We run into a lot of bodge jobs while fixing Minis (as well as other cars)
and thus we've decided to dedicate a page to the bodgers best work.
Among the bodges, we may also included the most "extremely broken" bits we
run across...
date:7-9-07
description:
an attempted multi point injection ended with poor results. multipoint injection
cars (mpi) are computer controlled. there's no provision for distributor or
adjusting timing without the ECU. also, there's no place to put a distributor.
Note the burnt spark plug wires as well as clipped wires go into nothing. is
this a bodge or what. This baby ran but just barely. she had major running
problems and wouldn't start with out eather (a starting tool). I think all of
this mini bodgery is quite comical and genius. but I, myself prefer to fix these
things correctly the first time. Here at madhouse, when we things its meant to
stay fixed. That's why we whe fix things right.
Date: August 25, 2006
Description: Bodgers are frugal beasts. That can, in
fact, be the whole point. Why pay so much money for the correct part when you can pay a
little bit less to make a part that will
probably do the same thing almost the right way most of the time? If you pay
1/2 as much to 'roll your own' and it works more than 1/2 the time, you win!
You get more bang for your buck!
This is a prime example of that mentality. Here we have a Distributor
Ground Wire, a very important piece to keep your Mini running, let alone
running well. Instead of dropping the...oh, let's say $1 for a new
one, a lot of thinking was done and it was decided that it would be better
to just make a grounding wire...that's not too hard, is it?
Oh, sure, maybe not, maybe not awful, but possibly the execution wasn't the best. The solder on this wire came off the connections, producing the classic 'loose connection'. Yes, we saw some very strange behavior with this setup: When hooked up to a timing light, the light would blink-blink-blink-blink-stop...and the Mini was still running...strange...then it would continue to blink. No, this isn't the funniest bodge we've ever had, and it's not the most awful looking, but this is a bodge none-the-less due to the failure prone design and strange behavior, two very important attributes to any good bodge!
Date: August 22, 2006
Description:
Moisture can cause all sorts of problems. It can aid your cars rusting
efforts, given enough time it can erode almost anything, it can make even
the best
electrical system operate like a Lucas system, and perhaps worst of
all... It can make your hands look
like prunes. Sure, water and moisture can be good, in fact, it's
mostly good, but this isn't a debate about whether or not moisture is
inherently good or bad, it just is what it is, and it has it's thorns.
On many cars, even the slightest bit of moisture can cause problems.
In this particular example, moisture on the distributor cap was the
problem. Since a Mini is a 4-cylinder and the coil is remotely
located, there are a total of 5 cables going into the distributor, and
they don't like to get wet. Coincidentally, people generally have
5 fingers and don't like their hands to get wet. This Bodge is an
ingenious combination of those two facts and uses something made for people and
puts it on a car to
achieve nearly the same thing. The Bodger who did this clipped
the tips of the fingers off on a rubber glove, then zip-tied it onto the
distributor to keep water out. The only problem with this is that
the rubber glove isn't designed to handle petroleum products, so it wore
out quickly.
One has to really ask themselves something about this...Sure this is a bodge job...but is there a better way to fix this? Is there a part in production that will have cured this problem without using kitchen supplies? Is there a way to fix this and keeping it to look nice and good? Well, the answer is 'yes' and the solution is a product called 'WD-40'. Most people use WD-40 as a lubricant and penetrating oil, and it works for that, but that's not what it was designed for. Wikipedia defines WD-40 as a product to "to eliminate water and prevent corrosion on electrical circuitry. It stands for 'Water Displacement, 40th attempt.'"
It is certainly possible that the Bodger used WD-40 as a first attempt, but our experience shows that if it doesn't work the first time, try it again, and if it still doesn't work, try it again, hell, it even says it in the title, on your 40th attempt things should be working perfectly fine! It will likely have form and function over a rubber glove...unless you're into that sort of thing.
Date: August 04, 2006
Description: Sometimes, if you're on the road and have had something break on your automobile,
you usually can do a quick bodge job to get by until you get home or can
get the correct parts and pieces to fix the problem properly.
These often can be successful bodges, fine examples of creative
engineering. In situations like this, being a bodger has its
benefits with not having to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars
on towing and repair fees. Yes, that is bodging at its best.
In situations like this, one may find themselves really scraping
together something out of nothing, doing the proverbial more with less -
commonly regarded as good engineering. In extreme examples, one
may find themselves out of duct tape, and thus resort to extreme
measures, such as rope, or even worse: band-aids.
Yes, occasionally we need to resort to the first aid kit for people, to fix our cars. Generally the first aid kit doesn't have the right bits, since humans tend to heal themselves, automobiles never really heal themselves, they just make you think they did so that you can put off fixing the problem, then they can break again at a more inconvenient time...like at a crowded beach, or in bumper to bumper traffic.
The unfortunate truth is that is not what happened here. We have a real band aid fix, it uses a nice big band-aid, but there are clues of permanent intentions. This band-aid is actually screwed to the steering column. The band-aid acts much like a washer for the screw, and strapping to hold the two pieces together. This bodge is actually so ridiculous, it doesn't really require much explanation, just the fact that someone screwed through a band-aid to hold some things together is enough to be our bodge for this week.
We have no
really good pictures, but we do have a video that shows this bodge fairly
well.
bandaid.mpg
Date: July 25, 2006
Description: This is a classic bodge. When a fuse blows, the
bodger thinks carefully and comes to the conclusion that anything
designed to break - such as a fuse - is obviously a poor design, and
can be fixed by simply removing it from the system. This bodge
incorporates the knowledge that copper wire is flexible and will
hold a shape, leading to the conclusion that a proper spade
connector is a luxury, not a necessity. Another aspect to this
bodge is the high quality connectors in the wiring harness, which
require cutting the harness. For helping the Lucas wiring system
along its path to a questionable reliability and fire prone design
in the interest of saving $5, this bodge job receives our very first
"Bodge of the week" award!
