2013-12-07 — Keith Thelen
Ay, there’s the shot I was looking for last time.
A couple of weeks ago, my 1-ton Suburban (that’s right, 1-ton – it’s an ex-railroad rig that was upfitted when new, and even sported railgear in its younger days) started showing signs of impending doom. I watched in horror as the oil pressure dropped to zero and stayed there for a good 3-5 seconds, followed by the awful sort of noise that usually heralds the collapsing of a lifter. The pressure did return, and the noise went away after several more tense moments – but my faith in its mill had been irreparably shaken.
With winter upon us, I needed it to be ready for anything at a moment’s notice, and I can’t quite consider it ‘ready for anything’ if I have to live in fear of blowing it up. And besides, what fun would it be to install a snowplow made out of car doors (finally, a solution to the high cost of plow equipment!) on a truck that can’t be trusted to stay running?
So I decided that, at 280,000 miles, this motor had fulfilled its duty. I began shopping for a replacement. It took a while, but I finally found one that was reasonably priced and had lowish miles.
With more snow on the way this coming week, I decided not to waste any time getting to the swap. So I picked the motor up Friday evening, brought the truck in to begin melting last night, and started pulling the old motor this afternoon. It was just about ready to come out when I quit for the day just a short while ago.
The garage is heated by a torpedo heater, in which I run regular diesel fuel. It’s a thirsty little contraption which can easily drink 4 gallons in a 12-hour period, keeping the garage in the mid-60s while the temps outside are well below zero. As a result, I have to keep plenty of diesel on hand – and today I was down to my last few gallons.
To prepare for tomorrow, I loaded those empty diesel cans into the trunk of the faux Touring Sedan, and started it so it could warm up. But unlike last time, I had the camera in hand. The result is as you’d expect.
This trivial follow-up was posted at the inconspicuous hour of midnight CST, on a Saturday night/Sunday morning. If this post draws more than a half-dozen comments, I’ll be amazed!
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