mailman interface sulking, re-key the GAS CAP!!

[Mike Arman]

Evidently, the mailmain interface on the main (Quattro) list took exception
to the fact hat I have jumped ship and gone and bought a V8, so it
cancelled my subscription as of the 21st - no digests received since then -
so if anyone has sent me anything or commented on anything I've written or
asked, please re-send.

Hey, I *still* have the two 5000s . . .


So I went to get gas in the V8 yesterday at noon, and discovered some
cheapo aftermarket gas cap instead of the standard, type 44 bank vault
locking cap.

Cuss cuss cuss. Well I have a spare locking gas cap in my stash of type 44
parts, I'll just re-key it.

So howzis sumbitch come apart, anyway?

Hint - prying on the metal keyhole slot is not the answer.

Take a 7/16" socket and place it over the key hole slot (the metal part
facing you). Use a BIG claw puller and grab the plastic skirt of the gas
cap. Making sure everything is aligned, crank down on the puller. It takes
a *little* effort, but you don't need an air wrench. It won't come off by
hand, however.

The cover "pops" off, and then you can get at the lock cylinder. Press the
plastic tank locking tab to remove the inner cylinder from the outer, then
mix and match lock tumblers to suit your ignition key just like you do for
the door handles.

To re-assemble, you need a big vise. You can't press on the very end of the
metal (inside end) of the cap assembly because it will crush. Instead, use
a large socket which clears the vented portion, and presses on the outside
diameter of the metal part of the gas cap. Then you need to press on the
plastic part of the gas cap, in order to squeeze it all together. To clear
the lock cylinder as you press, use about a 7/8" box wrench. The sequence
in the vise is therefore large socket on tank end of gas cap, gas cap in
the center, box end of wrench on plastic (outside) end of gas cap. The
reason you need to use the box end of a wrench as a mandrel is that the
lock mechanism will project above the plastic part of the gas cap as you
squeeze, and you don't want to crush it.

Close the vise gently, keeping everything in alignment, and it "pops" back
together again.

Total time is under 45 minutes.

Anyway, I then proudly took my freshly re-keyed gas cap out to the V8, and
guess what? It is SUPPOSED to have a screw-on cap, so this one won't work!
So now I have a cap that fits my key, but not the car.

"Well dear, look at it as a positive learning experience!"

"Yeah, I positively learned that it was a pain in the ass!"


Best Regards,

Mike Arman