Bright ideas welcome, awkward car fix needed

chris-red · Have you considered a TDM? Joined: 21 Sep 2005 Karma :

My Missus' car has had a broken heater for quite a while now. I quickly diagnosed it as a mechanical break between the heater box blend flap and the motor that controls it. The fix is to rip the car apart and repair/replace the heater box, it is the first thing that goes in the car when the car is built. To get the box out, you need to drain the AC, take all the dash and the doors off. People that have done it say it takes days of work. I don't have the time, energy, or skill to do it. Obviously this is too much work to pay a garage to do. Reportedly Fiat have charged £2-3k to fix this issue.

Ben (Binge off of here) came round to service it for her and I asked him to have a look. He poked about and found that you can actually access the broken point (just about!) from the drivers footwell.

https://www.fiatforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=196778&d=1547995084

https://www.fiatforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=196779&d=1547995102

https://www.fiatforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=196780&d=1547995121

The peg in my hand, connects to the control motor. I need away to recreate that peg solidly enough so that the motor will turn it. Access is shit. That metal bar is about 2" away from the pivot and I'm not sure if I can remove it without ripping the car apart.

Just wondering if anyone had any bright ideas. I have a few but nothing I'm that keen on.
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weasley · World Chat Champion Joined: 16 Oct 2010 Karma :

Sugru?
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Buy wifey a new jumper.
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Polarbear · Super Spammer Joined: 24 Feb 2007 Karma :

Just to confirm that is hard plastic not metal of any form?

How tight is the heater flap to move?

It would be a faff but I would make a longer piece like the broken off bit out of metal or a piece of solid plastic. Drill and needle file the flap piece so a hole that fitted then aradite the new piece in.

Put it this way, if that was my wifies car, she would be demanding a fix or nicking mine in this weather. Laughing

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The Shaggy D.A. · Super Spammer Joined: 12 Sep 2008 Karma :

1mm pin drill, sink a couple of shallow holes in the part that's still attached, that lines up with holes in the stump that came off. Cut a couple of panel pins down to a suitable length, and use them as dowels in the aforementioned holes, shored up with epoxy.

If you're feeling lucky and there's room, try for 3 or 4 dowels.
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chris-red · Have you considered a TDM? Joined: 21 Sep 2005 Karma :

Polarbear · Super Spammer Joined: 24 Feb 2007 Karma :

That's a big old lump of plastic flap for a small piece of plastic square to turn.

I take it that's someone's repaired version you have the pictures of?

Edited to add.....

https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/271907570020?chn=ps&var=570743445406

£2.79 for a piece of mild steel 8mm x 8mm x 100mm long.

or

£4.75 for a similar sized piece of aluminium.
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chris-red · Have you considered a TDM? Joined: 21 Sep 2005 Karma :

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MCN · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2015 Karma :

Fire. Rag in tank.
Phone. Ins. brkr report stolen.
Fixed. Buy another none Fiat
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Disclaimer: The comments above may be predicted text and not necessarily the opinion of MCN.

chris-red · Have you considered a TDM? Joined: 21 Sep 2005 Karma :

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FretGrinder · World Chat Champion Joined: 29 Jul 2010 Karma :

I've had great success melting pieces of wire into plastics to make them structurally sound again.

Maybe it would work in this situation?
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MCN · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2015 Karma :

I think heating plastic is like heating metal.
It was cooked at a precise temperature to get where it is now.
Heating again to reform is a bit of a stab in the dark and you have no idea what properties will be altered in the process.
It maybe it could become very brittle or the compounds can become dissociated.

But sometimes it works. Smile

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Robby · Dirty Old Man Joined: 16 May 2002 Karma :

I understand that removing the heater box is a pain in the arse. What about cutting out the side of the heater box you can see, withdrawing the flap through the hole, then doing a fix and gluing the side of the box back on?

Epoxy will be strong enough for gluing the heater box back together, and you'll be able to do a proper repair on the flap spindle.

steve the grease · Crazy Courier Joined: 26 Jan 2018 Karma :

I was going to suggest using The square tang off a file, but using some square bar from ebay would be even better.
Right , look at the job decide how you going to do it and then . File or grind the end of the bar into a gentle Tapering point. Put a 90^ bend in the bar so there is about 1" at the tapered end . Heat the end up to nearly red hot and poke it into the exposedbroken off plastic boss, so it melts itself into the boss.. Rig up a choke cable to operate on the bent end of the arm. There you are a manually operated flap.

Pete. · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Aug 2006 Karma :

So that circular disc at the base of the bit that's snapped off is the pivot for the flap? It's outside edge is a 'bearing' so to speak?

I would re-make that broken part in aluminium with a fork at the base, drill a couple of holes into the round disc either side of the flap and glue it in with Araldite 2013.
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chris-red · Have you considered a TDM? Joined: 21 Sep 2005 Karma :

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sickpup · Old Timer Joined: 21 Apr 2004 Karma :

Have you spoken to these chaps who do an in place repair?