Quick temporary fix/limp home products - Chime in

[MN Driver]

I've just come back from a Pep Boys and have never realized so many limp-home temporary quick fix products around.

I saw coolant hose repair tape along with a better alternative to it that included a section of plastic with two hose clamps and some rubber cement(If I remember right) that could be used to fix a hose for awhile. In a pinch I helped my buddy out and used duct tape on a hose that sprung a leak with duct tape once just to get him home as all of the auto parts places were closed.

I've seen the fix-a-flat products, which have worked for me twice already with slow leaks that would cause a tire to lose half of its pressure over a week or so, which I was surprised that it fixed them permanently, I'm lucky I guess.

I saw an emergency temporary one-size-fits-all fan belt that was a thin v-belt that could be cut to length and then had holes in it to attach a metal piece to join the cable so that you could get home. This one seemed to be very hard to believe would actually work, at least not on these serpentine style systems with more than three pulleys involved.

Muffler repair tape, muffler repair metal patches, muffler tape adhesives. I think I saw three or four types of these things in many different auto parts stores.


I'm curious as to what measures people had to go to for quick fixes on the road to keep things going and if these products have worked to bring you home or if there were any spur of the moment fixes with what was on hand to get where you needed to go.

The reason I ask is that I drive long distances away from home and would like to have a way to deal with problems on the road. The question is also one of curiousity, if not more of curiosity than the actual attempt at increase my knowledge of roadside repair. Keep in mind I take care of my belts and hoses and perform routine maintenance but there are always those things like a sudden belt snap or coolant rupture that happen when we don't expect it.

What sort of experiences have you folks had?

 

[porcupine73]

It all depends how much stuff you want to carry around. Rather than buy some universal fit it belt, why not just carry around a spare new belt or belts that actually fit the vehicle. Or since belts and hoses have a far increased risk of failure after 4+ years, replace them in advance and carry the old set with you as spares. I haven't seen the stats but I would guess belt and hose failure is one of the most common roadside failures?

Also, a cheap set of various tools like from harbor freight on sale is nice to have and if they get stolen who cares.

Spare fluids are helpful too, especially coolant in case you do spring a hose leak and are able to fix it but if you don't have extra coolant on hand...

Also check if your vehicle has any commonly known issues or TSB's about various items, then you can at least know what the problem is if you have the symptoms and/or get it taken care of in advance.

I wouldn't worry about temporary muffler repair products, heck the entire exhaust behind the cats could fall off and it'll still at least run.

Fix a flat is handy in a pinch; I used it once and it worked but when I went to have the tire repaired they wouldn't repair it because it had that stuff used in it; not sure how common that is.

 

[cowsareholy]

im with porcupine here, i changed my serpentine belt and now carry the old one in the trunk. i also bought a cheap set of tools to carry, there not a great set and its doesnt have a ton of tools but its lightwieght and has eveything i need to make quick repairs. i now carry spare upper and lower rad hoses after blowing one on my way home one day, there only like 10-15$ so why not. i have a qt of tranny fluid, qt of oil and a half gal of antifreeze(it was a gallon but i used half when the rad hose let go).

 

[MN Driver]

I wasn't thinking I'd receive advice, I was more curious on whether or not people have used these or not. Personally the 'emergency belt' would be something I would have to rescue another who needed it but I would rather just have the real one myself or just find a way to the auto parts store and get one myself. Just as cowsareholy said I also have an old water pump/alternator belt in my trunk and would be able to use that for long enough to leisurely replace it.

I realize that the muffler repair wouldn't be an emergency item and wouldn't normally be kept in the trunk, but would one of those products actually buy somebody extra time to shop around for the best prices for replacement or do they just fall off? I heard that the muffler tape is bad because the adhesives burn and smell horrible.

cows, I've also done what you have done and I carry one of those cheap tool sets in my trunk and I've added or replaced things in it such as the spark plug socket didn't fit down my plug tubes and I added a spark plug gapper and I carry a spare plug with me just in case one fouls out for whatever reason. I also carry a standard jack in my trunk. I carry tire chains and a few roofing shingles to get me out of a rut in snowy weather.

 

[rotorray]

Just a word of caution for newer vehicle owners with Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS), such as Honda. They do not recommend Fix-a-flat products (gooey stuff you fill the tire with) because the goo messes up the monitors inside the tire. JFI.

 

[mechtech2]

How about a coat hanger coil wire because of a practical joke from a friend that removed the original?

 

[eljefino]

You forgot the red tape you could "rebuild" your tail-light with.

As we have state inspections here, most people figure it's worthwhile to fix things right. I can see stuff like the muffler tape and fan belt appealing to the mechanically timid. Folks with an iota of skill above that can macgyver a lousy tool or situation to get the correct part in place, and adequately torqued/ leak free. You can, for example, change a muffler with a new slip-fit model and a hacksaw, but hacksawing the old pipe would take forever.

There seem to be states that only require red light from the brakes and have no inspection program. In my travels I see cars that seem to have rather permanently been taped up.

 

[obbop]

Read awhile back that pantyhose could fill in for a broken belt.

Of course, it might have been a perv writing that.

 

[MN Driver]

I've actually seen that done in a movie that I saw about 10 years ago. I think it was a foreign film where a mother was trying to bring her child to school for the first day or something. It would be difficult to find those in a pinch and it wouldn't work on a sepentine belt system I wouldn't think.

 

[Quickbeam]

Pervs aside the pantyhose/stocking thing is an old school trick and really does work, at least for V belt spplications. I don't carry anything other than an AAA card and what may be needed to protect myself from a harsh climate until they get there. As they say: "Survival is good but rescue is better"

That said I've only broken down once in all my years of driving and that almost 20 years ago when the engine siezed after losing all the oil on the highway due to a Fumoto valve being surgically ripped out. I replaced the Fumoto with a airplane spark plug I happened to have, let the engine cool, and drove it for another 40K miles. (The oil involved in that little fiasco was Mobil One).

Other than that I attribute my lack of being stranded to agressive proactive maintenence, buying quality vehicles, and a dash of luck.

 

[cowsareholy]

with all the stuff i carry i always have my AAA card just incase.

 

[H2GURU]

These limp home tactics worked well in days of old, but unless the vehicle in question is 15 years or older, there are too many electronic malfunctions that will leave you dead in the water. Hoses and belts have virtually doubled in their life expectancy. Best to look around under the hood at least monthly and check your tire pressure.

 

[MN Driver]

I also carry a AAA card, haven't needed it for anything other than getting my battery jumped, but since then I now carry a jump starter pack that also has an air compressor. I've jumped a few others with it and filled a tire with it once, having one of those along with a basic tool kit and a roll of both duct tape and electrical tape seems to be what I will never drive without. I'd rather be able to fix it myself and get to where I need to go rather than just be a victim of my car and have to wait for AAA, granted there are situations that will require a tow but it beats fixing it yourself and being on the road rather than waiting an hour in the middle of the night when it's freezing out.

 

[eljefino]

those little rubber plugs you plug a tire with... including a rasp and needle... $4 kits have their place.

The tire plug is illegal in my state, but I can attest, they hold air in a pinch for a simple nail puncture.

Was a tourist on the DC beltway and apparantly a barell full of nails must have just fallen off a truck... flat tires everywhere. Mostly yuppie cars with low profile tires were affected. Literally 20 cars... half in the median, half the proper breakdown lane.. They were out of cops and tow trucks. I can only imagine driving there everyday.

 

[alreadygone]

Fix a flat= RUST A WHEEL!!

Ok for a to the tire shop fix, but get it our of there ASAP. Some shops will refuse repair if they know it's there, but thats ok there's allways guys like me who still don't mind getting our hands dirty at work!

Bob

 

[Drew99GT]

I'm just ANAL about checking little things like belt tension and condition, tire pressure etc. Fluid levels and general "knowledge" of them, ie service history is like second nature to me. Don't even have to think about them. No fumoto valve to worry about. I don't carry practically anything with me except a large blanket in my trunk for possible blizzard issues, cell phone, bottled wtare/granola bars and AAA card. I also have 2 cans of fix a flat JUST IN CASE! I also routinely check spare tire air pressure. One flat tire with a flat spare will teach you that one!!!!!

Most cars do not have multiple belts anymore; pretty much all have serpentine and on many of those, you have to remove engine mounts and such to get a belt on. Screw doing that out in nature!

If you're a true hard core BITOGER, a doubt a snapped belt or a blown radiator hose will stop you because they've been checked, rechecked, and checked again (lol, last week, upon doing the usual "weeks look over" of our cars, I found the upper radiator hose the size of a softball at the thermostat outlet in my moms car - no amount of duct tape would fix that one). A burned up fuel pump or an industrial sized screw through a sidewall will more likely have you draggin out the cell phone.

I used to be CRAZY about draggin around several quarts of oil, antifreeze, a small tool kit, etc. etc. etc. Meanwhile, I'm still poppin the hood and checkin things over that are likly to sideline me on the road. The two times I did get stranded - flat spare tire and a blown fuel pump.

 

[Drew99GT]

Actually 3 times stranded - dealt with 2 dead fuel pumps before.

 

[eljefino]

Had a bad in-tank fuel pump but my 3 D cell flashlight, whacking the tank, brought it back to life to get me home.

Admittedly, the stock tire iron, if I had had it, would also have worked.

 

[Benzadmiral]

This wasn't a limp-home situation, but it was kind of a crisis.

About three years ago I was driving my lady friend, Miss Linda, and her mother out to Thanksgiving dinner in my big grey MB 420SEL. We got caught in a heavy downpour . . . and my driver-side windshield wiper lost its blade!

That is to say, the blade slipped off the arm and slid down between the hood and the firewall. I didn't lose the blade completely. But have you ever tried driving on a street, let alone a highway, in a cloudburst with no wiper on your side?

I got us off the highway and under a service station canopy. All the parts stores were closed, of course, it being Turkey Day. So I hogtied the blade to the arm with a piece of insulated wire I had in my toolkit in the trunk, and it held until the next day, when I was able to purchase a new blade.

 

[sifan]

They must be very impressed by your quick thinking. BTW, did you marry her, the lady friend?