Vroom - Putt - Putt - Vroom

April 05, 2006[Car] - Things Coming Back Together

Well, I put the car back together last night.  It took a little longer than I expected becuase I wanted to make sure every tube was back in place and secure and the electical stuff I had to disconnect was reconnected properly.  I cleaned off the surfaces where the EGR Valve sits, and replaced the gasket, cleaned out the valve, and attached the new tubes.  Once everything was back together, I cranked her up (after opening the garage door, of course).  It took her a second to adjust it seemed, and then she settled into a very comfortable idle.  I let her go for a couple minutes, and then took a quick trip around the neighborhood to make sure nothing was going to explode.  It actually runs smoother now than the day I got it.  In the past, it was really rough and spastic under about 10mph... I had to be very strategic with the clutch just to keep it alive.  Last night, I was able to putt along at about  1 or 2 mph without so much as a burp.  I kept expecting a surge or for it to die like it usually does, but it didn't do either.  I'm so happy!

And, of course, I picked up new oil filters at Advanced Auto Parts when I was there, so that's the next job.  Probably this weekend, with the lawn, and with the cleaning, and with the laundry, and with the home work, and....