Ok, I have been driving the MGA for a week now, so it was about time for =
a problem. Most of you MGAers probably will figure out exactly what =
happened, but others may not, so I will give a long, detailed message.
On Sunday, I took the car and drove to a local airport to have breakfast =
with some friends, before continuing on to a friend's house for his =
son's graduation party. My wife couldn't go, but she was nice enough to =
let me take the MGA, provided I washed it before bringing it home.
I decided to push the car a little, to see if everything was working =
properly <g>. Anyway, after about 20 miles of 75mph+ driving, the car =
started to overheat. As the temp got up near the 200 deg. point, I =
decided to stop and let it cool off. I found a shady spot along the =
highway and stopped. Put on the emergency brake and lifted the bonnet. =
Kept the car at about 2500 rpm and the temp dropped back down to 170 and =
I figured everything was go for the rest of the trip. Closed the =
bonnet, released the brake and drove to the airport (still about 10 =
miles away). As I started to climb the hill to the airport, the car =
started losing power, the temp started back up and as I stepped on the =
brake pedal, it was hard and not terribly efficient. I again stopped, =
but when I tried to put on the emergency, I found that the handle had no =
resistance, but that the brake was already applied. Brake was frozen =
and the car was going nowhere. I let the engine cool down for about 15 =
minutes, and then let the car sit in the shade for another 15-30 =
minutes, when the car would move (brakes released, partially), but still =
no e-brake and the service brakes were poor at best. I drove to the =
airport and parked the car for about 2 hours. Same condition.
I skipped the party and limped home with great care. Called the =
mechanic, who, of course, was out gallivanting about and it wasn't until =
this morning that I was able to speak with him. He laughed and said it =
was not all that uncommon and that when I get home today, I should check =
the brakes again. Said that the dual chambered master will often do =
this if you put the e-brake on while standing on the service brake. =
That I probably fried the brake and either lost a shoe or have just =
burned it to the point where it won't work. =20
So, the car goes back in for a check-up and repair. Now, lets see. =
Had the car for 8 days. About 350 miles. Yep, that's about what I =
expected in terms of repairs.... <g>
My wife, BTW, is NOT amused. Said I broke her car and that she isn't =
going to make that mistake again. Next time, she drives ! :-( =20
|