We've talked before about making sure your vehicle is up for the trip north.
You break down in the boonies it can get awful expensive and worse still you don't know who to take it too.

Here's a little MacGyver that I pulled that saved me a ton of money and got me back home.

Little background. Since I can't get 2 weeks in a row off from work, my Q plans are off the table till next spring after I retire ( might still work thru summer) this December. If they don't giver me time off, I'll just quit.

So as a small consolation trip, I went back up to Newaygo MI at the Croton dam to fish the Muskegon River for Trout, particularly Steelhead and the smaller streams for Brookies/Rainbows.

I had made reservations awhile back thinking the weather would be a little better, but as you guys all know it's been a crazy spring.
Short story, it was cold/rainy/sleet/snow and the water was so high in Muskegon ( almost 4000 cfs flow), that wading was nearly impossible/life threatening and the smaller streams were no better.
I caught a few small fish and lost a couple of steelhead ( I think) but fishing sucked for the most part.

That part comes with the territory. What happened on the way up added a whole new wrinkle to the game.
A truck carrying some small scrap metal parts dumped a few and I saw cars ahead of me swerving, so I did like wise.

Heard some loud metal on metal banging and stopped to check tires/vehicle. Couldn't find anything in a quick roadside inspection.
Pulled in to fill tank at destination and had just filled tank when another motorist told me I had leak under truck.
Dropped down on my knees to check, and I saw a gas leak the size of a pencil lead under the rear tank strap where the metal had cut the plastic tank shield.

Stopped for repair items and headed to campsite. Found some logs and made two ramps to drive up on.
Ended up cutting out the plastic shield and after putting bottle jack under  tank for support, I luckily managed to loosen and drop rear tank strap, exposing the real damage.

Once I did that, I saw the problem was worse than it initially looked.
Turns out I had 2 holes the size of a BB squirting gas.
I got a coffee can and started McGyvering as quick as I could.

I had some #10 self tapping screws and some gasket sealer compound in my tool box, but NO gasket material.
I a moment of inspiration fueled by the coffee can quickly filling, I took one of the extra neoprene gravel guards I carry for my 2 sets of waders and cut  2 patches from them. Smeared them with gasket sealer and using  nut driver, screwed the sheet metal screws into tank.
Still had small drip , but I was able to finish the trip and get home.
I plan on draining tank tomorrow and making permanent repairs based on the same principals but on a dry/prepared surface.

Considering some of road conditions people encounter or the miles driven, it might not be a bad idea to make a "kit" for just such an emergency.
A half dozen self tapping screws say size # 8-14, some rubber gasket material and gasket sealer ( any auto parts would carry) and a nut driver in a zip lock just might save you a trip.

IF you can find someone to repair your gas tank, by either relining/welding, or replacing it with a new unit, your looking at some where around 1000k plus the loss of the use of vehicle for a few days.

They make fluids that will seal head gaskets/radiator leaks/ just about every other system on a vehicle but the gas tank.
If some smart chemist comes up with a way to seal leaks from the inside or a spray/stick that would instantly harden/seal on contact with gasoline, I believe he'd make a small fortune as people are keeping their vehicles longer.

I hope my little McGyver trick can help someone else out if their ever caught in the same predicament.

The last position change I made was for better vacation opportunities. My old boss (who never took vacations) didn't believe my explanations for leaving.

Had a friend do some creative road repair. His alternator failed him. He returned with another car & driver, swapped batteries, jumped the dead battery in the car with the good alternator. Drove till dead alternator car quit, while the dead battery was charging up with the good alternator, kept repeating process till he got home.

solotripper wrote on May 15^th, 2013 at 6:03pm:


One of the great ironies wouldn't you say - folks working two jobs to pay for all their "time saving" technology.