[TR] a rough week for cars

[Jim Muller]

We've been fighting a locking rear brake on the Caravan for months.  
Once it got so hot so quickly it blew the tire.  It's been diagnosed 
as just an over-tight brake, a malfunctioning parking brake, a 
malfunctioning self-adjusting mechanism.  Lots of parts have been 
replaced.  They just hired a new certified master mechanic and he 
finally diagnosed it as a bad hose, much like us LBC guys have to 
worry about.  Apparently he pressure-tested it.  Only trouble is, the 
part is a single hose running form the front to both back wheels, it 
cost over $400, they have to pull the gas tank out to install it, and 
oh by the way the nearest one is 3 days away.

So for the past two days I've driven the GT6 to work, 110 miles round 
trip.  Today as I'm sitting in traffic through town only a quarter of 
a mile from home I start hearing a horrible grinding, crunching, 
rubbing sound.  If the tranny is in neutral and I depress the clutch, 
it stops.  If I release the clutch with the tranny in neutral, it 
starts up.  When the car is rolling, if I depress the clutch and put 
it in neutral the noise stops.  If I depress the clutch and put it in 
any gear, the noise starts up.  The common element in these 
combinations is the laygear.  Spin the laygear and it ain't happy.  
After that wonderful trip to Mt. Desert and two day trips to work, it 
decided to get sick so close to home.  St. Lucas must have been 
looking out for me.  But now I have to tear the tranny down again.  
Oh well, it's been whining a lot lately anyway.

So I'm down to only one car.  The Spitfire has been sitting in the 
garage, battery slowly going down and already in negative numbers.  
It needed inspection last October.  However with a starter battery 
attached he fired right up.  Maybe tomorrow I can get it inspected 
early in the morning then go to work.

Anybody got a spare free month they can lend me?

-- 
Jim Muller
jimmuller at rcn.com
'80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+