FYI aluminum foil as a "band-aid" for the pcv tube on '98 escort.
In the way-back I lost the oil filler cap on a 78 datsun pick-up, and had to bum some aluminum foil from a fastfood place to make a temporary cap. Ever since my emergency road repair kit has had a rolled up sheet of aluminum foil
Today I found another use for it...
The old car started surging and wanting to stall almost every time I came to a stoplight and idled. It seemed to run as well as usual otherwise--so, I thought maybe bad idle control valve, sticky throttle valves or all the above...at 185K gunk in the throttle valves or a carboned up idle control wouldn't be too unexpected.
But when I got under the hood and started checking for obvious broken things...spark plug wires, vacuum lines, etc I found that the plastic tube between the crankcase and the pcv valve had broken. Holding it together made the problem go away letting it come apart caused the problem to return... So I made a band-aid out of aluminum foil, wrapped it over the break three times and twisted it to make a tight fit and put on some twist-ties from old produce bags. It's back running smooth and not stalling.
Aluminum foil...15 cents. Not stalling in traffic...PRICELESS
= new reply since forum marked as read
It's also awesome for plumbing emergencies around the house.
In my truck, I have a roll of that tape, a gallon of water, a quart of oil, a quart of ATF, a pack of fuses, jumper cables, road flare, first aid kit, flashlight, fire extinguisher, a hammer, screwdrivers, some wrenches, a pair of pliers, and and old wool army blanket in case you have to crawl up under the car. All the tools fit in an under-seat organizer, the fluids sit in a small rubbermaid tote in the bed, bungied to a corner.
I'm used to having old cars, too. 