Been a while since I posted, and after today's events, I'm reconsidering intentions to get my 98 SF to 30 years. So I felt I was overdue to stop in and drop a note.
Since getting Dirty Girl back from Doug in late '21, it's been months between start-ups, really only needing to be driven to get yearly check-in for lifetime trans warranty.
So I thought today I'd give Dirty Girl a spin after probably the longest no-start stretch yet. But oops, keys are gone! They were in cupholder but now missing (car was left unlocked - battery is dead and needs starter pack or jump start anyway). After searching everywhere I suspect either neighbor or stranger off the street (neighbor's a dick and his wife's on HOA board - they're both A-holes)
But alas, after takin a nap - during which I dreamt my younger son had the keys - the original key that Doug lost in his shop and later sent me in mail (after getting replacements made NO CHARGE) were found in a junk drawer on kitchen counter!
Ok, now we're cooking with Crisco. Get her started, warmed up, PS fluid top off (rack has a known leak) and I roll out of the driveway, making a racket with bad rear calipers and suspension and mild brake checks to wear off oxidation.
Drive around a bit, remembering the good ole days; a few WOT runs after stopping to inflate tires at a gas station. Stop by my mom's place to say hi, then start back home. It went south from here:
I noticed some loss of power earlier but it was starting to get bad. First thought was linkage not keeping trans in DRIVE, but just before going through a traffic light, SHE DIES!! But here's where God was good to me . . . I happened to be on just enough of an incline that I could put her in NEUTRAL and roll back with enough momentum to position her off the side of the road. Lucky there was nobody behind me! No power steering but I've been there before.
Pop hood and see coolant spraying out of a seam in the outter face of coolant reservoir. Not sure what's causing that but coolant guage did NOT show excess tempeartures. Could this simply be the lid not "breathing" like it's supposed to? But then, how would that relate to the stalling? Maybe coolant temp guage is toast? After letting things cool off, I was eventually able to restart and make it back home, about a mile away. Will check for codes tomorrow - I'm exhausted after writing this!
Since getting Dirty Girl back from Doug in late '21, it's been months between start-ups, really only needing to be driven to get yearly check-in for lifetime trans warranty.
So I thought today I'd give Dirty Girl a spin after probably the longest no-start stretch yet. But oops, keys are gone! They were in cupholder but now missing (car was left unlocked - battery is dead and needs starter pack or jump start anyway). After searching everywhere I suspect either neighbor or stranger off the street (neighbor's a dick and his wife's on HOA board - they're both A-holes)
But alas, after takin a nap - during which I dreamt my younger son had the keys - the original key that Doug lost in his shop and later sent me in mail (after getting replacements made NO CHARGE) were found in a junk drawer on kitchen counter!
Ok, now we're cooking with Crisco. Get her started, warmed up, PS fluid top off (rack has a known leak) and I roll out of the driveway, making a racket with bad rear calipers and suspension and mild brake checks to wear off oxidation.
Drive around a bit, remembering the good ole days; a few WOT runs after stopping to inflate tires at a gas station. Stop by my mom's place to say hi, then start back home. It went south from here:
I noticed some loss of power earlier but it was starting to get bad. First thought was linkage not keeping trans in DRIVE, but just before going through a traffic light, SHE DIES!! But here's where God was good to me . . . I happened to be on just enough of an incline that I could put her in NEUTRAL and roll back with enough momentum to position her off the side of the road. Lucky there was nobody behind me! No power steering but I've been there before.
Pop hood and see coolant spraying out of a seam in the outter face of coolant reservoir. Not sure what's causing that but coolant guage did NOT show excess tempeartures. Could this simply be the lid not "breathing" like it's supposed to? But then, how would that relate to the stalling? Maybe coolant temp guage is toast? After letting things cool off, I was eventually able to restart and make it back home, about a mile away. Will check for codes tomorrow - I'm exhausted after writing this!
