small black widget thing
Discussion
Hello All,
I have recently bought a met blue Chim 500. Love it despite the eccentricities. Yes, it leaks either side of the boot, the front foot well (hopefully it's the brake or clutch cover areas) and the rear of the seat..for now. I'm slowly tracking these down with the 'bible', but not having much luck with the boot though.
Ok the question are, if people don't mind, are:-
1) What the heck are these elephant ears I keep reading about and does anyone have an image as to where they are? I presume this is why the area behind the drivers seat is wet. The passenger side is fine. The difference being that the door seal on the passenger side has a long rubber seal bit the the drivers side doesn't.
2) I have a black two button widget that 'lives' in front space in the central console where the air vents are. Do people know what it might be?
3) Do people know a source for the seal the goes along the top of the roof, doors etc... It looks to be the same all round.
4) where are these mythical boot drain holes that the bible talks about?
Many thanks in advance.
Kim
I have recently bought a met blue Chim 500. Love it despite the eccentricities. Yes, it leaks either side of the boot, the front foot well (hopefully it's the brake or clutch cover areas) and the rear of the seat..for now. I'm slowly tracking these down with the 'bible', but not having much luck with the boot though.
Ok the question are, if people don't mind, are:-
1) What the heck are these elephant ears I keep reading about and does anyone have an image as to where they are? I presume this is why the area behind the drivers seat is wet. The passenger side is fine. The difference being that the door seal on the passenger side has a long rubber seal bit the the drivers side doesn't.
2) I have a black two button widget that 'lives' in front space in the central console where the air vents are. Do people know what it might be?
3) Do people know a source for the seal the goes along the top of the roof, doors etc... It looks to be the same all round.
4) where are these mythical boot drain holes that the bible talks about?
Many thanks in advance.
Kim
Hi Kim
The foof seal is available from TVR dealers, I have in fact just ordered a new seal for mine from Chris Neil.
It comes as one single piece that goes over the roof hoop and down the other side.
My passenger foot well has never been wet until a couple of weeks ago and it now just keeps filling with water.
I also ordered the roof seal that seals against the top of the window as these are looking a bit past it.
The elephants ears fit at the bottom of the roof where the door closes, near the hinge point of the roof, some chims seem to have them, some don't.
There has been a thread on here before with pictures but I can't find it just at the moment.
One area you could check for water ingress is the windscreen seals.
I had to reseal the rubber strip both where it meets the body and where it meets the screen to stop one of my leaks.
Sikaflex 221 seems to be the best.
Hope this is of some help.
Cheers.
Paul.
The foof seal is available from TVR dealers, I have in fact just ordered a new seal for mine from Chris Neil.
It comes as one single piece that goes over the roof hoop and down the other side.
My passenger foot well has never been wet until a couple of weeks ago and it now just keeps filling with water.
I also ordered the roof seal that seals against the top of the window as these are looking a bit past it.
The elephants ears fit at the bottom of the roof where the door closes, near the hinge point of the roof, some chims seem to have them, some don't.
There has been a thread on here before with pictures but I can't find it just at the moment.
One area you could check for water ingress is the windscreen seals.
I had to reseal the rubber strip both where it meets the body and where it meets the screen to stop one of my leaks.
Sikaflex 221 seems to be the best.
Hope this is of some help.
Cheers.
Paul.
When was the roof last waterproofed?
Water getting in behind the seats often comes in through the folding roof section, either through the stiching or the canvas. The side bits with the stiched on velcro are folded up when the roof is dropped down and the proofing wears off. Try giving the whole roof a couple of coats of proofer and see if that helps. People use different products to proof the roof, but i've always used Thompsons 'water seal' on mine every six months and it's just as good as the more expensve, specialist stuf!
Water getting in behind the seats often comes in through the folding roof section, either through the stiching or the canvas. The side bits with the stiched on velcro are folded up when the roof is dropped down and the proofing wears off. Try giving the whole roof a couple of coats of proofer and see if that helps. People use different products to proof the roof, but i've always used Thompsons 'water seal' on mine every six months and it's just as good as the more expensve, specialist stuf!
billynomates said:
.Mark said:
mrcosmos said:
I think these are what people are calling elephants ears].
Big Al. Tell 'em mate Oh 
It's munchie time ....give it 2 hours or so and he will be back on Oh
Don't take that long to slurp down liquidised food does it? Or is it having the glass of Sanatogen that takes the time?
Hello All,
Many thanks for all the advice. I noticed that the roof was just a sponge during the recent rain. So far I've applied three coats of Thompsons Water Seal. It's alot better and at least the water is starting to bead off it alot more. As per people's suggestion I've paid particular attention to the stitching. It's had a new rear window in as you can see where the old stictching was.
As for the shorter drivers side seal I've made up an 'extension' with a small rolled up plastic bag wrapped in sellotape for now. Don't know if it works, waiting for rain.
We'll see what happens when I've applied sealant to the clutch cylinder hatch and brake cylinder areas.
I'll try the chalk on the boot. Some good weather will dry it out.
Many thanks again.
Many thanks for all the advice. I noticed that the roof was just a sponge during the recent rain. So far I've applied three coats of Thompsons Water Seal. It's alot better and at least the water is starting to bead off it alot more. As per people's suggestion I've paid particular attention to the stitching. It's had a new rear window in as you can see where the old stictching was.
As for the shorter drivers side seal I've made up an 'extension' with a small rolled up plastic bag wrapped in sellotape for now. Don't know if it works, waiting for rain.
We'll see what happens when I've applied sealant to the clutch cylinder hatch and brake cylinder areas.
I'll try the chalk on the boot. Some good weather will dry it out.
Many thanks again.
Dear All,
Many thanks for your recent advice regarding my water problems. I did a quickie test with the boot rubber sealing strip, by lifting it up and then seeing if the boot lid would push it down. Didn't even seem to touch it, or may it did, but it was just the spongey bit compressing. Although I'm still puzzled by how water could get over the sealing strip. That would have to mean that there was alot of water collecting to do that. Perhaps it could also the hinges (?).
Waiting for the next down pour to sit in it to hopefully see where it's leaking from.
Does anyone know of something called "Seek and Seal" that the 'bible' mentions.
Still drying it out with newspapers (sigh), but as McD say 'I'm loving it'.
Many thanks
Kim
Many thanks for your recent advice regarding my water problems. I did a quickie test with the boot rubber sealing strip, by lifting it up and then seeing if the boot lid would push it down. Didn't even seem to touch it, or may it did, but it was just the spongey bit compressing. Although I'm still puzzled by how water could get over the sealing strip. That would have to mean that there was alot of water collecting to do that. Perhaps it could also the hinges (?).
Waiting for the next down pour to sit in it to hopefully see where it's leaking from.
Does anyone know of something called "Seek and Seal" that the 'bible' mentions.
Still drying it out with newspapers (sigh), but as McD say 'I'm loving it'.
Many thanks
Kim
The Surveyor said:
When was the roof last waterproofed? People use different products to proof the roof, but I've always used Thompson's 'water seal' on mine every six months and it's just as good as the more expensive, specialist stuff!
Indeed Thompson's Weather Seal or Granger's Fabsil. Intended for proofing tent canvas originally but great as a general waterproofer. p.s. Yes I know of Seak'n Seal, made by Comma, I've got a tube in my garage, great stuff. Regards the boot if you look at how the gas-strut is fixed to the body shell you will see there is a simple nut and bolt holding it on. Because this is stressed and flexed (on mine) the nut had worked slightly loose allowing rain to drip through. I simply tightened it and sealed it with seak'n seal...
Edited by richb on Tuesday 3rd October 16:03
tesstickles said:
4) where are these mythical boot drain holes that the bible talks about?
Directly behind the rear wheels on the floor of the boot. They'll be covered by the carpet, but you can find them from outside the car easily enough.
PS: I don't think that all Chims have them.
Hello Smoking Barels, thanks for the information about the small black widget. Yes, they are for windows up on locking.
Hello RichB, thanks for the information. I'll see what happens when I tighten them up a bit and try some sealant in the screw hole as well.
Hello Archie, many thanks for the information. I'll try looking for these drain holes
Thanks all again.
Hello RichB, thanks for the information. I'll see what happens when I tighten them up a bit and try some sealant in the screw hole as well.
Hello Archie, many thanks for the information. I'll try looking for these drain holes
Thanks all again.
tesstickles said:
...did a quickie test with the boot rubber sealing strip, by lifting it up and then seeing if the boot lid would push it down. Didn't even seem to touch it, or may it did, but it was just the spongey bit compressing. Although I'm still puzzled by how water could get over the sealing strip. That would have to mean that there was alot of water collecting to do that. Perhaps it could also the hinges (?).
Does anyone know of something called "Seek and Seal" that the 'bible' mentions.
Does anyone know of something called "Seek and Seal" that the 'bible' mentions.
Seek n' Seal is a bit pap in my experience, and not the right stuff to use on a boot seal. It comes in a can like 3 in 1 oil, and is about the same consistency too, only sticky. It's used for sealing up window seals as a rule, seals that aren't constantly having to flex. It penetrates like an oil and it never fully dries, so it makes a right mess if you're not careful.
Some stuff I've used on various seals on my car, which has cured leaks everywhere it's been applied, is a black silicone adhesive made by Permatex - I got it from eBay. Similar to Sikaflex, it's these kind of products which will do the best job.
As for the boot leak, are you sure it's at the sides? I had a boot leak on mine, and it turned out to be one of the number plate lamps - it had been removed to change a bulb or something, and hadn't been properly siliconed back in afterwards, so water was pooling in the recess behind the plate and dripping down onto the boot floor. An application of the Permatex sorted that too :-)
p.s. it's also very handy for bonding your front indicators back in place when they fall off into your front bumper... lol
Edited by -JUT- on Thursday 5th October 23:22
tesstickles said:
Hello All,
2) I have a black two button widget that 'lives' in front space in the central console where the air vents are. Do people know what it might be?
2) I have a black two button widget that 'lives' in front space in the central console where the air vents are. Do people know what it might be?
I'm intrigued by this. 'Window auto up on locking'. Where exactly is this widget ?
Not sure I've discovered it yet. Anyone got a photo.
The small black widget lives in the front of the central console where the air vents and the oval electric window switches are. It's basically a one touch window switch that controls left, right or both windows and on activating the remote alarm locking mechanism automatically closes both the windows as well.
So far I've been taping up areas that I can access like the brake and clutch fluid hatch areas, bits to the bottom of the windscreen on the drivers side. It's looking good covered in silver duck tape here and there. If this weather ever lets up, I'll be able to takle it more properly.
Has anyone though of using Rad-weld as a replacement for Seek and Seal; or this a completely bad idea.
Do these hood covers, like the one from Leven, work in keeping the inside dry; how much does the hood cover cover? Or could I use a Halford's hoody thing. I presume fit would be fairly important i.e. covering the potential leak areas.
Many thanks all.
Kim
So far I've been taping up areas that I can access like the brake and clutch fluid hatch areas, bits to the bottom of the windscreen on the drivers side. It's looking good covered in silver duck tape here and there. If this weather ever lets up, I'll be able to takle it more properly.
Has anyone though of using Rad-weld as a replacement for Seek and Seal; or this a completely bad idea.
Do these hood covers, like the one from Leven, work in keeping the inside dry; how much does the hood cover cover? Or could I use a Halford's hoody thing. I presume fit would be fairly important i.e. covering the potential leak areas.
Many thanks all.
Kim
tesstickles said:
Do these hood covers, like the one from Leven, work in keeping the inside dry; how much does the hood cover cover? Or could I use a Halford's hoody thing. I presume fit would be fairly important i.e. covering the potential leak areas.
Many thanks all.
Kim
I use a Leven hood cover sometimes. It is retained by a flap that fits in the boot and a flap which fits under the bonnet by the windscreen. It is also retained by 2 straps on each mirror. It cover the areas likely to cause leaks. Except if it's the brake reservoir area. Also gives a level of security, but if you get dust underneath the flaps that go on top of the bonnet and boot, this can affect the paintwork. As mine lives outside I have found the cover very useful.
Bob
Edited by bobs4c on Friday 6th October 11:56
Gassing Station | Chimaera | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff