Your Best Car Related Story

I am in my late 50s... when just a young lad, my 2nd car was a 1962 Austin America. Great little car. It had a transverse 4 cylinder semi automatic transmission. Semi automatic? It had no clutch but you had to shift up and down through the gears.

The car had an annoying habit of pulling a Jame Bond 007 move on me when least expected. Well one day, while driving a delectable female co-worker home, the car, sure enough, went in to spy mode.

You see... there was a problem with the oil draining from the valve area, and their was a new fangled pollution air pump who job was to pull gases from that area and reburn them. When the oil got to a certain level, the pollution pump would "suck" about a half quart of motor oil out of the head and promptly inject it into the intake manifold right in fron of the intake ports. The result was great gobs of billowing white smoke roaring out of the exhaust, just like a "Get Smart" style smoke screen.

Sure enough... it is real hard playing Joe Cool when your car is laying down a NATO caliber smoke screen. I loved that car.

Our 1972 Ford Pinto did the same "smoke screen" trick if the PCV valve stuck and it sucked the oil out of the crankcase into the intake system. I could obliterate the cars behind me who were following too closely.

OK.

This one isn't about any great fixes, but it's funny. I saw the car.

My cousins came to visit us in Ark. on their way from Ca. to the NY World's Fair in 1964.

They were driving a '58 Chevy V8 that they had recently rebuilt. It was their first rebuild. They were about 17 at the time. Here's the good part.

After they were all finished, motor put back together and in the car, and they were cleaning up the garage and they discovered a left over main bearing cap. I'm serious folks.

Here's the good part. Their dad was a welder, so he cut the oil pan open and they put the bearing cap on. Dad welded to pan back together and the car ran fine. I saw the welded oil pan myself.

main caps aren't too important! hard to believe! good story though

I have a similar story. When I was younger, my (ex)wife and I had a Volvo with an automatic gearbox. I had been out of town working and just before I was due to come home she called me upset that she couldn't get the car to start. She had left it at work and had a co-worker drive her home then had begged her mum to cart her around for a few days.

It was a bitter cold evening in the middle of winter when I got home. Her brother and I was waiting on me to go look at it. I did not know much about vehicles back then (have learned much since) but her brother had been helping their dad change engines in beaters for years. We get to the car that he and his dad had already looked at and the whole way there he told me that they had already tried boosting it off and had even pulled the starter and had it tested but the car just wouldn't start. He figured we would just look at a few things and try to boost it again then he would tow me home and sort it out from there.

I got in the car sat down as her brother opened the hood to hook up the booster cables. I looked down shifted the automatic into Park from Reverse and started it on the key before he had the hood all the way up!

He ran around and started yelling what had I done to fix it! First time her dad ever gave me any respect (probably last time too).

.

Funny thing, a few years later I helped a buddy pull his starter and take it to be tested because he told me it was bad...after we put the (tested good) starter back in the car I sat in the drivers seat and turned the key...still didn't start. I noticed that it was also an automatic with the column shifter so I pressed the brake and shifted it to N thinking it might be the shift safety and sure enough it started...and I noticed that the gear indicator on the display didn't move! It had been broken for a while he said, but he had not thought to check and make sure it was in P before starting it! I didn't brag about fixing that one!

Drew K

the old neutral safety switch trick! I have a few of those too, as well as the "locked steering wheel that wont turn

That's a great one...a set choke being obvious to someone actually familiar with carbs.

This is not a repair story but still funny none the less.

A very good friend of mine had a Fiat spider. The number of times my friend successfully resurrected this convertible hunk of junk was a tribute to my friend's mechanical skills. At the time he was getting his nursing degree at a local community college. This night the car left my friend stranded at the school parking lot and I was the closest friend he could call to bail him out. When I arrived he was so frustrated that he just asked me to give him a ride home and a lift back to the car in the morning, tool chest in hand. I obliged.

In the daylight of late morning I could now see that my friend had left a note on the windshield that said "Steal This Car" and that the key ring was on the antenna. When the sign was removed a $20 bill (the currency, not a parking ticket) was under the sign and somebody had written "Good Luck, you'll need this" on the back of the sign.

Probably another Fiat owner.

Here's a story against myself...
I was young and had just upgraded from a Lambretta scooter to one of these, which I could drive on my motorcycle licence.

I'd only had it a week or two when I put it in gear, let out the clutch and nothing happened... Clutch must have gone right?
I had a quick look underneath and didn't pay much attention to the fact that I could see the prop shaft turning (front engine, rear wheel driven)...
I ignored the little voice in my head which was screaming at me... after all the prop'shaft couldn't be turning, could it? 'Cos the car wasn't moving.

Yes... I changed the clutch.
Eventually it dawned on me... the central hub nut on one of the back wheels was loose and the half shaft was spinning in the hub, having sheared the key.
Oh boy I learned a big lesson...
I always listen to that little voice in my head now... 'cos that guy is a waaaay better engineer than I am.

As a footnote we had 'Uncle Bill' come over from Texas to visit back then and I took him for a ride in it down some narrow English country lanes. He was aghast when I told him it was two way traffic... he also said.
Gee don't this thing have any suspension?

Del

A Plastic PIG!!!!

I didn't think they were really for driving (have only seen a few on the roads)...I thought they are for Banger Racing!

Drew K

They were a good stepping stone from 2 wheels to 4 in the UK.
I passed my driving test on 4 wheels without ever taking a lesson. The years on 2 wheels taught me the roadcraft and the year or two in the Reliant got me used to steering wheel gears and clutch.

With a wife, and a 1 year old it was so much better than a Lambretta... mind I loved that scooter
Del

The little oil tube went to the oil pressure gage on the dash.

I had an old 78 Ford F350 which had a ambulance/van body on the back. I'd spent some time getting it back on the road, which then became an imperative as I had to relocate from Sydney to Brisbane for work. This truck had the 302 Cleveland V8 with a Newprocess 4 speed manual and a Dana 70 dually rear end. The truck tared at 3.5 tonnes but would scoot along ok.

Now some of the 11th hour stuff was to replace the rear wheel cylinders which entails tearing everything off to access the brake backing plate as the brake drum is held onto the hub from behind via the wheel studs (a right queer arsed arrangement). That was all good, managed to present the vehicle for registration and everything passed all good.

After packing all my worldly goods into the back of the truck I presciently packed my toolbox and jack in last...

9:30pm and 10 kilometres out of Raymond Terrace the road seemed to get really rough though it didn't look it so I pulled over to check the truck over. I walked back and checked the wheel nuts on the rear driver side, seemed ok and there was 8 of them, went round to the passenger side and counted 1 the other 7 were some here back along the highway...

I slept in the cab across the bucket seats and esky(ice cooler) till daybreak. Tightened the 1 remaining nut, and did a slow U turn across the highway and crept up to a truck layway when the last wheel stud snapped.

The wheel studs are left and right handed on the rear. A couple of phone calls to the local ford dealers in Newcastle brought no joy. So I rang the one bloke I knew would have some second hand ones(in Sydney 150Km away) and made another to my long suffering parents. Once the parts were organised I began the process of tearing down the passenger side rear hub. On the side of the road in the dirt..

Some 3 hours later the replacement wheel studs, nuts and a really nice works hamburger turned up. Hamburger devoured, Studs installed, bearings repacked with grease, drum & hub refitted and wheels remounted and correctly tensioned I was back off on the road to Brisvegas..

I stopped at nearly every truck stop and checked the tension on the wheel nuts again to make sure it was all tickety boo. Made for a slower than planned trip but I got to Brisbane mostly ok except the frankenxhaust decided to open up just passed Beenleigh.

Arrived at my new job with the truck running hillbilly "Zoomies".

I'd have taken 3 off the right front and put them on the rear and gone on.

Hey, jus sayin.

That would of been ok in theory but the front had disc brakes and the studs were much shorter. Wouldn't have been long enough for the drum and 2 wheels.

I definitely learned my lesson, always re tension your wheels a short period after having them off the car. As the kids say these days YODO (you only die once)...

OK.

I have one more story, on myself.

Think I'll save it for later.

It's a hoot.

Merry Christmas.

You were supposed to take some nuts from another wheel to go with the remaining 1. Right?

Both late comments already covered, earlier.

The wheel studs had snapped off from the hub, there was nothing to screw the nuts onto.

It happens that the studs will snap like carrots due to the opposing movement of the two rims under load if they are not tensioned correctly. This is exacerbated if the tyres on the duals, are not the same diameter.

THAT made me laugh out loud!

Would you go for a boat story? We had installed a rebuilt V8-71 Jimmy diesel deep in the vee hull of a big salmon gill netter. When we went to start it, it just wouldn't turn. The rebuilt starter motor was pulling massive amps, and the engine could be crowbarred, so it wasn't stuck. We figured it must be the starter, so we replaced it, at great expense of time and money and brutal contortions down in the bilge, which fortunately was clean (except for the fiberglass dust from the new engine mount "adjustments"). Same symptoms, no joy. After many DAYS of frantic phone calls and trips to the big GMC dealer who rebuilt the engine, one of the old salts chimes in "You know those engines came with two different flywheel tooth counts, one's got one more tooth than the other. Which one you got?" Back to the bilge and an hour on the crowbar to count the teeth. Sure enough… So we pulled the starter and got the right one. And billed the GMC dealer for the whole disaster, and got paid!

Classic...

A 372 mile holiday trip to the coast would be a boring trip without some sort of challenge in the 53 Chev for my father. This particular Saturday arvo, around 2pm and just over half way there, the Chev rolled to a stop. For a 9 year old, this was all interesting stuff. The old boy was not daunted and discovered in a few minutes that a check valve under the glass bubble of the mechanical fuel pump had collapsed. The 3 brass fingers had broken away for some unexplained reason. My father being always prepared, pulled out some brass shim and an ex-hairdresser's pair of scissors from the tool box in the boot. I guess in just over half an hour, the fuel was pumping fine and we were off. We still kept to our average trip time of 8 and a bit hours.

5 years later the Chev was traded in on his first new car in his life, an auto AP5 Valiant Regal. He was seriously unwell with lung cancer, so the old dear did the running in run. It was under 6 hours for the same 372 miles. Travelling from Kalgoorlie to Perth would never be the same again.

Years ago a co-worker called me up on the phone to explain that he had rebuilt the Holly carb on his 70 427 Chevelle and it idled as intended and had full power but it would not cruse without hesitating. I asked him if he used genuine holly parts in a skin shrink package and he said yes.

I told him to take off the front bowl and inspect the main jets carefully and look for some clear plastic covering the hole in the jet. He seemed skeptical but did as I asked and called me back wondering how in heck I could diagnose it from 100 miles away and be so accurate. I explained that I knew he was not an ignorant person but the symptoms were from the cruise circuit and that a tiny piece of clear plastic from the shrink wrap could easily go unnoticed. It blew him away but to me it was just a simple deduction.

I like your story, it reminded me of a very similar case. in High school I used to work in a gas station about 20 miles from my home area. besides pumping gas I did engine repair work, tires oil, etc. several of the local guys there knew me and my car....a 67 Cougar XR7 one guy had a nice little 68 Mustang with some upgrades , it wasn't super fast but he had fun with it. he and his buddies had been working on the car for a couple of days and couldn't figure out why the car had such a bad flat spot when you'd gas it a little. he knew I'd be at the Shell station on the weekend so he swung by to pick my brain. I could tell it hurt his pride to consult me but he and his friends were baffled. he said he had been at this for a couple of days and had "checked everything". when I asked him to start at the beginning of his story he told me about adjusting his floats in his Holly 600 double pumper. I told him to pop the hood and start it so I could hear it. he did and I listened as he revved it and allowed it to drop to idle, and ran smooth. I reached down to check the linkage on his accelerator pump...and its clearance to the pump arm, it was all fine. I looked down the throat of the carb and gave the linkage a little pull and it began to rev then stumbled hard. he got out of his car and said, "see that's exactly what I mean! he asked if had any idea what it might be. I was all too familiar with this carb, I had one on my engine! I asked him if he had any tools with him and he did...a few basic hand tools. I stood back and told him to remove the front bowl. he removed the fuel line and before he started to remove the 4 screws that hold the bowl he got a bit defensive and thought I had him wasting his time because he and his friends had already checked the needle and seat/float assy several times already and that wasn't part of the problem. when he said that I told him I wasn't concerned with those things. "then what do you think it is"?? I laughed a little and said you need to remove the bowl so you can take the little piece of gasket out thats stuck in the jet on the right side of the metering block. this startled him. I could tell he was wondering how in the world could I know if anything was there since he hadn't even removed the bowl yet. he took the bowl off and there was a little piece of cork blocking the jet. he couldn't believe it! How could you have possibly known that!!?? I explained that when I looked down the carb I was looking to see if the accelerator pump was spitting gas and I noticed just a dribble out of the right jet. Holly originally used cork gaskets but switched to black man-made type around this time. like me he was still running the cork type. I had issued with gaskets deteriorating and crumbling after months so I suspected it was just that. when he had removed the bowl the first time a little piece had fallen off into the bowl, he adjusted his float and re-assembled it without noticing the little piece. when the bowl filled with gas and he ran it the cork filled the jet and suddenly his problems began hahaha he took the cork out and it ran like a champ I didn't charge him, I got a huge kick out of the whole thing.

Dear Fredski, really great blog,many thanks.

Here is a joke that does not have a lot to do with cars:-

A friend was kind enough to drive me home a few weeks ago and we talked about the fact that many houses were getting broken into and robbed lately in our area, even with the owners in the house.

He said that the modern burglar, was not only kitted out with top modern equipment, but that they were getting more and more clever and that I should watch out.

Later that night my wife woke me and said she could hear someone moving about below.

So I picked up my shotgun, checked it was loaded and crept downstairs.

I could not hear anything at all, I crept around and found the house empty, then I remembered!!!!

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

(page down further!)

I WASN'T EVEN MARRIED!!!

haha, when I saw your name I was sure this was a gas story while driving through the mountains!

I have 2 more boring stories for this thread to hopefully entertain you on this slow day. when my little sisters were 19 one of them was dating a guy who drove a VW Rabbit. a couple of years before I also had the same year. 1975 was still a bit of an R&D year for this model. mine had the last year of front drum brakes and a carburetor. in 76 they went disk and FI.

one day my sister came to me and asked if I thought I could help her out. she explained that her new boyfriend had a problem with his car that no one could fix. she knew from all the years of me in the garage or under a car that this was right up my alley.I asked her to tell me what she knew of this mystery. her boyfriends car had a very high pitched squealing noise that could be heard from a distance. this was especially bothersome to him because his mom could actually hear him coming down their street before he hit the driveway. they had already taken it to 2 VW dealerships and been told there was nothing they could do. an independent mechanic confirmed this erroneous finding. I agreed to accompany her to his place that next weekend. I assured her I'd have it fixed in less than 20 minutes.my sister informed her boyfriend and his mom(who my sister really looked up to) that I was coming over rand had boasted at the minimal time it would take to diagnose and repair. during the week she must have checked with me 5-6 times to make sure I'dstill go and to check on my confidence.Sunday finally came and we drove over to his moms house. on the way my sister said, "you better be able to fix it!!" she had built me up to them and she felt like she was out on a limb. I scoffed, I wasn't the least bit concerned. when we got there we went through all the greetings and pleasantries and I wanted to dive right in.her boyfriend opened the hood and I saw the exact same engine I knew so well. I told him to fire it up, I wanted to hear this mystery gremlin. as he got in the car his mom turned to me and said, "Lynn says you're really a fantastic mechanic." I said, "yeah something like that". the engine started and sure enough it was making a whine. I reached in and pulled the throttle open a bit and the noise justgot louder. I motioned to her boyfriend to kill it. he turned it off and got back out. my sister, her boyfriend and his mother all said about the same time, "do you know what it is????" I shook my head up and down and said, "yep." "what is it???!! I pointed to the timing belt cover and explained that this is an overhead cam engine , the cam is turned by a belt under this cover (pointing to the cam cover) and that belt has a tensioner to hold tension on the belt and the belt is too tight. I further explained the tensioner (similar to an idler pulley) has a bearing in it and that bearing is the source of the noise. "if I re-tension it the noise will go away". my sister and her boyfriend really didn't know what to think. his mother on the other hand was thinking I was an over hyped fraud. she had her arms folded across her body and said, "the belt is too tight huh"? I told her that was correct (she didn't buy it for a second). I then instructed her son to remove the few bolts that held the cover in place. he wasn't a mechanic but after showing him he did an adequate job and I took the cover off. I pointed out the tensioner to everyone and then picked up the tools I needed to loosen the tensioner hold down bolt. in less than 2 minutes I was satisfied and I told Greg to leave the cover off and get ready to fire it back up. It was a funny sight, my sister was nervous and unsure. Greg's mom had no faith in me whatsoever. I casually looked at |Greg and told him to fire it up," lets hear it now." it started immediately and to their surprise (not mine) the mystery had been completely resolved, the whine was gone! the sense of relief on my sisters face made me laugh out loud. all his mother could say was over and over, "you need to open your own shop".

I'll write my fav story after I eat supper tonight

My wife rang me and asked me to call in at home and pick up her spare car key when I finished work. She had locked her keys in the boot and as it was close to my knock off time she would just sit in her car and wait at the shops for me to come and recue her.

I didn't go home, I just went straight to the shops kissed her and whilst doing so casually reached past her to the boot release tab on the floor and popped the boot. Yes, I was in trouble! but it was worth it

Once drove an '87 Cutlas Supreme, V6, so fast the needle disappeared at somewhere past 85 mph, I kept accelerating until the needle appeared down in the PNRD21 window, kept slowly accelerated until the needle passed through that window, and I imagine as I kept accelerating I was eventually almost going zero again.

Mentioned this one before against myself as a young hood.

Beach buggy ... 2 VW engines (one with a cracked head, another with suspect fuel pump)

We chose the engine with faulty fuel pump ... more power.
Competition day ... out in front ... and it stopped ... no fuel, not enough gravity feed.
We never thought to swap fuel pumps!

Ok, my turn... About 4 years ago, during the height of the "runaway Toyota" PR fiasco I was bringing the family home from a vacation in Arkansas in the '04 Corolla and was about 70 miles north of Nacodoches Tx. on US59 Southbound, using the cruise control but having to slow the hell way down going through every podunk town with a speed trap and I came to one and tried to slow down and it wouldn't slow down, In fact it kept going faster and faster. I started riding the brake pedal HARD trying to keep it under control as the engine was at full throttle and screaming like a freaking banshee and redlining to boot. I finally managed to get it pulled over in a likely spot and shifted into neutral and killed the engine. Brakes were dang near smoking and I thought the engine was going to come apart in the few seconds it took to shift into neutral and kill the engine. At one point I was doing 70 with the brakes fully engaged. Up to that point I had assumed everyone with the "runaway Toyota" stories was an idiot. Well they were because they didn't kill the engine or shift into Neutral, but still... Not having much in the way of tools and NO parts to work with I was stranded out in the middle of BFE East Texas and I was hearing banjoes REALLY LOUD if you guys know what I'm saying. This was Fourth of July I might add. I called the motor club, and was informed that my membership had JUST expired... but if I gave them a credit card no. they would reinstate me and send a tow truck.... which I did. And I waited..... and waited.... and waited.... Lots of sketchy looking characters offered to give us rides to god only knows where, but we didn't think that was a terribly safe idea, especially since somebody had to wait with the vehicle for the tow truck that was sure to show up eventually (which meant me) and the wife and girls would have been alone with whomever they got in the vehicle with.... FIVE HOURS on the side of the road in 100+ degree heat with nothing to eat (we were about to start looking for a place to eat lunch when this happened...) and only bottles of water to drink. FINALLY a tow truck arrived and towed us 70 miles to a dealership in Nacodoches that was surprisingly open. Turns out the nut that holds the cam for the cruise control throttle actuator had come off, and the throttle cable had wrapped itself around the shaft of the actuator. The more the actuator turned the more cable wrapped around the shaft pulling it tighter and tighter. A new nut (and loctite!) and we were ready to get back on the road....7 hours later....

good story. In Calif they did a recall at that time and just made a free small change to the gas pedal assy on the Toyota's. I never heard about a cruise related reason you also reminded me of the night my street rodding life came to a sudden stop. ( I can hear it now......"when will he shut up with the stories?!) I used to hot rod small block fords, 289, 302s. I had a 289 that I swapped in and out of several cars over the years. in its final set up it was .30 over (293) with mildly ported and port matched heads. I had taken out the big cam I used to run because it just broke too many valve train components. the .475 lift I had in it at the time was pretty street friendly and plenty of fun. it didn't have the crazy "kick in" that my old .510 lift had but it also didn't bend push-rods and snap rockers after twisting past 7000. it also took a much lighter spring to keep the valves from bouncing, hooking all this together with a 4 gear and 383 's in the back made for a little fun. so it was a lot easier to run on the wallet. one Friday night I went over to a friends house to have a few beers with him because he was quitting and moving on to a new job. a few turned into several and like an idiot I tossed back some vodka to seal my fate. when I left his place I was already past the point of any remote ability to drive safely. one of the problems you have when you have a car with power is just keeping your foot out of it on the way home I started using residential streets as my own racetrack. this was far from the first time I engaged in such idiocy but it was the last.one of my favorite things to do back then was to go around a corner and take the engine past 7K and just stare at the tach and feather the gas bouncing it off 7 and slamming 2nd gear as I was sliding and counter steering(sounds retarded I know) everything was just fine until my left engine mount protested that it had had enough abuse and it just broke. I was probably going less than 40 MPH but the engine lifted up and the solid throttle linkage was now pinned open. the engine screamed past 7 so I quickly lifted but it made no difference. I thought it was going to blow( I wish it had now) I was in the middle of bouncing around after going over the curb and couldn't reach the key so I pushed the clutch in to slow my little rocket down and because it pivots on the engine it just fell off. the clutch pedal went to the floor as I was going through a chain link fence at an elementary school. I thought my ride was almost over....then came the tree that crashed into my quarterpanel......I was stopped then! the California Hwy Patrol were nice enough to give me a lift......to jail. the following day I called a friend and sold him my engine, trans and gears so I could pay my bail and fine. I refused to own a V8 for many years after that exhibition. easily the poorest choices I ever made all in the same night today my V6 Ranger truck has no idea of my past

Had a VERY similar thing happen to my very first car. it was a '68 Pontiac LeMans with a 350 with a two barrel carb. and a 2 speed PowerGlide tranny (go and GTF outta the way!), The body was essentially a GTO with a nicer trim package. It had 27K original miles on it when my dad bought it for me from a salvage yard in '86 (previous owner got T-boned and pushed into another car and both rear quarterpanels were pushed in, but the car was otherwise in good shape. A bit of time on the frame machine and a couple gallons of bondo later....) and while the engine and tranny were definitely detuned well below GTO levels it did WANT to run with the big dogs. I had edged off the pavement to get around a busted up pallet and was having a hard time getting it over the hump to get back on the road and i was rapidly approching a railroad siding that crossed the road so I cranked the wheel over kinda hard and punched it. Apparently the dry rotted rubber in the engine mount chose that moment to part ways with the metal parts and the engine went full throttle while I tried valiantly to get it pointed back in the right direction and in MY lane before the oncoming 18 wheeler creamed me.... next thing i know I'm going sideways down the road and I feel the tire beads pull away from the rim and the rims dug into the asphalt.... I just let go of the wheel at that point, put my hands up around my head and prayed.... (I wasn't wearing the seat belt either, that was the first year that shoulder belts were available and they had never been taken out of the clips on the headliner) somehow or another, I landed right side up, in the ditch, between the road and the main railroad tracks, facing the wrong way, with four flat tires and every piece of sheet metal on the car bent. If I hadn't had all flat tires, I coulda driven it home however... ended up selling the wreck to a guy who turned it into a convertable....

its nice to know I'm not the only fool to have an out of control car take "me" for a joy ride

I really miss that car too....It was one sweet ride.... I STILL kick myself for wrecking it...

after that escapade I left the Cougars and Mustangs behind and upgraded to straight 6 BMWs

Cheers, straight 6 buddy. (Lexus IS300)

I should have mentioned......Ruined a nice 68 fastbackMustang that night

My mother's 58 Volvo did the same thing with the heat gauge. Swedish car in American desert. Between Phoenix and Tuscon, Valley of the Sun in summer. Came all the way around to "Cold" on the panel. First couple of times we panic stopped, let it cool, checked the water, all OK. Drove further each time 'till we decided to go 'till it blew up. It never did. didn't seem to hurt it. -- JHF

Why didn't you simply turn off the ignition, to both stop the car and possibly stop the engine over revving?

I have an electronic throttle on my car and this happens about once a year, but I have not let it get me into the sort of danger you had......I stop, clean off the crap and spray it with WD-40, restart, check its now ok and simply drive on for another year. My wife does the same if needed....

It is obvious to me (and surely to you too!) that turning the ignition off would have killed the engine immediately.....it was not even a software problem which could theoretically, possibly have kept the engine running with the ignition turned off, though I seriously doubt that is possible!!!

Andy, I did. That was how I got it stopped. I shifted into neutral and killed the engine and coasted to a stop.

You missed mentioning that first time around I believe!!

That was apparently the main problem with cars that "ran away" years ago, Audi, Mercedes and Toyota to name but a few.....the owners simply panicked....

" Brakes were dang near smoking and I thought the engine was going to come apart in the few seconds it took to shift into neutral and kill the engine."

Actually I did...

Why waste time shifting into neutral?

it is an Automatic transmission, if I killed the engine while in drive the car would not coast. I needed to be able to coast to the side of the road.

It will coast, but will slow the car down some, but if the side of the road is a long long way away from you..........

I will test that out the next time I am driving an automatic.

(which I dislike because they are more expensive to buy here, tend to use more fuel and appear to need more expensive maintenance than a manual. Also I own several trailers and I like to be in control and have better braking from the transmission on steep hills).

But that's just me, I know that in the US many have automatic cars and some cannot even drive with a stick shift!

also has power steering and brakes too, if engine not turning they get a lot harder to operate.

The bad boy is the brakes when no vacuum, but there is a significant reserve in the servo, on my car I can do 5 separate brakings, before the help starts to "fade" (pun intended), so brakes would not be a problem, you will brake only once, so that will not be a problem.

If you have weak hand/upper arm strength, the steering may not be easy, but otherwise its only what I used to have to turn 30 years ago or less.....the muscles are still there....its not as if you want to drive in a circle?

Whats the beefcake?

When driving an automatic you can still get dynamic braking by putting the car in a lower gear. It is only whilst in top gear that the car will coast. Modern autos usually have a separate gate to facilitate this but even old autos could be pulled back a gear and get direct drive, great for cornering!

Jim

Exactly, just as I thought, thanks for the info..

So it would be good, no worries about "suddenly" stopping as Rorschach seems to think.....(if I understood him correctly!)

It is what I would do. Just to reiterate; Turn off the ignition being very careful not to go so far as to lock the steering, pull the 'box into next gear down from top. The car will coast in top gear but it will keep the engine turning and therefore the power steering and brakes if you come down a gear. Pull over as soon as possible and put on hazard flashers as you do so.

This reminds me of another story.

Jim

I was driving my 57 Renault Fregate up a slight rise ( fortunately ) when I felt a sort of a bump and the back left corner sagged. When I looked around I saw a wheel going past my car. The Fregate had live rear axles and the nut had come off and so the hub> brake drum> wheel came off as well. I braked. Nothing!... All the fluid went to the wheel cylinder with least resistance, the one without a drum. It was the days before dual circuit braking systems. Rather stupidly I tried the handbrake before I realized that it too wouldn't work without a drum. No Wurries mate ...I'll just turn off the ignition... Nothing! because of course it had a dif.

I did mange to stop it by pulling onto the soft shoulder dodging around obstacles as I did so. Walked down the road, found the nut, put the wheel back on, bit of fencing wire for a cotter pin and off again.

Jim

That is not a problem when turning off the ignition, you will not lock the steering AS LONG AS YOU DO NOT REMOVE THE KEY, on all cars that I have driven over the last 40 years or so.

Assuming that the ignition lock is in a proper working order of course. If it was not, then its a "self-made" problem.

Nope, if the key is in the off position the steering locks. at least cars in the states do. but you can put the key in the accessory position and maintain steering.

Wow, that is dangerous!!!!

It appears that we in Europe have some good ideas to do with cars......

it was done that way as a theft preventative. But just means they bust your steering column to steal it now.

That is not true in any cars that I have driven personally in both the US and Europe, that is, as long as you don't remove the key, the lock does not "lock".......it would be far too dangerous if it did!

You ought to try it on your own car, assuming that it has a correctly functioning steering lock.

The problem of them not being made strong enough to prevent thieves, is simply a further weakness caused by cheap manufacturing combined with bad design and materials.....

If you are completely certain of your facts, could you be so kind as to post the make, model and year of any car that with a properly working steering column lock that locks the steering when the key is turned to the Engine OFF position , (after driving of course) but before it is removed from the lock.

I am sure there will be at least one somewhere if you look hard enough!!

Now I am waiting for someone to tell me how the features in my Crossfire work.

Done some research on both questions.

First, door locking;-

1974 AMC (RAMBLER ) MATADOR KDK Australian assembled

Push down lock, push door shut;- not locked... Push down lock, hold up handle, push door shut;- Locked

1978 Ford Escort. English design, Australian built.

Push down lock, push door shut;- Locked

1989 Mitsubishi FK417 Truck and 1991 Mitsubishi Magna

Push down lock, push door shut;- not locked... Push down lock, hold up handle, push door shut;- locked

2005 Mitsubishi 380 ( Diamantina ) Australian built.

Push down lock, electronic central locking kicks in and all doors lock, push door shut;- locked

Turn key to off without removing, all cars EXCEPT the Matador DIDN'T lock the wheel. As the last time I tried this ( with the first car I had that locked the steering, a Renault Fregate ) the steering did lock I can be for given for thinking they all still did this.

Jim

Many thanks for taking such time and trouble for me, really, really great.

It would appear that the older the car, the more likely to lock without holding a button or handle.... But my 1970 Sunbeam Rapier would NOT lock without holding the outside button. Then I had a string of Japanese cars that also would not lock, nor did a 1980 BMW or a 1973 Volvo.

I personally have never had a car with steering lock that could lock the steering with the key still in, nor have a driven one for a friend of mine who I deliver and pick up cars for....but they are mostly late model ones....I haven't tried it with cars without "normal" keys though....that could turn the tables!!

It is of course possible that some modern cars will lock with the key still inserted, BUT ONLY IF THE WHEELS ARE STILL OR THE HANDBRAKE IS APPLIED OR BOTH!!! Modern cars are more than clever enough!! I have not tested for that....

Many thanks again.

Muscle memory?

The fastest method in a panic situation is the method that comes quickest to the individual, not the fastest to perform in an ideal situation.

I have a non-mechanical story. Back in the 60s I was driving a wholly (as in rusty) 49 chevy. I was getting some gas at the local fillup and went inside probably to vend myself a 3 muskateers bar. The good old town drunk whom the gas station owner hired from time to time was pumping gas that day. Coming out of the station I notice the gallon guage on the pump reads 18 gallons and the old guy is standing there whistling to himself looking at the sunset and pumping away. I knew the tank would't hold that much so I ran over and find that he'd stuck the pump spout through a rust hole in the fender and is filling my trunk with gas. That was a hairy cleanup job.

I consider this a funny story about car repairs.

I was out on the weekend going through the town where I was going to high school and noticed a guy (high school student) working under a car along the "One Way" which ran on the south side of the county courthouse. He had dropped the drive shaft down under the bottom of the car and was working on the tranny. It was a manual transmission with a high performance shifter. I didn't think too much about it at the time. I just figured he had been experiencing some difficulties with his hot rod. I went by later and all I could see was the driveshaft under the car and the car's owner (a recent graduate of the same high school and not well liked I might add) stomping around furiously. It turns out that some people have no scruples or fear. The guy I saw earlier was stealling the transmission right in front of many people and the town police had even witnessed him working on the car. The police station is in the same city block. What some guys will do for an up-grade!

OK,

This falls under the palm slap stupid, shoulda, but didn't.

I lived in AZ where it's totally flat for 25 years, then moved back to the farm in Ar. House is built on the side of a hill, with a flat area carved out of the hill. Two story garage, built on the hillside, large turnaround/parking area in front of that, to the side of the house.

'78 Chevy manual transmission 4x4. I drive up the hill, park in front of the garage to tune up/tinker with the engine. It's parked on flat ground so I put it in neutral, start it up and begin to tinker. I've been there for over a 1/2, engine running, when it starts to sprinkle. I hop off the tire, walk in the house to get a jacket. As I'm walking back outside, across the "flat" parking area I catch a glimpse of the headlights, grill and bumper disappearing over the side of the hill, backwards.

On it's way down, it was guided by two trees that kept in going backwards until it hit another tree about 40 feet down the hillside. Both front fenders, the camper top, tail gate and bumper were destroyed.

I called a wrecker out from town and he pulled me back up the hill. I had to ride in it and steer it between the trees on the way up.

There may have been alcohol involved, but I never admitted it.

And, yes the parking brake worked just fine, when I used it.

Middle 60's. My mother had moved from Calif to Hot Springs, ARK. My brother and I were hauling the last of her stuff in about a "53 Stupidbaker. They always had trouble with one part in the trans and between us and some friends we had about a half dozen Studee's, so we kept a spare re-built trans. We tied it to the trailer tongue "just in case". The old one puked outside Carlsbad, N.M. about 5:30 AM on Sunday. We switched the trans, realized we had no grease, strained the grease from the old trans through a rag. As we were finishing a cop pulled up and asked if we were OK. Said "Yea, just blew the trans, but ready to go, now." (He had the look like he was going to make a killing in finders fee from the local garage) He asked "What do you mean your OK. I thought you said you had a blown transmission". When we told him we had a spare and had already changed it, he got in his car and drove off without saying a word. -- JHF

I enjoyed this little thread my favorite little story was the guys wife who locked the keys in the trunk, when he came to the rescue with an additional key he just reached into the passenger compartment and pulled the release lever to open it

Not dissimilar to what a really great ex-girlfriend of mine did, she pushed the inside car door button down and locked me out of my car, with the keys in the ignition, she thought she had me!!

I walked up to the door, which was only caught on the first latch, pushed the door closed, pressed the outside button and opened the door.

It had a safety feature, if a door was locked and it half closed accidentally, as long as you did NOT press the outside button, just fully closing the door would unlock it.

Also, you could depress the inner button, press and hold pressed the outer button, close the door and it would be locked....

t really gave her a jolt as I jumped in, she thought she was SAFE!!!!

FYI. cars in the US don't have that feature.

Its on many European cars and it can save your bacon!

By the way, if the door is locked by say pressing the inside door button, then the door is simply slammed, the button simply pops up again, or the equivalent, as not all cars have buttons nowadays on the inside.

You need to depress the outside door button and hold it activated to allow the door to stay locked.

I cannot promise that they all do it, but many, if not all.....

A lot of older cars did/do. You actually had to hold the button in or hold the paddle out/up in order for the door to lock when you shut it. This kept one from accidentally locking the keys in. You didn't shut AND lock unless it was intentional.

Are you in the USA, if yes, tell Rorschach!!! He is an unbeliever!!!!!

the operative phrase is "older cars, hasn"t been that way since at least the 60's.

Your statement as written, was false according to others.

Easily done when not thinking clearly/logically, done it myself!!

Remember, we are all under the microscope on CR4 for the veracity of our statements.

Others of your countrymen here have noted that certain car doors react in the same manner as many here in Europe, but I personally could never be 100% sure of either way (I live here!)......which is why I am happy to have their support in this matter (either way!).

Your comments are always strange....what has this to do with believing?

Hard facts are the only way to go.

If you feel that I am trying to prove you wrong, you have it 180° wrong. Facts may prove you wrong, not I!!!

Is this blog getting uncomfortable for some reason?????

I would simply like to know if there is a substantial difference between US and European cars as you say there is.

I for one have never noticed a difference in any of the cars I rented while working in the USA - Fords, Chevies various Japanese models, and some others, to our cars here, but I was not "looking" for differences either at the time. Memory alone is not to be trusted.....

Andy, I can assure you that none of the five toyotas I have owned since 1998. nor the chevys, jeeps, or nissans I owned prior to that exhibited that behavior, in fact more than once I have accidentally locked myself out of the vehicle in just such a manner. Yes, there are differences between vehicles made for the european market and for the north american one. They tend to be subtle, but they exist. One change that came from europe that I am grateful for is the design of power window controls. in the US, they used to be simple rocker switches, on more than one occasion a kid got his head stuck in the window and killed himself because he was standing on the "up" side of the switch. now they are recessed and you have to hook your finger and pull up to raise the window, a feature stolen from the european design. Deisels (with the exception of european imports (VW and Mercedes) and heavy duty trucks.) are not to be found because of differences in the details of environmental laws that make it hard for diesels to meet the law in an economical manner, AND Diesel fuel is much more expensive since the new low sulfur mandate was implemented as well, so most manufacturers don't bother trying.

My buddy's 2003 Infiniti G20....

I can keep going...

Try an 84 Malibu

Oh, and my 97 civic...just checked

This is about a mean trick I played on an unsuspecting motorist.

I was driving my 70 Subaru around my brotherinlaws' farm when I went through a dry creek bed and took off both Lukey mufflers giving me two straight through exhaust pipes. On the way back to the house we came over a rise and saw someone broken down on the side of the road with their head under the bonnet. My brotherinlaw quickly said "turn it off" so I did. He suggested we just coast down the hill and re ignite just as we come along side. I did better than that. I knew it would spin at 6000 at 30mph in first gear so I braked until we were at that speed and rammed into first and dropped the clutch then a second later turned on the ignition, just as we were alongside the stricken motorist. The sound was deafening, a loud bang followed by a continuing roar. He jumped hitting his head on the bonnet, the person next to him threw their drink up In the air. The reaction was worth it!! I'm still laughing now.

That explains your logon name perfectly!!

your story reminds me of many pranks I pulled in my earlier days...usually involving a bus stop, a rainy day, and my old Chev pick-up truck I drove in High school, but since I'm a saint these days I wont expand any further on my devious past

I've owned a considerable number of vehicles in my time. Every car I've owned has a war story or three. When I was younger I acquired a 58 Split screen barn door VW Kombi. I'd only owned it a fortnight and I managed to run the bearings which entailed a tow back home. After a period of time a 1600 twinport motor was found to replace the 1300cc motor which gave it a much needed lift in performance. This of course meant upgrading from 6 volt to 12 Volt electrics no biggy there.

This story involves the afore mentioned 58 Kombi, I was involved with a social group of around 20 or so people, not everyone drove(back then). We had gone to a social event and I had a few people on board. We were on our way back from Penrith on the Great Western Highway with me being tail end Charlie as usual. After a sprint at 80kmh (legal limit)we came across a set of traffic lights which were red. Deftly applying the brakes the pedal began to get mushy, and the steering wheel wrenched to the left. Ok I thought this is not good, time to change lanes. The road was 3 lanes wide and I was in convoy behind 3 other cars that were stopping faster than me. I pumped the brakes for what it was worth and reefed on the handbrake. Announcing that I had run out of brakes instantly produced mute silence from my previously gregarious passengers. Much double shuffling brought me down to a respectable walking pace approaching the intersection which conveniently turned green as I crossed the line.

I pulled over in a service station and dove under the front to survey the situation. lots of brake fluid on the right hand front wheel. Grabbed my tool box from under the back seat, pulled out some tools and 2 brake light switches. I disconnected the two front brake lines and replaced them with the switches. The early VW's had a single brake circuit and the brake switches were direct pressure switches. Quick top up and bleed of the rear brakes and we were away.

I drove it like that for a month, then converted the front end to disc brakes which also solved my wandering steering issue..

Wish I still had that Kombi, worth a minor Somali pirates ransom now, but I traded it in for another later model Kombi.

As for my passengers, they all got motivated to get their drivers licences and their own cars for some reason