Love this thread by the way! Fun stuff. I laughed to the point of tears
reading the tale of the Buick/Olds diesel! You should write a book on that one!
Mine would have to be my first car: a 1971 Toyota Corolla 1200cc. As
Dickens might have said if he were a 16 year old with his first car, it was the
best of cars, it was the worst of cars. No doubt its problems were brought
about by my own stupidity, abuse, and lack of proper maintenance at the tender
age of 16 to 18 years old. It became a common sight in the neighborhood to see
me trying to push start it by myself each morning. Kept the neighbors amused
though.
The story of its engine's demise would have to be the highlight though
(partially because it includes the link to my long standing TR addiction). I
was 19 years old and had just finished my freshman year of college. My
girlfriend (now my wife of 25 years) was driving ahead of me in her 1973 TR6
helping me move from my dorm back home to my dad's house for the summer. The
poor little Toyota had been rattling and knocking for some time in the lower
end of the engine (people used to tell me "I didn't know Toyota made a
diesel..."). So there we are on the highway at about 80 mph with my poor
little Toyota doing its best to keep up with that TR6 driven by my speed demon
girlfriend/wife when the Toyota engine finally decided it had taken enough of
my abuse. It exploded in a dramatic cloud of smoke, oil, and various engine
parts. It looked like a bomb went off. After probably soiling myself, I
coasted to the side of the highway which was a challenge in itself as I
couldn't see anything through the windshield due to the oil coating it and the
dark cloud of smoke. My girlfiend pulled over about 100 yards ahead in the
TR6 because she saw the explosion in her rearview mirror where my car had been.
I jumped out and popped the hood and was enveloped in a cloud of smoke and
what appeared to be flames. So, while I'm hopping around like mad trying to
beat out the flames, about 4 cars pull off to the side to offer help... to HER
in the TR6! She's just standing there next to her TR6 looking beautiful and
concerned. So all these cars are stopping to see if SHE needs help.
Meanwhile, I'm back there fighting for my poor little car's life while it is
quickly becoming enveloped in a cloud of smoke and flame to rival Mt Saint
Helens! She still loves to tell that story....
I wish I could say that was the end of the sorry little car, but I foolishly
bought a used engine to put in it and managed to get another year or so of
miserable experiences out of it.
-Greg H
Denton, TX
1976 TR6
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