Roof rack holes!!!

[umbongoumbongo]

Hi again,

another minor question that I'm sure has an easy answer - our new Bongo has had the roof rack bars removed, leaving 4 holes through the grp roof.

Can anyone recommend a type of rubber stopper or bung that could be used to plug this gap and make it water tight? I've looked on ebay and found some neoprene stoppers which would work I think, but just wondered if there is an already tried and tested solution? My only concern about the stoppers I've found is that they could vibrate loose when driving and pop out - I don't want a leaky roof, and also don't want to have to check every five minutes that the stoppers are still in place!

And before somone suggests it, we don't want to buy a new set of roof bars to replace the ones that were removed!!

Thanks everyone.

[westonwarrior]

unusual problem
Bongos come with mounting points on an aft so no holes are there normaly


rubber bungs should do it but getting the correct size is a must.

[dobby]

Oh, do you mean that the 8mm captive threads are missing and you have a proper hole into the roof?

If this is the case then speak to a breaker and see if they can remove the original items from a scrapped AFT and then fit those other wise use some grommets and glue them in with sealant?

[umbongoumbongo]

Yes - From looking around on the net I now see that the captive bolts are missing. Damn!
I'd better start searching the breakers - unless someone has some for sale?
Thanks for the replies.

[missfixit70]

They didn't come out with the rack did they?

[munroman]

Could you not get a large washer, commonly called 'repair washers', larger than the holes in the AFT, put a suitable length bolt through it, another large washer on the other side, then a nut, and put sealant between the top washer and the roof, then tighten? x4

Make sure the bolt does not protrude any more than the thickness of the nut, to stop it snagging the fabric.

The holes are outside the tent anyway, so should not allow leakage inside the Bongo.

Derek

[umbongoumbongo]

Thanks for the advice Derek. I will give that a go I think. Just need to see if I van access the holes easily from inside the roof - I think that the lifting mechanism is directly under the holes so could be fiddly getting my hand in!

[llitvack]

Hi folks, and happy Christmas to all.
I have just removed my roof rack, and it came off with four four threaded sleeves (smooth on the outside, and threaded on the inside).
The rack's bolts screw into these, and are then (it seems) held in place by four nuts embedded/placed below the AFT fibreglass.

When I tried to re-insert the four sleeves, and then inserted shorter bolts to secure them (and thus seal the holes), the nuts at the bottom seem to have disappeared (that is, they are not at the bottom of the four holes).

Can anyone help please?

Also, I cannot open the AFT to check what's happening on the inside. With the Bongo in park, engine on, and parking brake engaged, there is no action on depressing the AFT switch. I assume this is a fuse problem, as the motors are not working at all, and there is no sound from either the motors or the AFT alarm.

I thought I would get away from the Christmas rush by working on my Bongo. Perhaps I should never have started!

Cheers from Leon

[Simon Jones]

There are 4 metal inserts with a 6 sided nut on the top. These are bonded into the roof and should not come out, although it sounds like your may have. Can you see the nut on the top? I think it's about 16mm, but even though it looks like it can be turned, its not meant to. If you've still got these threaded inserts in place, then you do not need to worry about putting bolts back in as the holes are 'blind' (don't go all the way through).

[llitvack]

Hi Simon. Many thanks for this.
The inserts with the six-sided nuts did in fact come out; in fact they lifted out easily, still screwed onto the roof rack bolts!
When I re-placed the inserts inside the holes, with a bolt through the centre, I screwed down the bolts 1-2 inches through the inserts, in the hope of finding nuts at the bottom, but to no avail.
Is it worth bonding the inserts into the holes using epoxy, then inserting short bolts to seal them?
For the moment I have sealed the holes with electrical tape.

[g8dhe]

Fuses for the AFT, but I don't think I have ever heard of one blowing yet, the most common problem is simply the Handbrake switch is naff, remove the console and look at the rear of the handbrake from the passenger side, give it a clean and it may well jump back into life!

[briwy]

Temporary measure, stick some gaffer tape over them.

[Velocette]

great problem solvers if you can find ones the right size.

http://www.rawlplug.co.uk/index.php?opt ... 3&Itemid=0

[Daydreamer]

If you have only access to the outside and it's a hole you are trying to fill try using a blind rivet fixing and once installed use a rubber washer and bolt from the outside tightened into the fixing. Only thing is I'm not sure how strong the GRP is when installing the rivet and you'll need a bit of depth, depending on the fixing length on the inside. Might be another option to consider?

[the laird]

If you go to a good commercial body shop they should be able to supply and fit inserts no pbvrobs.its a common part on the modern fibreglass cabs for various figments ie spoilers etc
Good luck