Bongo Fury

....which is what I should have done but didn't. I'm typing this from Adrian's Japandirect garage in Bury where he's played the usual blinder and seen me as an emergency. It all started a few days ago when i carrying out my annual rust assessment/prevention/remedial work. I noticed a drip of fluid on the small diameter metal pipes underneath the car on the drivers side, near the rear heater. I quickly judged it was automatic transmission fluid as the drips were from the metal piping that runs from the autobox sump to the cooler radiator at the front of the car. It can be hard to trace the exact source of a leak as it can travel along, drop down onto other components etc. But the fluid only dripped when the engine was running and it was thin but oily (and didn't smell of diesel) so ATF had to be prime suspect. Very strange I'd not noticed any on the drive before but perhaps i was just lucky in catching it early. I called Adrian and he fitted me in as an emergency (he's a total star like that) and in the meantime i didn't drive it but carried on with other remedial work. Foolishly, i cleaned the suspect pipe up and wrapped self annealing tape around it, thinking it might lessen the dripping. Big mistake as even gentle handling of the (corroded) pipe made the leak much worse, and the tape was useless.

So, this morning, and with spare ATF fluid on board in case, i made the nerve wracking trip over to Adrian. 3 years ago, i had a virtually identical experience involving (corrosion) in the adjacent water pipe, and a similarly nerve wracking drive (the cost of miscalculation in both instances could have been high!).

These pipes are exposed to road salt/spray and as they are hot in service corrosion is further promoted. It can be hard to assess the extent of corrosion with any of these pipes (it classically lurks and grows under the painted surface) and i find myself thinking it is worth having them expert inspected and maybe replaced regardless on any Bongo that is - say - more than 15 years old, because the consequences of not catching/preventing a leak can be very expensive. I had a new coolant pipe fitted when it failed, but a cheap and effective alternative is to cut out the corroded tee piece and adjacent piping and fit a new tee piece and stubs etc. With the ATF pipes i've not gone for full (expensive/tricky i suspect) replacements but have had the corroded sections cut out and lengths of copper pipe spliced in with hose and clamps.

Big thanks to Adrian as ever. And if anyone reading this can spread the word on facebook groups using a link to this BF topic, that might help a lot of people also.

Looking forward to a year of rust free Bongoing:-)

Top marks to Adrian, and well done spotting it before it failed on the road.

Bob wrote: Tue Sep 04, 2018 11:00 am Top marks to Adrian, and well done spotting it before it failed on the road.

I'm still editing and tweaking my post and Ben's on it already. Another star

Yes i can't recommend Adrian highly enough. I've lost count of the times he's sorted the old Bongo for me. Spotting it was sheer good fortune so big thanks to the Big Bongo in the sky who watches over us owners all ha ha.

Good info and I will check mine out, good you have a annual rust check. I have been out on ours off and on over the last
few weeks sorting out small bits before they turn into big bits. Painting up.. Waxoyling up etc. I will now run along the pipes
with a bright torch and take a good look.

One saving grace is that I went over these pipes where they were accessible shortly after we got the Bongo about 4 years ago
and rubbed them down gently and kurust/hammerited them all up and then
covered them in Waxoyl (I refresh the waxoyl coat each year), they are due that now.

Although as I gather they can rust from inside out as much as from outside in. It makes the
regular change of the coolant important as it has corrosion inhibitors in. Whilst it might
not seem like it is worth doing the coolant regualrly (most car drivers rarely bother) you cannot be
sure of the evils lurking within the long Bongo coolant/aft pipes.

Good advice Mike.

Mine went in the same spot.

At approx 17 years old (13 in Japan) and 80k miles.

I identified mine at the time by the puddle of ATF fluid on the drive. The 5 mile trip to the bongo specialist was nerve wrecking then and I was worried about leaving a trail all the way!

Had a good look about with high power LED torch and found some small areas of surface rust on 1 or 2 pipes..
Sorting it out, gently sand/Kurust Hammerite. Always helps to be inspired by posts on here to have a look and
act rather than wait so thanks for the reminder on those pipes (without a closer look the obvious ones would have just got their annual smearing of Waxoyl)... winter is where things go from a touch of rust to big problems at a surprising rate.

sotal wrote: Tue Sep 04, 2018 9:35 pm Mine went in the same spot.

At approx 17 years old (13 in Japan) and 80k miles.

I identified mine at the time by the puddle of ATF fluid on the drive. The 5 mile trip to the bongo specialist was nerve wrecking then and I was worried about leaving a trail all the way!

I had a 45 min drive to the garage and honestly don't know how i made it. Phew!

When i arrived, dripping nicely, Adrian pointed out the other (R reg) Bongo he had in.......for exactly the same problem. With that one it only got spotted during its MOT. Makes you wonder how many autobox failures might be linked to corrosion!

Glad you're on the case bb123

Not the auto pipes but the off side rear heater feed steel pipe - https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipP ... vgEu3Lyox1 Just caught that in time

TheLongRoad wrote: Sun Sep 09, 2018 7:21 pm Not the auto pipes but the off side rear heater feed steel pipe - https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipP ... vgEu3Lyox1 Just caught that in time

Bummer - cant get that link to work But....is that the pipe in the same location as the ATF cooler pipes as, if so, i went through a similar drama with that a few years back, and had a new pipe fitted (see my original post).

That’s the one. Looks like it will be ‘fun’ fitting it as it appears to weave it way through the other pipes and around the chassis. It’s only the last foot or so by the tee section that’s rusted. Rest of the pipe is rust free. Suppose that end must get more road spray.

Thanks for the timely warning.

I went out straight after breakfast to check and they look OK but I will carefully clean any salty muck off and may put a precautionary binding of self amalgamating tape and do likewise with the coolant T piece section.

Frank

This is the kind of thing you want to be avoiding:

https://wildaboutscotland.files.wordpre ... ny0156.jpg

https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/1f0 ... 40x960.jpg

There are a lot of pipes and connectors, especially under the drivers side. Also look right under with a powerful torch
as there is one well hidden well under and behind the sill. They must get doused in salt water in winter months off the front wheel.

There is also an exposed section of thin pipe that goes in to wards the middle of the chassis and towards the front of the kind
of square bottomed sump thing (gearbox or engine cannot recall right now) Follow them from start to end and some sections
appear to be exposed to the elements and some less so.

Thanks for the image. That's exactly where my steel pipe is starting to show lateral cracks in the rust (my link to a photo on google doesn't appear to work). I've ordered a new pipe and hose clips. The rubber hoses look and feel in good condition - some still have Mazda stickers on them so maybe are not original.

PS Mods, sorry I've rather hujacked the thread from Auto pipes to the steel water pipes but as they are all in the same are hopefully best place for these posts.

TheLongRoad wrote: Sun Sep 09, 2018 7:21 pm Not the auto pipes but the off side rear heater feed steel pipe - https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipP ... vgEu3Lyox1 Just caught that in time

Mikeonb4c said the photo link didn't work. Trying again https://photos.app.goo.gl/htD2DtXssam12Hka7

TheLongRoad wrote: Fri Sep 14, 2018 11:12 am

TheLongRoad wrote: Sun Sep 09, 2018 7:21 pm Not the auto pipes but the off side rear heater feed steel pipe - https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipP ... vgEu3Lyox1 Just caught that in time

Mikeonb4c said the photo link didn't work. Trying again https://photos.app.goo.gl/htD2DtXssam12Hka7

Yup i can see that pic and those pipes look dire. I'd get them attended to ASAP if not sooner