I am so tired of car stuff right now. You have no idea. A brief update:
- Rapidly approaching the two month mark since the accident, I am still fighting with this Safeway Insurance about the value of the Galant. Despite being entitled to actual replacement value for the car if they deem it totaled, they continue to low ball in their attempt to cheat me. If it’s less expensive to replace the vehicle, then cut me a damn check for an amount which allows me to actually replace it. That means a 100% mechanically and electrically sound Galant Vr4. Not someone’s salvage title parts car. Not something with lifter tick or phantom knock. Not even something with sketchy synchros in the transmission. I understand that the $1000 it’s probably going to cost me to get it transported across the country will be my responsibility, but this less-than-$2000 stuff is insulting, amateur hour bullshit.
- Finally picked up something to get me to and from work (since it could be next year before this asinine insurance carrier finally does something right). A 1986 Volvo 240 Wagon. It’s cool. Mods are cheap. Insurance is cheap. Registration is cheap.
- Got the built engine out of the Talon.
- Got the stock engine out of Kim’s Eclipse.
- Got the stock engine out of Kim’s Eclipse into the Talon. It lives!
- Got the built engine out of the Talon into Kim’s Eclipse. Some idiot who went round and round with me about how the Crower cams I sold him weren’t pretty enough feels generous enough to let me buy the stock cams from him at a discount. In good faith, I pay him an extra 25% (a total of $40). Tonight, after more than ten hours trouble shooting why the engine won’t fire, it is discovered that the stock cams he sold me are not a matching set. I have no idea where that “intake” cam came from, but unburnt fuel was coming from the throttle body and the engine was drawing air in from the header. Oh yeah. It was making a lovely 30psi compression across the board. (PS – For the Neon guys, the markings on the fail cam do not match any documented by either the Neons.org nor the Allpar search utility. Go fish.)
- Vanessa and I got the house we wanted. The only downside is that we’re pretty much moving this weekend and I still have a non-running Galant (thanks to this worthless carrier) and a non-running Eclipse in my completely thrashed garage.
I am so worn out right now. Part of me wants to just sell all the cars and buy a Segway. Having to deal with cheats and other such undesirables just takes all the fun out of what used to be one of my greatest joys. I’ve always felt that, the longer you have to wait for Karma to come back around, the greater it will be – good or bad. Well, I’ve been waiting a good while for something good to happen car-wise. Guess I shouldn’t look the gift horse (Volvo) in the mouth, but it would sure be nice to have all the cars running and to finally wash my hands of this insurance deal.
Next post should be from the new house! Wo0t!
