We have all been there. Three days deep into a track that hasn’t seen a grader since the Olympic Games, and something goes twang. Usually, it’s right when the sun is dipping low and the flies are getting extra friendly. While a fully stocked workshop is the dream, out in the dirt, we have to rely on the bush mechanic’s holy trinity: fencing wire, cable ties, and enough stubbornness to get the rig home.
The exhaust hanger shuffle
Exhaust systems take a proper hiding on corrugated roads. The constant vibration is like a jackhammer on your rubber hangers, and eventually, one is going to snap. When that happens, your exhaust starts banging against the chassis like a drummer on speed. If you leave it, you’ll eventually crack something more expensive, or dump the whole pipe on the track.
This is where the fencing wire earns its keep. Don’t bother with zip ties here; the heat will melt them faster than a Cornetto in the Simmo. Loop a bit of wire around the exhaust pipe and find a solid point on the chassis. Give it a few twists with the pliers, leaving just enough slack so it doesn’t snap when the engine torques over. It’ll rattle a bit, but it beats dragging your muffler across the gibbers.
Keeping your face on
Modern 4X4s are held together with more plastic clips than we’d like to admit. One decent bash through a washout or a deep crossing can see your wheel arch flares or wheel liners start to sag. Once those factory plastic clips pop out and disappear into the dust, they’re gone for good.
Heavy duty cable ties are the perfect replacement for lost trim clips. You might need to drill a small hole in the plastic if the original mount has torn away, but zipping a flare back to the guard works a treat. It keeps the mud out of your expensive bits and stops the plastic from flapping in the wind until you can get back to a town with a spare parts shop.
The radiator fan shroud rescue
If you’ve ever heard a horrific screeching sound while idling in a river bed, there’s a good chance your fan shroud has shifted. Corrugations love to rattle the mounting bolts loose, letting the plastic shroud lean into the spinning fan blades. It sounds like a plane crash, and if the fan catches it properly, it’ll send plastic shards straight through your radiator.
Cable ties are the absolute kings of the engine bay for this exact reason. You can loop them through the radiator support and the shroud to pull the plastic back into alignment. Because cable ties have a bit of flex, they actually handle the vibrations better than a rigid bolt sometimes. Just make sure you’re not cinching them down against anything that gets hot enough to melt them.
Patching a split radiator hose
A burst radiator hose is a classic trip-stopper, but it doesn’t have to be the end of the road. If you’ve got a split, you can usually wrap it tight with some self-amalgamating tape or even a bit of old rag in a pinch. However, the pressure of the cooling system will just blow that patch off as soon as the engine gets up to temp.
This is where the “hose clamp” version of fencing wire comes in. Wrap your patch, then use the wire to create a series of tight loops over the top. Use your pliers to twist the wire ends, cinching the patch down onto the rubber. It’s a crude way to manage the pressure, but we’ve seen rigs travel hundreds of kays on a wired-up hose without losing a drop of coolant.
Securing the load (and the lights)
It’s not always about the mechanicals. Sometimes it’s the gear we carry that fails us. Roof rack mounts can crack, or those fancy LED light bars can vibrate loose until they’re pointing at the treetops instead of the track. If a mounting bracket snaps in the middle of the night, you’re stuck in the dark.
Fencing wire is brilliant for lashing gear down when a bracket gives up the ghost. It doesn’t stretch like a bungy cord, so once you’ve twisted it tight, that light bar isn’t going anywhere. Just be mindful of where you’re wrapping it so you don’t rub through any wiring. It’s not pretty, and your mates might give you a bit of a ribbing, but keeping the gear on the car is the only goal when you’re out the back of beyond.
So what do you reckon, ever tackled any of these bush fixes yourself? Or done something out of the ordinary? Pop a comment below and let us know.
9 comments
Tied up a broken chassis rail on a landrover with a strong branch and rope and drove it out of the bush. the old steel recovery tracks,(split aircraft landing strip matting) make good rigid tow bars onto the vehicle behind you. Also had a kingpin lose its studs and tied that in with fencing wire. a leaking wheel cylinder can be isolated with a piece of aluminium can as a block between the brake line and the wheel cylinder.
One day many years ago I was up near Robinson River in NT. Split the drain plug off the sump, oil going everywhere on a recently serviced engine. Caught the oil in my billies and supermarket plastic bags(back when they were half decent), drained the rest, hung the bags on the tow bar and let it all cool. Had no petrol to clean up, so got clean rag, wiped inside as best i could, and then smeared silastic all around the joint/gap. Had a rest, to let it go off a bit, and then tipped the salvaged oil back in, then topped up to the add mark for starters. No leaks, so filled it, drove to Cairns then back to Melbourne. Barely any dampness around the joint. Pulled it off and bronzed in Melbourne a week or so later, probably did nearly 5,000k’s
Pat. You shoulda comment
‘BYO wire, several sizes & lengths’
If I were a farmer and found some mug had cut my fence – I’d be livid – and I bet you would be too.
Years ago I needed ‘a piece’ … I walked along the fence for ages till I found a join, and there it was, rusty gold galv wire lying on the ground !!
Wire & bits can fit literally anywhere –
Patched the muffler of an old bus we had in Tassie many years ago
Flattened a beer can and bound the can over the hole with fencing wire
Lasted the rest of our trip
This was in the army, but many years ago on exercise while driving a Unimog I lost power steering.
If you’ve ever had that happen you know you need to make like two sumo wrestlers to control the beast.
Found it had lost its power steering box plug.
The fix was relatively easy tho didn’t look very nice. I found a piece of solid stick appropriate size and whittled it down to fit then forced/screwed it into the hole with pliers which were my only tool.
Worked a treat.
You shoulda seen the looks on the faces of the RAEME guys when this girl said she worked this out for herself!
What they didn’t know was I was from the bush and we did stuff like that all the time.
🙂
Steel cable ties are go particularly with exhausts and radiator hoses. Always take some soft wire.
Back in 1978 on the Gunbarrel Hwy with my partner and my mate and his wife , my old Barravan broke both drawbar arms with the constant undulations . Parked up and found an old abandoned Holden a few k’s back. Roo barred it onto its side and took the tail shaft and the U bolts from the rear springs . Spent the whole night with a tiny hobby saw and sawed the t/ shaft in half ( without breaking the blade .
Clamped both bits of shaft under the drawbar and that lasted to Alice Springs even though it ended up looking like a boomerang . We were told we were the first caravans to do that then.
Radiator systems are pressurised. You may get away with leaving the cap loose so less coolant escapes.
I once had an exhaust pipe break in the Flinders Ranges. With tin snips I made a sleeve to cover the break and wrapped it on with wire. Got me back to Adelaide.
The old can of Baked Beans or Spaghetti or soup makes a great snack and the can with both end removed makes a great sleeve with two screw hose clamps (carry a couple of large ones) to repair your broken exhaust.
If your vehicle has a distributor cap, any crack in it or arc over can be repaired with nail polish over the damaged area.
If you damage or break a suspension part, spanners can be cable tied to the part over the break and a super long air conditioning cable tie or ratchet straps can be used to keep the length right.
All these are rally tricks to get cars home or out of forests. One Rally driver used my large plumber’s wrench to straighten a bent arm at a service stop. I was servicing for another driver and not a mechanic, just technically minded.