Skip to main content

A while back I hadn't driven the speedster for two weeks because of health issues (bad) and family commitments (good) so before I got withdrawal symptoms I took it out for a ride late on a Sunday afternoon. I only had a few hours because I wanted to take my wife out for dinner because she had been babysitting three sick grandchildren (all boy animals under  ten) all week.

I filled with fuel and went to one of my favorite places  - Harriman State Park in New York State. It has a five mile twisty mountain road with parking above. I parked and after 1/2 hour it started to get dark and every one started to leave. I started the tub and after 50 feet it died. I started it again and same thing. On the third try nothing ! My first thought was its not getting fuel- possibly bad fuel pump ? I was stranded on a slight incline so I disconnected the line from the tank to the pump and fuel came pouring out. I reattached it and disconnected the line from the pump to the carbs and cranked over the engine-no fuel came out! Thanks to Carl Berry (RIP) and his experience with a broken pump-he had to be flat bedded into Carlisle a few  years ago I carry a spare pump.Also thanks to Jack Crosby and Gordon Nichols lists I carry a lot of tools and spare parts. The pump is easily accessible and I had it off quickly.It was getting dark and I couldn't see the push rod-my fear was that something was broken down below. I cranked the engine and the rod came up out of the block enough to pull out. Holding a flashlight  in one hand I got the new rod and pump in place with the other. Because I didn't have my most used tool - a magnet on an extension I was afraid that I would lose a nut but it worked out o k. The car started up immediately and I took off quickly because they lock the gate  to this road at night and when I got there  one gate was already closed. I made it home in time to take my wife out.

Now here is the coincidence-earlier this year at the same time I had parked in the same spot and the car had died because of a shorted out reverse switch on the transmission-I got home by removing the backup bulb-no fuse. End of story I hope.

Joel

Original Post

Replies sorted oldest to newest

So where can I get a copy of these "tools to carry" and "spares to have aboard" lists please.

 

Well done on the fix.  Did you find out what was wrong with the pump?  Odd for it to fail at the halt.  If it is an internal component failure, it usually happens on the move.

 

But then again, cooling and contraction does odd things..............

That (restricted) list was a result of a discussion on here a few years back.  Everyone is always aghast at how much stuff is on the list, but it's basically the same list on every sports car forum with a few things changed for the model of car being addressed - For instance, many drivers of British sports cars often choose to carry along a much larger fire extinguisher   

So here's the list from that old discussion, with a few words of advice:  Choose what to bring that suits YOUR car because a lot of our 356s are unique in some way, like my electronic ignition not only is unique, it is no longer in stock and you can't just pop a Bosch 009 in there and expect the coil wire connector to be compatible.....It ain't.  

Same for a bunch of other stuff, BUT, there is also a lot of commonality across all of our cars (think light bulbs, etc.) and some of the spares are generic.  Also, what you choose to bring for tools and spares will depend on your mechanical ability and how much you can fix on your car, alone, at the far end of a state park, near closing time, like Joel.  Honestly, I've met Joel and Barbara, his wife, and I believe he can fix anything, kind of like MacGyver.  This time he had everything he needed, just in case, and it paid off.

Also, decide how far you might journey from home when planning spares/tools, too.  If you're just bopping around town then you need a smaller percentage of "X" stuff.  If you're planning cross-country treks over 50 miles from home, then you're gonna need "X+" stuff, especially the things you can only get these days from CIP1 or CB Performance (although NAPA continues to surprise me in what they carry or can get that day).

Here's the link to that old discussion, gotten from the search function:

https://www.speedsterowners.co...-spares-for-the-road

I found that I can fit quite a bunch of tools and parts in bags in the space between the gas tank and bulkhead or around the top of the spare (when I had a spare!   ), then more space on both sides of the battery in the nose (before I put the heater in there), plus another parts bag behind the passenger seat AND my scissor jack and a windbreaker behind my seat.   Looking at the car at a show, you would never see any of that stuff. I don't put much of anything on the rear seat, what with the top, tonneau and side curtain stowage back there, but done right I can fit a small bag and some coats (top down) or a couple of overnight bags (top up).  Someone with an original 356 I saw had a nifty, vintage holder in the engine compartment for a can of oil - thought that was cool.  Remember when oil came in cans?  He had an "Oilzum" can in there from a local (Worcester, MA) oil supplier of the 1950's.

Last edited by Gordon Nichols
Gordon Nichols posted:

Here's the link to that old discussion, gotten from the search function:

https://www.speedsterowners.co...-spares-for-the-road

Amazing list @Gordon Nichols. Thanks for putting that together. I went ahead and created an Amazon Wishlist for every item I could find on the list on Amazon.

Amazon Wishlist - Speedster Essentials Road Kit

Can you look it over to see if I chose any less desirable items or missed anything important? For example, the pocket brake bender is new to me. I'd like to start assembling a proper kit. I added flares and a lithium jump starter/flashlight to your list. I've used them both in emergencies.

speedster-road-kit

I suspect many of us have most of this list already. But I figured it's best to have a global list for me to reference back to.

Attachments

Images (1)
  • speedster-road-kit
Last edited by Ryan (formerly) in NorCal

In a moment similar to what Joel has recently endured, I was out yesterday afternoon and the shorter day caught up with me, so I turned on the parking lights and.....What?  Where are my dash lights?  Turned the headlight knob up - it was already up all the way and didn't help.  Then I noticed the Multi-gauge on the left was lit, but the other two? ≈ Bupka!  I also noticed that my radio face didn't dim when I turned down the dash lights.  WHAT?!?!?

Drove home and crawled under the dash - That, alone, seems to be getting harder by the season - and found that the Ham-Fisted guy who installed my heater control under the dash (me) must have gotten his hand up near the gauges and pulled a wire out of a poorly-made terminal crimp at a dash light.  In fact, two crimps had let go.  All of the basic dash harness was made in the 1990's before I got a professional, super-spiffy, ratcheting terminal crimp tool, so all my crimps before that are suspect.  I made those crimps with a medium pair of water-pump pliers - they work, but make less than stellar crimps.

So now I have the gauges half out of the dash and am re-terminating as much as I can with the new crimper.  Fortunately, many of them were machine crimped from the original harness and I'm only doing the ones I added, and only if I can pull the wire(s) out by tugging on them.  If they seem tight, they stay put.

It's always sumthin', Right @joelabraham?

Speaking of dash lights with an ECU and a Subie you could throw a code and the idiot light shuts down as well.  

Resetting the vehicle by turning the key 2-3 times made my engine light finally show up.  New platform.. new issues. New learning curve... just saying.

 

Also you may be right there on needing a racheting unit, I still squeeze mine maybe I should get a tool like yours Pict..  

On the other hand I have a very good, rather stellar, induction based soldering tool that was given to me by a good friend and it is like unbelievable to use.  Never use my old soldering iron as this one is so precise. 

 

Ryan in NorCal posted:
Gordon Nichols posted:

Here's the link to that old discussion, gotten from the search function:

https://www.speedsterowners.co...-spares-for-the-road

Amazing list @Gordon Nichols. Thanks for putting that together. I went ahead and created an Amazon Wishlist for every item I could find on the list on Amazon.

Amazon Wishlist - Speedster Essentials Road Kit

Can you look it over to see if I chose any less desirable items or missed anything important? For example, the pocket brake bender is new to me. I'd like to start assembling a proper kit. I added flares and a lithium jump starter/flashlight to your list. I've used them both in emergencies.

speedster-road-kit

I suspect many of us have most of this list already. But I figured it's best to have a global list for me to reference back to.

Wouldn’t  Premire AAA membership be cheaper? :-)

Add Reply

Post Content
×
×
×
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×
×