Over the last week I’ve been getting things together to tow the Volvo.  I finally found my tow rope, which is 30 feet of static-line rope with steel caribeners on each end.  The 30 feet double back and forth over three circuits, so it’s about 10 feet long with 6 bands of rope between the ‘beners to distribute the load.  It is important to make sure the ropes are even tensioned and not laying on top of each other at the ‘beners.

I’ve been bumming over the red Volvo all winter, I’ve been looking on Craigslist for the last two months for a replacement Volvo, but we just don’t have the money, even for a $500 car.  Stephanie called Good News Garage, the dead car fixers for low-income car needs.  I was resigned to junk it.

I decided to try one more time, so I called the nearest car repair place, George at NorthEast Service Center, right across the Cottage street bridge.  The plan was to leave it there and call the Good News people if George confirmed it a head gasket.  This morning I took my radio gear out of it, cleaned out all the garbage. I found the 1 Pint water jug we got for Errol, a still-good Clif Bar and my Mt. Washington coffee mug under the passenger’s seat.  Once I got it all cleaned up I hooked it to the Pathfinder and Steph drove it out onto the street, pulling the Volvo backwards out of the driveway.  Once on the street, we reversed the Pathfinder’s position and started off down the street.  We tested the Volvo’s brakes on the level surface just to make sure it could stop the Pathfinder too.

It all worked, so we went off down the hill.  Steph saw a gap in traffic and so we barreled across the bridge and into N.E. Service Ctr.  I talked to George about it and he had time to look at it today.

I took Olivia and Errol in the Pathfinder to the bank and then Rite Aid, then to Hall’s.  I saw that they had the Volvo in the shop and decided to circle back and show them the vertical hood gag.  I walked in and the guy said he got it running!  I was stunned!  Oh, yeah, and he started it right up!  Just like normal.  He said it was flooded, and he charged the battery up enough to throw an over-volt code, and spun the motor until it went.  I went into the office and their person was on the phone to Stephanie telling her the news.

I put the kids into the Volvo and took it west onto the highway to test it out.  The brake rotors are all rusty, and so I wanted to wear those down and test the brakes.  Then I went to Hay’s and put air in the tires, then headed East for another test.  I got home and read the engine codes. Just, wow.