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djkeev 
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Joined: September 30, 2007
Posts: 25750
Location: North West New Jersey
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singler3360
Samba Member
Joined: February 25, 2009
Posts: 1191
Location: Corvallis, Oregon
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 Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2013 10:48 am Post subject: |
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| I've never had this problem because I manage to leave them behind at the pump every few years, most recently earlier this month while on vacation in a state where you can pump your own gas. Glad I had an extra on board. I never thought it could be keyed to the ignition, a better alternative to driving away without it. |
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syncrodoka
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Joined: December 27, 2005
Posts: 11443
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2013 11:12 am Post subject: |
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| Push out the rod at the end and it will fully disassemble. It probably needs grime cleaned out. |
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djkeev
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Joined: September 30, 2007
Posts: 25750
Location: North West New Jersey
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2013 12:02 pm Post subject: |
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Take it apart, that's what I was thinking for the next move, nice to have someone say....."Just DO it!"
I knocked out the pin and pieces came off easily and uneventfully. After removing the pin, red housing, spring, metal latch and the seal assembly, all that was left was the exterior housing with the key in it.
The key still turned just as hard!
It was a little tight but I fearfully and with cautious low grade force pushed the tumbler assembly out towards the outside of the cap.
It came with some resistance and it was clearly evident where the problem lies.
The tumbler is totally gooped up with dried grease laden with dirt.
Now to clean it all up. Lube the tumbler with graphite, a bit of white grease on the plastic housing it should be good for another 25 years?
I wonder though on the plastic, should I use a white grease or maybe use a Teflon based lube? Any suggestions? It's a plastic on plastic rotation.
Dave
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djkeev
Samba Moderator
Joined: September 30, 2007
Posts: 25750
Location: North West New Jersey
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djkeev
Samba Moderator
Joined: September 30, 2007
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Location: North West New Jersey
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syncrodoka
Samba Member
Joined: December 27, 2005
Posts: 11443
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2013 5:18 pm Post subject: |
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| djkeev wrote: |
OK, I cleaned up the lock cylinder. I opted on using Electrical Contact Cleaner for I feared for what effect a harsh cleaner such as Carb cleaner would have on the plastic pieces.
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The plastic pieces come off of the cylinder so that you can clean it better with whatever you want.
I am not a fan of white lithium grease as I have found that it dries and gets hard over time. |
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Steelhead
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Joined: February 25, 2007
Posts: 1791
Location: Kentfield, CA
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| Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2014 1:07 pm Post subject: |
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revisiting this topic. My locking gas cap works fine at normal temps, but when I drive in the blazing heat it doesn't want to lock. Unlocking usually ok (though harder), but when I go to re-lock I could easily break my key. Twisted it a few times already. Could it be from the expansion of the rubber gasket?
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atomatom
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Joined: May 15, 2012
Posts: 1611
Location: in an 84 Westy or Bowen Island, BC
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| Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2014 1:34 pm Post subject: |
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| djkeev wrote: |
| singler3360 wrote: |
| I never thought it could be keyed to the ignition, a better alternative to driving away without it. |
Yeah, hard to drive away without the gas cap when your ignition key is inserted in it and needed for reinstallation! 
Dave |
Mine is keyed to anything flat that you can stick in it. In fact, several ignition keys have been bent thanks to the grunge in it - so I currently use the mailbox key which is tougher.
Thanks Dave for posting - I think I'll try the deep clean.
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84 Vanagon Westy, 1.9L, California raised but defected to Canada. |
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PDXWesty
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Joined: April 11, 2006
Posts: 5772
Location: Portland OR
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| Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 10:31 am Post subject: Re: Gas Cap Lock |
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Dave - My gas cap is almost impossible to turn at this point.
Question for you: After a couple of years of use, have you had to repeat this procedure or is it still functioning well?
Thanks - Rick
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E1
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Joined: January 21, 2013
Posts: 4994
Location: Westfalia, Earth
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| Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 10:35 am Post subject: |
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| djkeev wrote: |
Yeah, hard to drive away without the gas cap when your ignition key is inserted in it and needed for reinstallation!
Dave |
You've just uncovered my entire Idiot-proof plan.
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Wildthings
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Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 44386
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| Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 11:31 am Post subject: Re: Gas Cap Lock |
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| FWIW an early Rabbit cap works just fine if you don't need a locking cap. |
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timichango
Samba Member
Joined: April 07, 2012
Posts: 858
Location: Squamish, BC, Canada
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| Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 1:02 pm Post subject: Re: Gas Cap Lock |
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Wish I saw this earlier — I did this exact repair a number of weeks ago. My cap was bending keys in cold weather.
I stripped it, as you did, and cleaned the whole thing up with — of all things — electrical contact cleaner. It's plastic-safe, and cut the dried grease and oxidation in there pretty well.
Then I used a rubber conditioner on the rubber gaskets, used some lithium grease in key spots, and put'er back together.
The cylinder/tumbler unit on mine is seized — essentially it just works as a rotating unit that doesn't depend on a key anymore (you can open it with a screwdriver), but that's been true since we bought the van in 2012.
Edit: damn, I just realized that this was a necro-thread. And that djkeev and I are both fans of contact cleaner
PDXWesty: I'm going to wager that his is still fine. After being in there, I can say that it's ultimately a super easy job to take it apart, and if you select your lubricants well, you'll likely get a lot of service out of a cleanup.
I suspect the issue is more contamination of existing lubricant over time, than the og. lubes failing, so the environment you're running the van in probably has some bearing on longevity, but given how little this part actually gets used in real terms, a little lube should last a long time.
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djkeev
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