want to.
TBD.
The next couple of days I was down with some bug or another, so I got to work on the logos and flasks. Check that one off the list, though I need to make a larger set for the car(s).
I bought some new floor mats from Lloyd Mats, which I’ve used on the Land Rover before and been happy with. Unfortunately the rears are like... super wrong (fronts fit great) and the company has been unable to give me a solid answer as to why. Too bad, I really like the ones I put in the Disco and I don’t want to have a beef with this company...
UPDATE: They’re working on it and in the interim I can keep the wrong mats.
On Sunday I got the grease stains out of the upholstery using a lot of Dawn and a carpet cleaner. I really need to be more careful...
I also tackled the hardest job on the list: the heater control valve. This will be the third time I’ve replaced this thing and I hate doing it. You have to remove the center console, lower half of the dash board, and a good amount of the air ducting. Then you cram yourself into the driver’s footwell so you can undo the four screw that hold it in place, all of which are occluded by the pedals, heater core, and various wiring bits. If you managed to get those undone, then you’re treated to a shower of coolant if you’re lucky, a slow drip if you’re not. Once loose, you can then remove it via the speaker hole in the top of the dash.
Truth be told, it wasn’t that bad this time around. I switched from hex screws to Phillips the last time I did it, and that made everything much easier. The new one is in, but I haven’t plumbed it or started re-assembly. Hoping to do that tonight.
I also went ahead and fabricated a new battery hold down. The stock one is long gone and difficult to source a replacement, so I bought a universal one to replace it... which of course didn’t work. Instead, I am using the hooks from the universal mount paired with a piece of steel u-channel. To keep it from melting the car down, I added a heavy layer of paint and conformal coating. Hopefully that is enough.
What is left?
I need to figure out how I am going to fix that gas leak, get the interior back in one piece, and do a bunch of other little stuff.
I think everything will be fine?
Probably?
...right?
