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914World.com _ 914World Garage _ front trunk grommets

Posted by: trekkor Oct 5 2005, 07:14 PM

Mine are hard and brittle, difficult to install or remove.

Is there a chemical or treatment that will soften them up again?

Thanks,

KT

Posted by: trekkor Oct 5 2005, 09:28 PM

23 views and nothing

Just make up something

I might boil one...with a little olive oil.

KT

Posted by: jimtab Oct 5 2005, 09:38 PM

OK, this is from left field but why not try that crap that is supposed to be good for the top....since it doesn't seem to do shit to the top, maybe it's secretly a rubber softener.... there....do you feel better now......

Posted by: Dan (Almaden Valley) Oct 5 2005, 10:00 PM

Trekkor,
If you just remove all of them the car will be lighter, right?

Not to mention more air to the cooler!

Posted by: trekkor Oct 5 2005, 10:21 PM

Here's what not to do...

Olive oil in the microwave.
The thing burst into flames

Smells like someone did a burnout in my kitchen

KT

Attached image(s)

Posted by: mikey Oct 5 2005, 10:25 PM

Can't tell from the picture which grommets you're talking about.

Rubber softens if you rub glycerin on it - $.99 at Walgreens.

Posted by: lagunero Oct 5 2005, 10:26 PM

As Thomas would say "Holy Crapper!" I thought you were kidding about the olive oil!

Posted by: jonwatts Oct 5 2005, 10:26 PM

My original reply got the following error:
QUOTE
THE FOLLOWING ERROR(S) WERE FOUNDYou have posted a message with more emoticons that this board allows. Please reduce the number of emoticons you've added to the message

Posted by: Aaron Cox Oct 5 2005, 10:32 PM

the TUB grommets? up front? for an oil cooler passage?

Posted by: trekkor Oct 5 2005, 10:42 PM

Doh
Idiot
Moron
Goofball
Decadent Zombie

Posted by: double-a Oct 5 2005, 10:59 PM

QUOTE (mikey @ Oct 5 2005, 08:25 PM)
Rubber softens if you rub glycerin on it - $.99 at Walgreens.

what about corn husker's oil? it's pure glycerin i think. my wife used it during college in her vertebrate morphology class to keep her hands from drying out from all the formaldehyde in the little dead kitty specimens. gross, i know, but apparently it works.

~a

Posted by: bondo Oct 5 2005, 11:08 PM

Neatsfoot oil works for leather, maybe it'll work on plastic/rubber?

Don't ask what it's made of or what a "neat" is.

Posted by: Crazyhippy Oct 6 2005, 12:19 AM

not very long term, but how about just some heat??

Set them out in the sun (or in the oven) when you go to put them in, and hit them w/ a heat gun on the way out.

Cant be any worse than the microwave

Posted by: Brando Oct 6 2005, 12:34 AM

let them soak in some un-used motor oil for a while.

Plastics and rubbers get dry and brittle when the plasticizers in them oxidize and evacuate from the material. When you soak rubber in motor oil it swells and softens. If you soak them in solvent/degreaser expect them to swell and when the solvent evaporates they will again be brittle.

Posted by: watsonrx13 Oct 6 2005, 04:28 AM

Get some silicone spray, in an aerosol can, spray them, then let them soak. After soaking, you can also clean them. They were much more pliable when I reinstalled them. This is the same stuff people use when they are installing the rubber seals. I carefully installed mine from the front and used either a popsicle stick or a very small screwdriver to get the lip seated.

Posted by: maf914 Oct 6 2005, 06:47 AM

QUOTE (trekkor @ Oct 5 2005, 08:21 PM)
Here's what not to do...

Olive oil in the microwave.
The thing burst into flames

Smells like someone did a burnout in my kitchen

KT

Man, that grommet is screwed. Wouldn't have happened if you had used Extra Virgin Olive Oil!

Posted by: boxstr Oct 6 2005, 10:11 AM

Try some Vaseline.
CCLINRUBME