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MG MGF Technical - dipstick holder!!

can anyone help please?

18 month old MGF here...on its last service, i was told it had a crack in the dipstick holder which meant it always showed as having no oil...even when just filled.

The garage ordered me a new part (apparantly it is in 2 bits...but they didnt tell me which bit was cracked) then the garage (DC COOK in Derby) lost the rover franchise and closed almost overnight.

Is this an easy repair i can do myself (totally untechnical female here) or does it mean booking it in at another dealershiup? I tried to ring another Rover service place but they seemed to know little about it until i brought the car in for a looksie.

Being mean now and trying to discover if i can do it for a few quid meself with out paying the earth for a garage to do it.

thanks all

Sheila

V151 DAU

sheila kelly

Have you got the part yet? If not you'll have to find another dealer anyway but they may do the job for less - it's worth ringing round for any job as the dealers may charge differently despite being the same franchise.

Is your car still in warranty? I assume it's not so you could easily get the work done at an independent garage - check out the recommended suppliers on this site or at http://www.mgownersclub.co.uk

If you really want to do this yourself it's not the most accessible engine in the world and I'm guessing you might need a ramp (although that might be nonsense). If it was me I'd get a recommended independent toget their hands dirty for me - how tight-fisted are you?!
James

As its only 18 months old, it is presumably still in the 3 year warranty....

You could call the MG Helpline (check in your car handbook for the number - I can't remember it right now) and get them to recommend your closest dealer.

Its not an unknown problem, though as far as I know isn't easy to get to without a means of getting under the car - its the tube that carries the dipstick down to the sump, and yes, they leak badly when broken! There's at least one tale of the same thing in the archive....

Particularly if you get MG/Rover to pay, you'll need to go to a franchised dealer. You might also check the MGF FAQ / Dealer Guide (Look for Paul Lathwell's postings for the URL!) for other's comments on dealers in your area....

Neil.
Neil

Sheila, from memory the oil filler cap and tube are held on to the engine's inlet manifold by one (maybe two) bolts which you can get at fairly easily if you just open the boot and take out the engine grille.

I am puzzled as to how it can show no oil - unless the break is so big as to mean that the dip stick itself was emerging from the tube into space instead of being channelled down into the bottom of the engine (sump) where all the oil is.

Anyway DIY is certainly a possibility, though you'll need to borrow a spanner :-)

Worth taking it out and having a look - you may be able to repair it.

Good luck, John
John Thomas

I also have had the dipstick tube crack. The tube broke at the support bracket and, if the two parts are not sufficiently in alignment, the dipstick can actually end up not going into the engine!

Ralph
passing 100,000 MGF miles on the way home tonight!
Ralph

>(Look for Paul Lathwell's postings for the URL!)

I guess this is my cue to jump into this thread then. :)

There's nothing in the FAQ to cover this job but you may well find a decent dealer in your area in the MG Dealer Guide I run.....

http://www.dotcomoff.demon.co.uk

Home of the MG Dealer Guide, F'ers Gallery and new MGF FAQ. :)
Paul Lathwell

Ralph, did you already try to hold the parts together with a small worm clamp ?

I'm sorry for advertising ....
If someone needs a dipstick assy in good condition. I've got a second hand one :)
Dieter Koennecke

Dieter
My dipstick tube broke quite some time ago. I used some insulating tape around the break to reduce the oil loss whilst waiting for it to be replaced by the dealer.

I booked it in for repair telling the dealer exactly what was wrong with it. Did the dealere order the part? No they did not - they ended up having to take the part off one of the cars in the showroom because they could not get the part within a reasonable amount of time.

Ralph
Ralph

Hi,

<passing 100,000 MGF miles on the way home tonight!>

Ralph, this deserves its own thread! How about a brief soliloquy on your adventures and mishaps on this long journey? I wonder if there are any others on this BBS who have reached, or surpassed, this considerable mileage? Well, if the MGB owners can celebrate this, and they've had at least fifteen years longer to do it, then why shouldn't we?

Regards, Kes.
Kes

<passing 100,000 MGF miles on the way home tonight!>

Urghh.... Kes, I just got that these are 'real money' and not km.

Whow !!! And never found Ralph winging about any niggles here at the BBS. :))

:o)
Dieter
Dieter Koennecke

Well I have had my fair share of niggles.

The first set of front tyres lasted less than 7,000 miles. They wore through to the carcass before I noticed. Since then I have had the front tyres replaced 5 times. That is 7 sets of tyres for 100,000 miles, and they'll need replacing again shortly. I'm on my 4th set of rear tyres, with plenty of tread left.

The dipstick tube cracked, as described above.

The pipe to the heater corroded through, filling the cockpit with steam.

A month later I had the head gasket fail.

The rear screen cracked last month - my own fault for folding the hood without unzipping the screen. I'm now sporting a piece of 3m tape over the crack. Seems I'm not alone, though, as I passed another F this morning that had 3 pieces of tape on the rear screen.

Two minor accidents. A trolley was scraped down the side of the car in Tesco's car park, completely removing the paint on the sill and leaving several scratches on the passenger door. The other time someone drove into the back of the car in slow moving traffic on the A2.

For the record, approximate mileage in other MG's:

MG B GT 25,000
MG B roadster 50
MG midget 10
MG Magnette (Farina) 20
MG ZA 20
MG Metro 1300 30,000
MG Maestro 2000EFi 5,000



Ralph



Ralph

I'm amazed at the lack of smutty one liners given the title of this thread,

F'ers will get the same reputation as train spotters at this rate
Andrew

Sheila,

Trinity in Hinkley may not be too far for you, depending on exactly where you are in relation to Derby. This is a dealer whom I have more faith in than many others.

Rog
Roger Parker

This thread was discussed between 08/05/2001 and 10/05/2001

MG MGF Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG MGF Technical BBS is active now.