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MG MGF Technical - Bloody Frost!

Ok so its my first winter with the F and this was the first frosty morning so far.

The inside of the car was as frozen as the outside. Would a MS Sunmate etc help eliminate this.

Also I had to get petrol as I was running on fumes so got to the petrol station.....and the lock on the petrol cap was frozen solid! Couldnt get the key further than 10mm in.

Dont panic I thought, get some De-icer from the garage........except this garage didnt sell de-icer????

Had to go back home and get a tin of de-icer there plus heat the key in hot water then eventually get a hairdrier and hold it over the petrol cap for 15 minutes!

Any solutions to combat this????
Bob Millar

Bob

Old motorcycling trick - pee onto frozen locks, it's better than having to walk home.

The inside of mine was clear this morning even though the outside was really thick icey frost. I did clean the inside yesterday with FastGlass because I was fed up with it icing over a few days ago.
JohnP

i don't know John, Peeing up lamposts, now peeing on your bike, do you want to talk about it?? ;-))) ha ha, are you sure you wasn't a dog in a past life?? Dave.
DC Morris T6 DCM

Hi Bob, Thanks for your advise I hope I can now help you..! Yes I have the Summate and find it very good. It stops the frost forming on the windows and the fabric of the roof. Great in snow.! And is not too much of a hassle to fit. As for the frozen fuel cap.... I spent a very long time at a garage in Edinburgh fighting with mine when I first got it, I now have one of those things that you slot into the lock and it heats up. Quicker and less lightly to get you arrested.! Hope his helps, Andrew.
A McDowell

A danger of my method of de-icing is that you can get stuck onto the filler cap. The heated key is safer.
JohnP

Also, if you make sure your lock is well oiled this stops it from freezing.
David Clelland

Crikey it must have beed really cold where you are, 1st frost for my TF as well, fine inside, although I did have the top down yesterday, so less moisture build up inside to freeze I would guess, scraped windows with credit card, even did the plastic just enough for the rear view mirror to use, with no ill effect, and off I went.
Andrew

Where is UK Andrew?
I've tried Autoroute but it was a bit vague.
JohnP

keep the tank well topped up!
the last thing you want is to break the key in the lock!!

Before I got a garage i used to put oneof those Satur typr roof covers on
it worked brilliantly at keeping rain and ice out
but was useless on windy days as it flapped around and would eventually pull itself off and sometimes break its straps!
Neil

> keep the tank well topped up!

I usually do but I was seeing how much I could get on a tank of fuel as I'm doing comparisons between different types of fuels as I'm not impressed with Optimax's claims of improved economy.

Basically on that last full tank of Optimax from full to the brim to running on fumes I got 375 miles from a 1.8MPi with 132BHP after a few mods.

On to the new BP stuff thats being advertised to see how that fares!
Bob Millar


Sitting in the petrol station, push your cigaretter lighter in and wait for it to charge.
When its ready, pull the key out of the ignition and heat it up on the cigarette lighter.. - then place the key in the fuel cap and hey-presto!

P.S. The petrol station may well not like you taking the cigarette lighter out of the car!!!

Neil H

Good idea.!
Andrew McD JAZ5788

Top tip, Neil!

Ralph
Ralph

Good tip neil - but assumes you can unlock the doors in the first place.


OK OK you probably wouldn't be at the filling station if the doors were frozen up :-)
JohnP

i put a bit of black tape on it, it stops the frost from going in.
s j inwood

bolt horse door stable etc

But usefull advice. Did you consider HiViz tape so you could find it in the dark?
JohnP

Just one thing to ad in the favour of the heated key thing. Just went to the shops only to find to remove my sunmate I need to get into the boot.... but guess what to boot lock was frozen.! Hay ho... But all the windows were clear.!
Andrew McD JAZ5788

This thread was discussed between 08/12/2003 and 11/12/2003

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