The fuzzmobil has a Leak & a Squeak

[Lazy-Ferret]

Had a trip to the vets this morning, which is a 60 mile round trip. The M25 was not just a car park today, but a full car park, with people queueing for spaces as well, so a total no-go area.

I set off across country, going via Edenbridge and Lingfield, passing through some seriously flooded roads on the way. Did the same route back home, and saw some real idiots, one small truck went through the flood so fast, he nearly knocked a poor young girl who was trying to walk through it, off her feet with his wash, and nearly drowned her in the wave off the front of the truck. I had already slowed right down, and stopped, so she could walk past me, with out any extra wash, so I checked she was OK, and although very very P1$$3d, luckily she was.

Anyway, for the last couple of weeks, my wipers have been driving me mad with a squeak.. I did a proper clean of the windscreen, which seemed to cure it... for a couple of days... I changed the wiper blades, which fixed it for a couple of days... So it was time to look a bit further, especially as the journey back nearly drove me insane, as it now, it not only squeaked when it changed direction at the top of the cycle, but at the bottom as well....

So, I decided, after a quick search on here, to have a look at the bush, clean it up, and try some lubrication. First job, try to persuade the wipers to come off the splines... I need my spanners that are stored under the back seats... hmmm, they seem to be wet.....

Right, back to the wipers... Got them off, removed the rubber seal, cleaned it all up with WD40, turned on the wipers, and put some engine oil round the base, and allowed it to work in. I then re-filled the rubber seal with marine grease, and popped it back on... After re-assembling everything... No Squeak... Lets keep out fingers crossed it lasts more than a couple of days this time.

Best go and have a look at the damp bit under the rear seat...

Long story short, the seal where the wheel arch joins the seat panel had got a couple of small bubbles of rust in it, and using some soapy water, and the airline, I could see it was allowing water flicked up by the wheel to seep through the seam. I dug out the sealer, and cleaned up with silicon remover gel, to discover there is a small gap of about 2mm between the seems. Cleaned it all up, poured rustkill down there, then painted it with some Hammerite. Once dry, I stuck a load of silicon sealant along the seam, working it down as far as possible, and will now have to add it to the jobs that will need doing properly, once the dryer weather gets here.

Still, the good news is, there is no rust anywhere near the seat belt that side...