Worst bodge you have seen
Discussion
SteveinTurkey said:
Not exactly a bodge but a severe owner error.
I was asked to fix the brakes on a Mini which were pulling unevenly. I drove the car and the brakes would pull to the left and right or not at all - completly horrible. I quickly discovered that the brake fluid reservior was full of engine oil - the owner's friend had topped up the brakes with oil!! I completely refurbished the system and advised the owner to not let her friend touch the car again!
Reminds me of a bodge I did. I bought a Megane with the clutch failed. In fact, I think the brakes were so worn, the fluid level had dropped in the reservoir, and the clutch wasn't working. I filled it with water to drive it home. I can't say it worked fine, but it did work.I was asked to fix the brakes on a Mini which were pulling unevenly. I drove the car and the brakes would pull to the left and right or not at all - completly horrible. I quickly discovered that the brake fluid reservior was full of engine oil - the owner's friend had topped up the brakes with oil!! I completely refurbished the system and advised the owner to not let her friend touch the car again!
I was night rallying my Mk 1 escort back in the day. 180 mile route round the lake district. It was a poverty 1.3 fitted with a mexico 1.6 engine. Unfortunatey it didnt have radius arms fitted to the rear axle to stop axle tramp.
At the 3-2-1 GO start command I dropped the clutch and broke a rear leaf spring. Bodged it up, holding the snapped main leaf to a smaller leaf with a couple of exhaust clamps. I was careful on the strtline, but finished the rally!
Much later, in 1994 I was competing in the Ulster International Rally in m Mk5 RS200 as part of an official Ford RS200 series.
landing the car from a height after a jump sheared an engine mount, allowing the transverse engine to float about, sitting on the sumpguard and also allowing some substantial vagueness in gear selectiion as the whole transmission wandered aroud under braking/cornering forces.
Bodged up with ratchet tie down straps around the engine and attached to the strut brace. Lasted several hundred miles of Northern Irelands roughest roads, finished the rally and got a trophy. Bloody jammy result tbh.
At the 3-2-1 GO start command I dropped the clutch and broke a rear leaf spring. Bodged it up, holding the snapped main leaf to a smaller leaf with a couple of exhaust clamps. I was careful on the strtline, but finished the rally!
Much later, in 1994 I was competing in the Ulster International Rally in m Mk5 RS200 as part of an official Ford RS200 series.
landing the car from a height after a jump sheared an engine mount, allowing the transverse engine to float about, sitting on the sumpguard and also allowing some substantial vagueness in gear selectiion as the whole transmission wandered aroud under braking/cornering forces.
Bodged up with ratchet tie down straps around the engine and attached to the strut brace. Lasted several hundred miles of Northern Irelands roughest roads, finished the rally and got a trophy. Bloody jammy result tbh.
When I was a kid my parents used the local mechanic, he was apparently brilliant. But was used to catering to people in the middle of rural Yorkshire who just wanted cars to do a - b as cheap as possible.
Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use it.
His other stand out came with tyres, my dad had to take a day off work as no wfh in those days. Anyway, went to pick it up and was told with great enthusiasm, I haven’t swapped them. You had at least another 4/500 miles left in them. Dads commute was about 400 miles a week….
Although to be fair, there wasn’t anything he couldn’t fix with some sort of bodge.
Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use it.
His other stand out came with tyres, my dad had to take a day off work as no wfh in those days. Anyway, went to pick it up and was told with great enthusiasm, I haven’t swapped them. You had at least another 4/500 miles left in them. Dads commute was about 400 miles a week….
Although to be fair, there wasn’t anything he couldn’t fix with some sort of bodge.
About a week before I was planning of getting shot of my old Leon, one of the front wheel ABS sensors went. This was a relatively intermittent failure; the warning light would generally would come on in the dry and the go off again when it rained.
I bunged the car through Evans Halshaw when I got no interest selling privately and on the way to the inspection, the light came on. Took a detour to the local Shell, gave it an aggressive jet washing and lo and behind, no ABS light. I thought I was super smart until I came to the next junction, braked gently, erroneously triggered the ABS, and sailed through with almost no braking ability at all. Thankfully nothing was coming and it sorted itself out at the next junction.
Managed to keep the light off for long enough to leave with my cheque...
I bunged the car through Evans Halshaw when I got no interest selling privately and on the way to the inspection, the light came on. Took a detour to the local Shell, gave it an aggressive jet washing and lo and behind, no ABS light. I thought I was super smart until I came to the next junction, braked gently, erroneously triggered the ABS, and sailed through with almost no braking ability at all. Thankfully nothing was coming and it sorted itself out at the next junction.
Managed to keep the light off for long enough to leave with my cheque...
Flumpo said:
When I was a kid my parents used the local mechanic, he was apparently brilliant. But was used to catering to people in the middle of rural Yorkshire who just wanted cars to do a - b as cheap as possible.
Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use it.
His other stand out came with tyres, my dad had to take a day off work as no wfh in those days. Anyway, went to pick it up and was told with great enthusiasm, I haven’t swapped them. You had at least another 4/500 miles left in them. Dads commute was about 400 miles a week….
Although to be fair, there wasn’t anything he couldn’t fix with some sort of bodge.
I love mechanics like that. I had an independent Porsche mechanic who would only change things if they really needed doing, or they wouldn’t last a year until my next service. I was always asking him about changing this or that but he’d often reply by saying it was absolutely fine. The car never skipped a beat in my five years of ownership. He used to be one of Porsche’s gold standard mechanics but left because he couldn’t stand the pressures of upselling. Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use it.
His other stand out came with tyres, my dad had to take a day off work as no wfh in those days. Anyway, went to pick it up and was told with great enthusiasm, I haven’t swapped them. You had at least another 4/500 miles left in them. Dads commute was about 400 miles a week….
Although to be fair, there wasn’t anything he couldn’t fix with some sort of bodge.
Flumpo said:
When I was a kid my parents used the local mechanic, he was apparently brilliant. But was used to catering to people in the middle of rural Yorkshire who just wanted cars to do a - b as cheap as possible.
Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use
If the fuse was missing how did the sunroof open ?......Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use
BananaFama said:
Flumpo said:
When I was a kid my parents used the local mechanic, he was apparently brilliant. But was used to catering to people in the middle of rural Yorkshire who just wanted cars to do a - b as cheap as possible.
Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use
If the fuse was missing how did the sunroof open ?......Two of his fixes stick in the memory. The electric windows on a rover we had stopped working. He fixed that no problem, however a few days later my sister opened the sunroof and it wouldn’t shut. Took it to him and he revealed it wouldn’t, as he had used the fuse (I think) to fix the windows but as it was winter hadn’t mentioned it as he didn’t think anyone would use
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