gas cap cover advice

[lauradi7dw]

A lot of people use LJ for instant advice. I don't think my readership is big enough for that, but here goes:
The cover for the gas cap on my car has frozen shut. I tried hitting it, wiggling it, pouring hot water on it, prying at it with a credit card. I called the dealership. He was sorry to hear about the hot water, and said that if I went after it with a pry bar and broke it, it shouldn't be very expensive to fix the hinge. I'm not entirely comforted by that. Should I go to a local service station and pay them to open it? Buy a blow-dryer and try to heat it up?

Comments

[antoniseb.livejournal.com]

Replacing the cover is fairly pricey. I seem to remember it being $140.
What I'd recommend is try again. Get someone else to pull the lever to release it (if there is one), and try to simultaneously pull open opening side to the cover, and press in on the hinge side.

Failing that, parking underground for an afternoon would thaw the formerly hot water.

[lauradi7.livejournal.com]

I opted for the local service station. He poked at it, looked at it with a flashlight, and said "it's locked." I said "There's no lock." He said to try unlocking the back hatch door(it's a station wagon). The cover opened. There is a little sliding bolt that retracts. I'd never seen that bolt before, in the two+ years I've owned the car (I bought it used).
We tried locking it again, and it refused to oblige, At least now I know what to do if it ever decides to lock itself again.

[calygrey.livejournal.com]

Yeah, cars come with gremlins these days. The ideal solution is to know someone who knows someone who is a car geek and ask them. We have one right across the street - incredibly useful for those of us who know squat about cars.

[dvmp.livejournal.com]

What is this 'frozen' thing you speak of. I have lived in the South too long to recall these Northern terms.