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Thread ID: 97161	2009-02-06 01:16:00	What I Did On My Little Vacation:	SurferJoe46 (51)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
745389	2009-02-06 01:16:00	Let's see if this works - it's a c/p from another site that I attend and it's mostly a mechanical-autos-4WD site so there's some techno-stuff here you can iggy if you want: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The trip was basically without many incidents, but one in particular was kinda nerve-wracking . It happened in the worst possible place - on a freeway on ramp at night with no shoulder to park upon to get out of the way . Did I mention it was dark? It was . When I had gotten to/near Holbrook Arizona (5,150 feet/1,570 meters altitude) on the second day - and even a few times b4 I got there - I felt a little "hiccup" in the engine that made my mind wander to things that are really arcane and unrelated . It just didn't make any sense at all like that . Maybe it was bad or strange fuel or maybe a dirty MAF or a bad injector or what? OK . . fast forward a few hundred miles and I have had a few more incidences with an occasional burp - but all-in-all the fuel mileage was good (22+) and the power was good and I didn't hear any pinging and knocking . At one point I got 25 . 2MPG while climbing to Flagstaff (8,000 feet/2,440 meters altitude) and then going to Sedona (4,300 feet/1,310 m altitude) - admittedly not a too-harsh workout - but still running at road speed of 75+ (120+ km/h) and that is the speed limit in Arizona . Then in Quartzsite, AZ . , (865 feet/264 meters altitude) on the final home-tank fill up of fuel, I got gas at Flying-J again and after hitting the exit from the station, it began backfiring and missing very badly . I decided to not try to get on the I-10W Freeway at that point and pulled over 'way before the on ramp merged into full-speed vehicles . I wasn't stopped more than a few moments and a guy in a tow-truck uniform pulled over and he helped me test for the problem, with my wife cranking and trying to start the engine . He was fantastic with help and lights as we looked at and for the obvious problems, but there weren't any . I wish I had gotten his name! Sorry, whoever you are! It banged and missed and farted flames out the exhaust so bad I expected the mono-cat to puke out . I even blew out a flange gasket! We cranked it with the coil B+ un-powered and the cranking rhythm sounded OK, so I figgered it wasn't a mechanical failure like a hole in a piston or a flat cam or a tossed rocker - all sorts of things were now relegated to non-existence at that point . What a relief! Maybe bad gas? Nah! That was TOO quick to act that way - what with 30-seconds running after the last fuel-up . I was manually holding the idle up with the throttle linkage and I reached under the distributor with my free hand to see if that Bosch-connex was loose again, it wasn't, but I got bit by high voltage from #1 plug wire jumping outta the cap tower . Hmmmmm! I stopped the engine and pulled on the plug boot gently and it broke the boot and also ripped the end off the wire . No problem! I've got repair parts for just that sorta thing and I replaced the Raj clip and the boot and re-started . Still I had some electricity jumping outta the #1 cylinder cap tower! But it ran a little better . Pulled the wire-boot and this time went all the way down to the plug and there it was! The center electrode porcelain was dropped down over the center electrode and masking the spark! No wonder it ran so badly - no fire getting to the fuel . I figured I only had that one bad plug to work with and no spares or an open parts house at 10PM, so I took some jeweler's diagonals and busted the rest of the center porcelain off the center electrode and drove all the way home with just the unfortunate problem that I could not use more than about 2/3rds throttle but I could pretty much hold any speed I could attain . I got my BEST mileage then too! 27 . 9 MPG! Shows what a soft foot can do for economy! OK - now onto the part I want to ask: Has anyone had an NGK drop the center porcelain down over the air gap? I've seen Champions and N/Ds and Atlas do that in years past - but in these plugs? The trip was good - no snow on the roads and the weather was fantastic! We went to: Ehrenberg (just over the California/Arizona border and on the Colorado River) Goodyear (the city; not the blimp) Phoenix ALMOST - to Tucson! (Long story! Wimmen + maps = Tuscon even when you don't want to go there . Added about 120 extra miles and two hours to the itinerary - including the spontaneous training session on :"Map Reading For Wimmen-1A") . Chandler Mesa Rye Payson (a favorite place of mine) Heber Snowflake (one of our designated areas to go) Taylor (Stayed at the Silver Creek Motel GREAT!) Show Low (another designated "hot-spot" on our trip) Back to Snowflake Holbrook (the inspiration for the movie "Cars") Joseph City (either from Pince-Nez Indian Chief Joseph or Joseph Smith, a Mormon) Winslow (didn't see no "girl, My Lord, lookin' back at me" either!) Saw Geronimo's Petrified Tree (Didn't bother seeing the crater from the asteroid - $15/per person - what a rip-off!) Winona Flagstaff Don't eat at the Sizzler in Flagstaff - the steak was dry like it was on the counter overnight before cooking and my wife's shrimp with pasta had absolutely NO flavor at all except for the taste of an old refrigerator . I have sent them a letter already . Now - here's where it got interesting - we wanted to go STRAIGHT down 89A toward Wickenberg, so we thought! Let me say this - Highway 89A is beautiful, but you need a full week to really see and appreciate it better than a drive thru . It's l-o-n-g and twisty and up-n-down a lot with fantastic views on all sides, even over your head . There is no straight on 89A that I could find unless oit was off the road - straight down an embankment . :eek: Sedona was a place to see! Wow! All those D . I . N . K . s (Dual-Income-No-Kids) people! Yuppie-ville++ Stayed on the 89A as it went in the general direction that we wanted to go . Caught the 260A in Bridgeport and found out what AZ-DOT is doing in the desert . They are building traffic circles . Yup! Traffic circles every 1/3rd mile or so to slow you down . In the middle of the desert! This is wide-open desert here and traffic does NOT LIKE to be slowed down to navigate a dumb traffic circle . The chatter on the CB about it was almost deafening . My wife heard some new words from the truckers to add to her library -NOT! :annoyed: I took it all in - traffic circles and all - swallowed my pride and anger - and then turned up to Jerome . Now - - - you gotta believe me here - - - Jerome is not like any place in the whole US - - - anywhere! I'm not gonna describe it as I think this is a hands/eyes-on experience for each and every person to see and feel and drive on their own! BTW: The Jerome Police drive Kawasaki and Yamaha 650-700cc cafe-racers to control traffic! We got to Prescott after the Prescott Valley - pretty in the darkening sunlight . More yuppies, though . Stayed on the US-89W now toward Kirkland Junction and on down to Congress and Wickenberg . We really wanted to see Wickenberg in the daylight, but the sun was 'way down by then so we just ate at a Subway Sandwich shop and got back onto the 60A-W to get to the I-10 again . This is the Gospel truth - 60A-West is straight . It's s-o-o-o-o straight that you look for something to drive around and I found myself changing lanes just to go around the dotted yellow center lines for diversion for what seemed like hours and hours and hours . I was driving right at Venus (I think) and it went down and the sky was totally dark . Just for fun and to scare the bgs out of my wife - I turned off the headlights a few times - just for fun mind ya! She hit me . Wenden - Salome - Harcuver -Vicksberg Junction - Brenda - all are a blur to me now . Merged onto the I-10W and headed toward Quartzsite where all Hell broke loose with the #1 spark plug! Funny thing - after Ehrenberg, we had a guy in a red something-or-other that was really F-A-S-T as he passed us after the California Ag/Inspection station and then he jams on the brakes, hits his hi-beams, swerves across my lane and all the others from the far left lane and slide-stops on the right shoulder of the freeway . I figgered he's kinda strange - but at least he's off the road - so ------- ------about 5 or 6-miles further down I-10W, he passes us by about 40 mph/65 kp/h more that I was doing, high beams still on . I was running 70+ (OK, a little less than 75 mph/121 kp/h anyway) and he's outta-sight in a moment or two . Just another hill or a mile or so away and we see all these red-blue lights . He's BUSTED! Gads! Those CHiPs come out from under the sagebrush I think! After that last fuel in Quartzsite, we never stopped again until home, about 185 miles/300 km and somewhat more than 1/2 tank (8 gallons/30 . 3 liters) of fuel burned and I was running as hard as I could with that #1 plug not wanting heavy throttle but could be build up slowly to whatever speed I wanted . That was 23 . 125 MPG! Some pictures: . ggpht . com/_Zba6mXGkeuA/SYpoRo0YoDI/AAAAAAAABgk/GGcBOVN3NKU/s512/100_4596 . JPG" target="_blank">lh5 . ggpht . com Here's my wife, Rosanna at the first rest-stop after going past Ehrenberg AZ . . ggpht . com/_Zba6mXGkeuA/SYpoVRo7VJI/AAAAAAAABg4/RtVvT7A_KJs/s640/100_4621 . JPG" target="_blank">lh3 . ggpht . com Somehow Geranamo's tree got all hard and fell over, breaking into several pieces . Here you can see her raising her hand in an "I swear I didn't do it" gesture . . ggpht . com/_Zba6mXGkeuA/SYpoTlHMdMI/AAAAAAAABgw/C8buHsK-dBs/s640/100_4607 . JPG" target="_blank">lh5 . ggpht . com The ONLY snow we actually saw on the whole trip . I took a brand-new set of heavy tire chains too! I didn't even consider using them at all . . ggpht . com/_Zba6mXGkeuA/SYpqUVdIDXI/AAAAAAAABhs/JyWAEI_BJRI/s640/100_4610 . JPG" target="_blank">lh4 . ggpht . com OK . That's me . . ggpht . com/_Zba6mXGkeuA/SYpqV-Pjy4I/AAAAAAAABh0/UWJ_pGzXKJg/s640/100_4612 . JPG" target="_blank">lh5 . ggpht . com It was C-L-O-S-E-D and I needed it so bad too! I left some yellow snow with my initials in it . All-in-all the trip was a little over 1,500 miles/2414 . 02 km, in 2 . 5 days at speeds of 75 mph/121 km/h and I used about 70 gallons/265 liters of gasoline/petrol . Oh - and one spark plug . Fuel cost me about $135 . 00USD/$262 . 00 NZD .	SurferJoe46 (51)
745390	2009-02-06 01:20:00	A bit short on detail. Billy, I think was the best run for buck.	Cicero (40)
745391	2009-02-06 01:23:00	Ok, I confess. I just jumped right down to the pictures. :p	Jen (38)
745392	2009-02-06 02:08:00	A bit short on detail . Billy, I think was the best run for buck . Dang! I shouldda warned you that it had more than 20-words . Do you want any help with the B-I-G words too?:banana {Ya gives 'em books fer learnin' and they color in the pictures and eat the covers . Sheesh!}	SurferJoe46 (51)
745393	2009-02-06 02:30:00	Dang! I shouldda warned you that it had more than 20-words . Do you want any help with the B-I-G words too?:banana {Ya gives 'em books fer learnin' and they color in the pictures and eat the covers . Sheesh!} I don't think it's the volume of words that say it's worth reading,it's how they are put together . And Mark Twain you aint .	Cicero (40)
745394	2009-02-06 02:58:00	I don't think it's the volume of words that say it's worth reading,it's how they are put together. And Mark Twain you aint. Give him a break Cic, I found it very interesting. Let's see what you can do when you come back from your trip.	Safari (3993)
745395	2009-02-06 03:11:00	Give him a break Cic, I found it very interesting. Let's see what you can do when you come back from your trip. Quite right Saf,I apologise and withdraw.	Cicero (40)
745396	2009-02-06 03:16:00	Quite right Saf,I apologise and withdraw . No offense/offence noted . Let's vow to ONLY poke each other with soft-pointed sticks . OK? Stick around (I didn't say that, did I?) and lead me a merry one if you like . I always enjoy some good-natured ribbing . :lol:	SurferJoe46 (51)
745397	2009-02-06 03:20:00	Found it very interesting Joe. A long way in 2.5 days though. You sorta remind me of the movie Vanishing Point. :)	Trev (427)
745398	2009-02-06 03:28:00	No offence/offence noted . Let's vow to ONLY poke each other with soft-pointed sticks . OK? Stick around (I didn't say that, did I?) and lead me a merry one if you like . I always enjoy some good-natured ribbing . :lol: Lots on here don't understand joshing,so you may get lots of sympathy readers . My mate Saf is a serious chap,but of the highest calibre .	Cicero (40)
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